A man walked into the gas station store as I was ambling about looking for some father-figure to mentor me. The clerks were young women, so I used my sexist stereotyping to steer me away. The man was scratching lottery tickets and chatting with an acquaintance. He looked like a man of the earth, and been around long enough to know a car engine from a donkey's ass. I put on my friendly naive boy face and asked him if he could help me with some information about car maintenance.
Yep, he told me it was probably engine oil was low. I went out to my car with some table napkins and wiped the stick and re-inserted it to check the level, like he said to. There was one bead at the very tip of the stick. I ventured a shaky hypothesis that this meant the engine oil was low. Not wanting to make a decision solely on my own inexperienced judgment, I took a few pictures of the stick on my phone. I also took a picture of the number on the engine valve, so I would know which oil to buy.
The man was still inside when I came back. What luck! "Can I bother you again for some more advice?" Showed him the photos, and the bottle of engine oil I picked out. "Should I buy Synthetic?" Yep, it sticks to the engine parts better. "The number on the bottle doesn't match my valve..." That don't matter. "How much do I pour?" Put the whole bottle in there. "Do I need to wait for the engine to cool down before I open the valve?" It'll be fine.
Thanks, man! I'm getting there, just starting out, but I'll get there. God bless.
Maybe I'll give him some good luck on those lottery tickets. :-)
Oh yeah, I inflated my tires to 35 PSI per car door sticker recommendations. Car feels much better at 35 than at 30 PSI. Car was sagging a bit before.
Dude read your car manual about recommended oil maintenance. One of the worst things you can do is overfill the oil. You're living on the road so you gotta rely on your car and know how to handle basic maintenance. Call me if you need help.
ReplyDeleteBased on that little drop though, you probably did need a full quart. Better to check when it's not super hot. Get an oil change.
Well. At least you know now! :) auto part stores sometimes give u pointers too
ReplyDeleteI think it's OK. I checked the oil again with a cool engine, and the oil reached 1 cm above the high notch on the stick. Googled the heck out of it, and general consensus is it's probably better to not exceed the notch, but others said it's safe enough.
ReplyDeletePeople said racers often over-fill the oil. Unless the oil is really high, the engine can handle it without trouble. If there's a problem with too much oil, it should be noticeable right away they said. Also, the level in the motor changes as you go up steep inclines and stuff, so there is some room to give beyond the top notch. Maybe driving those steep roads and taking sharp turns was what made things feel weird. I'm staying away from those crazy roads.
Also, I became paranoid and hyper-sensitive to every smell and noise, so the problem is probably in my head. Drove the car on the highway today and it seems normal. Going to drive docile and protective for a while, until my paranoia evaporates and I grow over-confident. : )
Yeah I downloaded the owner's manual. I should not have tossed out the paper version. I'll read it... or get the SparkNotes for it... well, maybe I can just B.S. my way through the test. I have to get my state inspection soon. I wonder if all this stuff in my car is going to be a problem?