Can overfilling the oil cause damage

Tiny
ROBERT REED
  • MEMBER
  • 2002 JEEP GRAND CHEROKEE
  • 4.0L
  • 6 CYL
  • 160,000 MILES
What damage can be caused by overfilling your oil. Buy a quart and a half for 30 miles and then half a quart for 150.
Tuesday, August 6th, 2019 AT 4:46 PM

4 Replies

Tiny
ROBERT REED
  • MEMBER
  • 3 POSTS
I ask because my oil pressure is higher and now I got all the rapping under the hood. I want the lodge oil change in company because I figured they could do it in an hour and I wouldn't have to bother. But they ended up messing up my engine. I just need to know how bad. Thanks for anybody's answer.
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Tuesday, August 6th, 2019 AT 4:48 PM
Tiny
CARADIODOC
  • MECHANIC
  • 33,873 POSTS
Unless something unusual happened, there should be nothing to worry about. With sustained high-speed highway driving, if the oil level is seriously over-filled, the spinning crankshaft can hit it and whip air bubbles into it. Air can be compressed, which is exactly what we want oil to not do so it will isolate moving parts from each other.

The first symptom is likely to be rattling lifters that have bled down, but those will clear up again once the air is out of the oil.

You'll notice your dip stick is marked with "Min" and "Max". "Add" and "Full" are no longer used to address the complaints of oil usage between oil changes. All engines today use a little oil. As long as the level remains above the "Min" mark, you don't have to add any. Likewise, when the exact measured amount is put in during an oil change, the level won't reach the "Max" mark. That leaves plenty of room for putting in more oil than what is called for. If I put in a quart too much in my engine, I would likely drain it out only because I'm a cheapskate. The additives wear out in about 3,000 miles, regardless how much oil you put in, so if I drain that extra quart out and save it, I can use it at the next oil change. Other than that huge financial hit for the cost of a quart of oil, I wouldn't be concerned with it being over-filled by that much.
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Tuesday, August 6th, 2019 AT 5:37 PM
Tiny
ROBERT REED
  • MEMBER
  • 3 POSTS
What if they moved it with no oil in it?
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Wednesday, August 7th, 2019 AT 8:56 AM
Tiny
CARADIODOC
  • MECHANIC
  • 33,873 POSTS
That's entirely different. No big deal if they pushed it with the engine off. Remember too that if your engine calls for five quarts of oil at an oil change, there is actually about seven quarts in it. A good two quarts never drains out as it is in the passages and oil pump. Most engines will survive a few seconds with no oil pressure, especially if it isn't under hard acceleration.
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Wednesday, August 7th, 2019 AT 6:13 PM

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