no oil showing on dip stick

daggers_jones · Nov 19th, 2007, 19:57

Hi everyone, this is our first posting so please be gentle

we have a v40 1.6 (2004)
we went to check the oil and none is showing on the dip stick - slightly panicked we put three quarters of a litre in but it's still not showing any oil.

stranger still is no warning lights are on or anything? (do when on ignition and then go off as normal)

oil was changed at last service 11,500 approx ago.

can anyone shed some light on this please?

CTCNetwork · Nov 19th, 2007, 20:05

Hi,

Do you have tell-tale oil spot/stains where the car is parked?
Has the warning light come on when cornering left or right sharply?

I would make sure you are checking the oil correctly too.
Get the car on a level surface.
Remove the engine oil dip-stick and wipe it with a clean cloth.
Insert fully, leave a second and then remove and look carefully at the markers.
You can check where the markers are when you wipe the stick so you know where to look..

Des. . .

morphinemitt · Nov 19th, 2007, 20:17

Hi, and welcome.
Three quarters of a litre isn't a great deal for a car that usually holds well over four litres.
As Des says: Check for leaks where the car has been parked and make sure you push the dipstick ALL the way in.
I'd put some more oil in it too. You can always undo the sump-plug if you put too much in.
As for warning lights, they sometimes don't come on unless the sump is really low on oil.
Hope this helps.

mharriso · Nov 20th, 2007, 01:42

warnign light only comes on if pressure is low, so as long as there's enough to reach the oil pick up and maintain pressure you will not have a warning light.

weekly check items anyway rather than every 11,00mikes . kms etc...along with all other fluids lighting and tyre pressures........

PNuT · Nov 20th, 2007, 05:39

just to have some idea of oil amounts & levels, usually the difference between the oil levels on the dipstick for volvos is 1.5 litres....

if you have no sign of oil on the dipstick atall i would expect you need a minimum of 2 litres.....

i added 4.5 litres too my mums car once

John_C · Nov 20th, 2007, 07:54

Yep, agree with what the other people on the thread have said. I once got a pool car from work and thought it sounded a bit rough. I needed to put four litres of oil in it to get the oil back up to the mark and two just to get a trace of oil on the dipstick. Oil pressure light was absolutely fine on that car too and it's capacity was 5.5 litres.

That said, unless you're comfortable with taking the sump plug out to drain some I'd make sure you're checking it right and add oil gradually, maybe half a litre at a time and check the results. Too much oil is not as bad as not enough (well, unless you REALLY over-fill it) but it's still not a good thing.

Cheers,
John

daggers_jones · Nov 20th, 2007, 09:28

Just to say thanks to everyone for their comments and advice.

Also there are no oil patches showing anywhere where we park up. That's one of the reason we are a bit confused and sort advice.
We added a couple of litres last night and it appears now on the dipstick.

Will check at lunch time today and see what's what.
also booked it in for a service just in case
cheers again

John_C · Nov 23rd, 2007, 18:01

You *had* checked it between 11,500 miles ago and when you first noticed that there was no oil on the dipstick, yes?

Just checking

Cheers,
John

DutchV40 · Nov 23rd, 2007, 18:23

Quote:

Originally Posted by mharriso

warnign light only comes on if pressure is low, so as long as there's enough to reach the oil pick up and maintain pressure you will not have a warning light.

weekly check items anyway rather than every 11,00mikes . kms etc...along with all other fluids lighting and tyre pressures........

Are You sure? I always thought that the warning light (red) only comes up when there is no pressure.
So if the light is off I can be sure that the oil pressure is ok?

Hezi · Nov 23rd, 2007, 18:26

Quote:

Originally Posted by John_C

You *had* checked it between 11,500 miles ago and when you first noticed that there was no oil on the dipstick, yes?

Just checking

Cheers,
John

????? Just what i was thinking

My wife thought the little oil light came on to let you know you needed to check and put oil in .One day with out a flicker the car went bang and the light came on i suppose it struggeled mantaining oil pressure with a con rod stuck through the crank case lol

Steve

Nov 19th, 2007, 19:57	#1
daggers_jones New Member Last Online: Nov 20th, 2007 10:07 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: leicester	no oil showing on dip stick Hi everyone, this is our first posting so please be gentle we have a v40 1.6 (2004) we went to check the oil and none is showing on the dip stick - slightly panicked we put three quarters of a litre in but it's still not showing any oil. stranger still is no warning lights are on or anything? (do when on ignition and then go off as normal) oil was changed at last service 11,500 approx ago. can anyone shed some light on this please?

Nov 19th, 2007, 20:05	#2
CTCNetwork Forum Support Team Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Liège, Belgium View Photos By: CTCNetwork	Hi, Do you have tell-tale oil spot/stains where the car is parked? Has the warning light come on when cornering left or right sharply? I would make sure you are checking the oil correctly too. Get the car on a level surface. Remove the engine oil dip-stick and wipe it with a clean cloth. Insert fully, leave a second and then remove and look carefully at the markers. You can check where the markers are when you wipe the stick so you know where to look.. Des. . . __________________ Density:- Not just a measurement ~ It's a whole way of Life.! ! ! I drive a Volvo, Please Don't Get In My Way! OldVolvos4Ever He shows up. People die. He vanishes. People should not be afraid of their governments. "He'll deliver more justice in a weekend than 10 years of your Governments should be afraid of their people... "V" courts & tribunals. Just stay out of his way." "I plan to."

Nov 19th, 2007, 20:17	#3
morphinemitt My nipper said! Last Online: Aug 1st, 2022 20:15 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Who knows?	Hi, and welcome. Three quarters of a litre isn't a great deal for a car that usually holds well over four litres. As Des says: Check for leaks where the car has been parked and make sure you push the dipstick ALL the way in. I'd put some more oil in it too. You can always undo the sump-plug if you put too much in. As for warning lights, they sometimes don't come on unless the sump is really low on oil. Hope this helps. __________________

Nov 20th, 2007, 05:39	#5
PNuT MaDMaN Last Online: Nov 26th, 2022 18:47 Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Red Lodge	just to have some idea of oil amounts & levels, usually the difference between the oil levels on the dipstick for volvos is 1.5 litres.... if you have no sign of oil on the dipstick atall i would expect you need a minimum of 2 litres..... i added 4.5 litres too my mums car once __________________

Nov 20th, 2007, 01:42	#4
mharriso Master Member Last Online: Jul 29th, 2009 01:20 Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: gold coast View Photos By: mharriso	warnign light only comes on if pressure is low, so as long as there's enough to reach the oil pick up and maintain pressure you will not have a warning light. weekly check items anyway rather than every 11,00mikes . kms etc...along with all other fluids lighting and tyre pressures........

Nov 20th, 2007, 07:54	#6
John_C Allons-y! Last Online: Jun 8th, 2020 15:32 Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Winchester	Yep, agree with what the other people on the thread have said. I once got a pool car from work and thought it sounded a bit rough. I needed to put four litres of oil in it to get the oil back up to the mark and two just to get a trace of oil on the dipstick. Oil pressure light was absolutely fine on that car too and it's capacity was 5.5 litres. That said, unless you're comfortable with taking the sump plug out to drain some I'd make sure you're checking it right and add oil gradually, maybe half a litre at a time and check the results. Too much oil is not as bad as not enough (well, unless you REALLY over-fill it) but it's still not a good thing. Cheers, John

Nov 20th, 2007, 09:28	#7
daggers_jones New Member Last Online: Nov 20th, 2007 10:07 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: leicester	Just to say thanks to everyone for their comments and advice. Also there are no oil patches showing anywhere where we park up. That's one of the reason we are a bit confused and sort advice. We added a couple of litres last night and it appears now on the dipstick. Will check at lunch time today and see what's what. also booked it in for a service just in case cheers again

Nov 23rd, 2007, 18:01	#8
John_C Allons-y! Last Online: Jun 8th, 2020 15:32 Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Winchester	You had checked it between 11,500 miles ago and when you first noticed that there was no oil on the dipstick, yes? Just checking Cheers, John

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