The oil stick broke off of the oil stick handle. The stick is stuck inside the oil stick tube and the only way it can be removed I have been told (so I can get a new oil stick) is to remove the entire bottom part of the oil pan etc. to get to it. 3 different garages/mechanics have quoted me $300 to do this work. I figure if I just have the oil changed every 3 months I?ll know I always have oil instead of spending the $300 ? which is a painful thought! Any suggestions for me?
Year/Make/Model/Engine would help a lot.
Do you have reason to believe it’s still in the tube? If so you have a couple of options: If its a metal dipstick, you might be able to fish it out with a long telescoping magnet. If not, usually the tube the dipstick goes into comes off pretty easily. Knowing what kind of car it is would help!
On many cars the dipstick tube can be removed from the engine. If this is possible on your car it would make it much simpler to retrieve the broken dipstick. I think removing the oil pan is rather drastic, and potentially unnecessary.
If we knew the make, model, year, and engine (if applicable) of your car we might be able to offer helpful suggestions.
- mountainbike
The dipstick tube is usually pretty easy to take off the engine, when the engine is out of the car, but when in place and all the other accessories surround it, it can be a bit difficult to get at. Year make model would help to determine how hard or easy it would be.
The end of it is probably not very far down the tube. I had this happen once, and heres what worked for me. I used a pair of tweezers to reach down tube and get a hold of the stick. Then I clamped the tweezers together with a pair of pliers to get more grip on the stick. It pulled right out.
Like Greasy Jack said, use a magnet.
I have a 2" long 1/4" diameter magnet on a 1’ shank that would do this retrieval easily.