Oil overfill, dangerous levels?

[Big E 118]

Hi, as a new owner of a V8 Vantage S Roadster I'm slightly perplexed with the oil level check procedure but after actually reading the manual and looking at the helpful threads on here I think I've got it right, now the results.....

With the car cold (not used for three days) on a level surface, 15C in the garage (if that matters!). I've checked there's oil in there by cleaning the dipstick then screwing the cap down and removing. The oil level is nearly 2cm OVER the max at this point


I have then run the engine at 2k rpm for 20 seconds, turned the engine off and let it rest for 30 seconds, cleaned the dipstick off then screwed it in and checked the level, it's about 3.7cm OVER max level.


Now I think I've followed the procedure correctly and to me that is a significant overfill. Now I only picked up the car 2 weeks ago from an Aston main dealer near me and it had a service prior to collection, I hadn't thought to check the oil straight away after a service but I've got a euro trip planned on Friday.

If I've done everything correctly and there is a genuine overfill by the dealer I have a couple of questions:
Is this a significant overfill that could be dangerous to the health of the engine?
Seems to be running fine but could damage have been caused already?
Am I just being paranoid and "it will be ok"?

I'll be speaking to the dealer later but any advice to an Aston newbie would be helpful and may help my plan of attack.

many thanks.

[DocW]

Welcome to Aston ownership, it can vary from extreme pleasure to extreme anxiety. I'm pretty sure the engine has been overfilled, as you will have read it takes a litre to move from min to max on the dipstick. I don't know if the scale continues to be linear but if it is you are around 1l over. I would speak to Aston technical at Gaydon on 01926 644722 to check if you are correct and ask whether you should drive it or have some oil removed prior to restarting the engine. I may be over cautious or simply wrong but that's what I would do, also it removes the suspicion that the dealer may try to cover their backs if they are in error. Best wishes and good luck on your trip ( I've just done 2500 miles around France/Italy).

[Big E 118]

DocW said:

Welcome to Aston ownership, it can vary from extreme pleasure to extreme anxiety. I'm pretty sure the engine has been overfilled, as you will have read it takes a litre to move from min to max on the dipstick. I don't know if the scale continues to be linear but if it is you are around 1l over. I would speak to Aston technical at Gaydon on 01926 644722 to check if you are correct and ask whether you should drive it or have some oil removed prior to restarting the engine. I may be over cautious or simply wrong but that's what I would do, also it removes the suspicion that the dealer may try to cover their backs if they are in error. Best wishes and good luck on your trip ( I've just done 2500 miles around France/Italy).

Thanks for the advice, I've just called Aston technical and they say it's OK to drive back to the dealer as is, carefully!

Edited to add Aston response

Edited by Big E 118 on Tuesday 12th September 10:23

[Manx V8V]

See what AM techical say first, but to be sure you could nip along to the nearest pharmacy and buy the biggest syringe they have, then put a piece of tube on the end and draw some oil off before driving it.
edited to say - sounds like you are safe to drive so no need to bother with the above.

Edited by Manx V8V on Tuesday 12th September 10:30

[DocW]

Thanks for the update, you've had me checking my oil this morning. I'm glad to see that the level is unchanged after my European trip and it's still a pale golden oil. Very relieved you checked, I hate to think of the consequences of a few thousand miles with an overfull oil level.

[bogie]

Min to max on the dipstick is 2L

Get a syringe and tube and remove it until it measures correctly. I cant imagine that just a litre or so too much will do any harm ...its a dry sump system

[DocW]

bogie said:

Min to max on the dipstick is 2L

Get a syringe and tube and remove it until it measures correctly. I cant imagine that just a litre or so too much will do any harm ...its a dry sump system

It says 1 litre to move from min to max in my owners book. I don't know if the engine configuration has changed over different model years, mine is 2016.

[Jon39]

I faced exactly your problem, following my confusion about oil level checking.
The book says, if no oil on the dipstick on first dip, then add oil.
What they did not say, was if car has not been started for a month or so, there will never be oil on the dipstick, even if filled to the correct level.

I had to suck oil out using a tube. Probably safer for health, to use a tube with syringe, as mentioned above.
It is probably the only way to make your oil level correct. I would always go by the max line on the dipstick, not what some 'expert' tells me.

It probably says in the book, but are we supposed to screw down the dipstick to obtain the correct reading? I do it that way, but it always makes me wonder, when I am doing the oil check.

[DocW]

Jon you are correct that the dipstick should be screwed fully down prior to unscrewing and checking the level. The owners manual is pretty detailed in its advice. I also keep it to max but just assume it's ok if between the marks.

[raceboy]

I did it for the first time at the weekend, it's a bit of a song and dance but I got a reading of a about 3/4 up the dipstick marks so was happy.
The first 'cold' check was a bit worrying as the only sight of oil was a trace in the upper groove and the very bottom, but as has been mentioned, it's a dry sump and not been used for a week, followed the engine running/waiting procedure to the letter, stop watch on the phone and the level was now spot on.

[Big E 118]

It looks like Aston have overfilled by a litre, not an insignificant amount. You would think they would know exactly ho much oil was in the system and how much to refill after an oil change....unless they didn't drain the used oil fully I guess?

On collection my pre purchase inspection documents shows "oil level" and that box was ticked. This clearly wasn't checked in the pre-purchase inspection, I wonder how many other boxes were ticked where there was no inspection?

Really quite annoyed with the number of little things not done that were promised/expected and I'm awaiting a response from the dealership.

I love the car but the buying experience to date has been poor.

[DocW]

Glad it's sorted. I would think you should be in line for a goodwill gesture. An Aston car cover, leather key fob cover? The dealer principal or service manager needs to make good your initial experience.

[Big E 118]

DocW said:

Glad it's sorted. I would think you should be in line for a goodwill gesture. An Aston car cover, leather key fob cover? The dealer principal or service manager needs to make good your initial experience.

Well not quite yet, I'll try and get over this afternoon. See how long I have to wait around to get it sorted.

[raceboy]

Based on the £20 a litre they seem to charge for the stuff I'd be asking for them to pop what they suck out in a bottle for me to take home.

[Big E 118]

DocW said:

Glad it's sorted. I would think you should be in line for a goodwill gesture. An Aston car cover, leather key fob cover? The dealer principal or service manager needs to make good your initial experience.

Well not quite yet, I'll try and get over this afternoon. See how long I have to wait around to get it sorted.

[cayman-black]

raceboy said:

Based on the £20 a litre they seem to charge for the stuff I'd be asking for them to pop what they suck out in a bottle for me to take home.

Absolutely so would i . Its just ridiculous that they can't even put the correct amount of oil in the engine in the first place and there we all are saying how important it is to have a full AMMD service history , yeh right!

Edited by cayman-black on Tuesday 12th September 12:08

[bogie]

DocW said:

bogie said:

Min to max on the dipstick is 2L

Get a syringe and tube and remove it until it measures correctly. I cant imagine that just a litre or so too much will do any harm ...its a dry sump system

It says 1 litre to move from min to max in my owners book. I don't know if the engine configuration has changed over different model years, mine is 2016.

Must have changed, not sure when, my owners manual says 2L

so definitely worth checking in the owners manual for your model year

[huntsen]

I've posted on this subject before, but haven't had satisfactory answers yet .
Why is the dry sump checking procedure what it is?
To scavenge the oil out of where it gets to over the time it's stood idle - oil cooler, oil lines. engine sump etc - that's the 20 seconds at 2000rpm. The oil ends up in the oil tank, obviously.
Why do we then have to let it stand for 30 seconds? Why not 1 minute? 5 minutes? Does the oil run back to where it shouldn't be that quickly? Does the 30 second delay permit anything else to happen? What would happen if I stopped the engine when it's been running for more than 20 seconds? Could I expect the oil level measurement to be correct? (if rather hot - caution)..
For a procedure so arcane and so detailed, this strikes me as rather odd and rather non-intuitive? Can anyone enlighten us?

Edited by huntsen on Tuesday 12th September 12:27

Edited by huntsen on Tuesday 12th September 12:27

[Manx V8V]

I've always assumed the 30 second wait is to allow the oil which has been returned to the tank to run down the sides of the tank and level.out, but thats just a guess.

[Jon39]

Big E 118 said:

On collection my pre purchase inspection documents shows "oil level" and that box was ticked.
This clearly wasn't checked in the pre-purchase inspection, I wonder how many other boxes were ticked where there was no inspection?

Unfortunately, a pen made a mark on paper. The only thing that we can be certain about.

Reminds me of when I was teaching my children to drive.
You are waiting to pull out of a side road.
An approaching car from your right, is indicating left.
What does that mean?

The usual answer is, that car is going to turn into my side road.
WRONG.

The only thing that you can be certain about, is electrical current is flowing through a filament. Do not pull out.

The children passed first time, and have become quite good drivers.

Sorry to read your sorry tale, but hopefully you can forget about it soon. I love my car, and I am sure that you will too.
I drove 150 miles yesterday, and did not see another AM. What a treat in this standardised world.