Dipstick Reads Over Full with 3 Quarts

Maintenance/Repairs
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1

In my Owner’s Manual, it states that the amount of oil required for the 2006 Toyota Corolla is about 4 quarts (even a little over).



I bought 4 quarts, put in 3, checked the dipstick, and it came up reading OVER full. I let it sit for a bit, drove the car a little, and it STILL reads over.



I don’t want to put in the final quart for fear of really damaging the engine, but it’s supposed to take 4, and I’m only running on 3. What’s the deal?

2

My guess is you just changed your oil, did you change the oil filter also?

3

I changed the oil filter as well.

4

I think the question lies in how well you drained the oil sump. We have owned two Corollas and never had this issue; they took the four quarts specified. I always let the car sit level for about 20 mins before jacking it up and finishing the oil change procedure, to make sure the oil has time to drain out.

I assume you changed the oil filter, since not changing the filter would cause a slight difference, but nothing close to one quart.

I would continue to drive it and believe the dip stick, unless you have prior evidence the dipstick was wrong. Was this the first oil change you did on this car, or have you done others, and got the full four quarts out?

5

I should also note that this happened to me the last time I changed my oil. I filled it with about 3.5 quarts, drove it for 4,000 miles, and it seemed fine.

6

This is the second oil change I’ve done on my own (the first having the same, as seen above).

I drained it properly, I believe. I mean, it was dripping A TINY BIT when I capped it up, but it looked like it was gone.

7

Can you measure how much oil you took out, or did you already recycle it?

8

I funneled the old oil into 3 separate quart containers, and I had just a little bit left over.

9

Is there any chance the stop on the dipstick has slipped? If it slipped 1/2" (guess) you might only have 3 quarts of oil in the engine, and just to be sure you are on a level surface?

10 
Make certain that everything is tightened-up . . . drain plug and oil filter, then recheck the oil level daily for a week, making certain that your dipstick goes all the way down, then if the level is OK . . . I'd say "Happy Motoring!" If it still freaks you out, get another dipstick . . . maybe at the Dealer or from a buddy who has an "06 Corolla . . . and check the level with THAT dipstick.  Rocketman
11

i am just throwing this out there for you to think about.

i had a chryco van years ago that had a neat looking plug on the oil pan. i took it out to do my first oil change and got the same results you did. it turned out that was NOT the lowest plug, nor the correct plug to use to drain the oil. but it WAS the most convenient, easiest to access plug however, i never did find out what that other plug was for, but it was not for oil changes!