I own a 2014 Jeep Cherokee. The last two days my car has been dying after driving 1 block. This morning before leaving for work I check the oil and there was not oil on dipstick, it is not due for an oil change. Any thoughts?
Yup. You’re clearly not checking your oil level on a routine basis as required by your owner’s manual.
You need to check your oil level regularly and add a quart whenever indicated by the dipstick. Failure to do so will (probably already has) cause(d) premature wear of your engine and may cause the engine to seize up in one final heave-ho.
Oil needs to be checked at least weekly, and since yours now has premature wear you may want to check it no less than every other day. It’ll use more oil than it would if it had been regularly monitored.
Check your other fluids regularly too. Your owner’s manual will give you guidance on this.
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“car has been dying after driving 1 block” ? More details please. How many miles on the car? Check engine light on?
blockquote, div.yahoo_quoted { margin-left: 0 !important; border-left:1px #715FFA solid !important; padding-left:1ex !important; background-color:white !important; } Didn’t know I had to check my oil weekly. I thought if I maintained my scheduled oil change accordingly I was doing my part. I have never owned a vehicle where I had to check my oil weekly. I only drive my car back an forth to work and daily errands. I drive less than 12,000 a year. I have had the car less than 2 year. Also…it was not even time for an oil change. Oil change was not required for anothe 2 thousand miles. Only sign Ive had was it stopped twice to days in a row and then I checked the oil. There was no oil light on, nor no oil leaks in my garage. I took the car back to dealerships and they are conducting an oil consumption test. If the car is not leaking oil and the oil is not readable, where is it going or why is it burning oil so quickly?
Most oil consumption tests require the owner to return at a set period so someone can verify oil level. Is that what is happening? Second if not have an oil filter and oil change now and check oil level daily before starting vehicle for a week and after that check each week. Some vehicles will require additional oil between oil changes and that does not mean faulty engine.
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There are reasons for checking your oil between oil changes.
What if the person who changed your oil last put in two of the required quarts of oil…then got distracted by the boss, another employee, or a phone call…then returned to your car and forgot that not all the oil was poured into your engine.
Something like this could have happened to you, but how would you prove it if you never check the oil.
Every owners manual including your current one, or every manual from your previous cars would have stressed the importance of checking your oil. Running too low on oil is not just one of those things that you can shrug off…refill the oil and you’re good to go again. Oil is like the “Life’s Blood” of your engine. When you run out, internal damage is so severe that the only thing left is a new engine.
Yosemite
Many people consider me nuts for checking oil level weekly. I was taught that by my Father back when most vehicles used oil between 3,000 mile changes. While the hood is open I check brake fluid and coolant. This is always done after vehicle has sat overnight. The coolant overflow tank is not visible so I have to remove the radiator cap which should only be done when the engine is cold.
Let 'em!
As you drive your vehicle for hundreds of thousands of miles while they have to replace theirs every 100,000 miles. 
The nicest thing about being considered nuts is that you can do whatever you want and everyone accepts it. If they think you’re sane they question everything you do.
A few of the neighbors used to make remarks when my car was new 12 years ago because I washed and waxed it regularly. Neither of them has the same vehicle they had then, and mine still looks almost new. Ii think it may have finally dawned on them that perhaps I wasn’t so crazy after all!
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thoughts?
what did you do after you found out oil level was low?
add oil?
go online and ask a website what to do?
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If you’ve owned any other car before this one you, indeed, have owned a car where you should check your oil weekly, You just didn’t.
You check it for exactly the reason @Yosemite explained or of some failure in the engine allows oil to leak out or be burned. Now find yourself wondering what happened. If you had checked weekly (or at each gas fill-up), you’d not only be better informed but you would have caught the problem before damage occurs.
blockquote, div.yahoo_quoted { margin-left: 0 !important; border-left:1px #715FFA solid !important; padding-left:1ex !important; background-color:white !important; } I understand…thank you
I have to say I don’t check my oil weekly. Monthly perhaps. Lazy. But I always buy new and have never had a car that burned more than 1/2 quart between oil changes, and that only after 100k miles.
So I’m lazy and just take the chance that any change in the oil usage will be gradual enough for me to catch it.
IMO more comprehensive advice would be to check oil by mileage, not time.
Most Owner’s manual advice an oil check every time you get gas, which implies 2-400 miles.
I typically drive about 100 miles per week, so weekly for me would be overkill.
OTOH on a road trip I might go 2000 miles in a week.
Anyway, now that I know my car doesn’t use a noticeable amount of oil between changes I check the oil (and other fluids) every 1000 miles, which can vary from a couple days to a couple months.
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The dying may be the engine trying to seize due to lack of lubricant. If so, the engine is damaged goods.
I check my oil about every week to ten days at my shop because it’s more convenient, and I check the wife’s van every sunday morning as she sleeps in and I’m always looking for little things to do.
My truck has 285’000 miles and the wife’s van has 210’000 miles.
I change oil on both vehicles at 5 to 6 thousand miles.
If I but a replacement vehicle or a project to resell, I will check the oil the first three days then drop back to weekly. This lets me see if there is a problem with oil consumption before bad things happen.
Yosemite
Every car manufacturer that I’m aware of specifies that owners check engine oil at regular intervals, usually every time the vehicle is filled with gasoline.
I have owned many cars and have always checked all fluid levels on all cars, weekly.
The 2014 Jeep Cherokee Owner’s Manual cautions that _“To assure proper lubrication, the engine oil must be maintained at the correct level.”
Also, recommended is checking at “regular intervals, such as every fuel stop.” They explain the checking procedures, describing the “Safe Zone” on the dipstick, how much to add, and what type of oil.
CSA
Thank you for your response. I will starting checking.
I can definitely identify with your experience.
Many years ago, I worked with a woman who would always look at me quizzically and ask the same question when I took my car in for routine maintenance.
What was her question?
She would ask, “Why is your car being repaired AGAIN?”.
All of my attempts to explain the difference between routine maintenance and mechanical repair were met with blank stares and an obvious lack of comprehension. I tried my best, but…she just didn’t see any difference. The obvious explanation is that her cars did not get any scheduled maintenance, and she just drove them until they expired–after a few years.
I have to admit that this woman’s cars were rarely in the shop, but since she needed to replace them every 4 years or so, while I kept mine for ~10 years, I think that my approach was… perhaps… the better one.
I remember a co worker selling like a 7 year old car with maybe 60k miles, I asked if the brakes or anything had been done, she got very offended and said I posted on the flyer in perfect condition. I guess never having done anything to the car meant to her it must be in perfect condition.
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Fair enough, once you’ve established your engine’s oil usage.
However in the OP’s case I suspect premature wear has already occurred, bringing excess oil usage with it, and I think weekly is a good place to start… as a minimum.