Why you MUST check your oil
It’s critical to check your oil, because it can help you avoid potential problems down the road. I check mine about once a month, and here’s how I do it. Merv Junior come over with the Jeep, so the first thing we done is we made sure the jalopy was on level ground. That way you get an accurate reading. And there are some car makers, by the way, that’ll recommend you check the oil when the engine is still warm. But for the most part a cooler engine is a better idea. That way you won’t burn yourself and need to be rushed to the hospital in an ambulance while the neighbors watch you get loaded on a stretcher in your underwear. I change my oil about every 5,000 miles. Now for some people with synthetic oil, they go longer. Closer to 10,000 miles. But I like to do mine more reqular. Maybe I’m old-fashioned, but I think being regular helps you avoid a lot of problems. STEP 1: Pop your hood release and open the hood of your vehicle. This can seem a bit dicey, but once you know the trick, it’s a cinch. You just gotta reach up under there with your fingertips and you’ll feel the release mechanism. Your hood might have a hydraulic arm to hold her up, but If not, you might just have a good old-fashioned hood prop
STEP 2: Yank yer dipstick (heh heh) . Then wipe it clean with a rag – or I like to use Helen’s old bloomers – but wipe it clean so you can see the marks on it real good. You’ll notice level indicators. A low level mark and a full level mark. You’re gonna need these in a minute. STEP 3: Reinsert the dipstick and take a look at your marks again. Don’t you just feel like a doctor right now?
Now, the oil should be somewhere between the high and the low marks. If she’s low, or below the low mark, that means you need oil. Now, some dipsticks don’t have 2 lines on them, they just got 2 dots of them. It still means the same thing. There’s the high dot and the low dot.
And lookit, chances are your oil is gonna be black or brown, so don’t freak out, it’s pretty normal. But if it’s kinda milky colored, you might have coolant leaking in the engine and that ain’t good. Have her looked at. And metal particles in oil is a bad sign. And for Pete’s sake, though it may be tempting, DO NOT LICK THE DIPSTICK OR EAT THE OIL. DANGER! (Though it does make my mouth water just thinking about it.) Anyway, reinsert the dipstick, add oil if you need it ‘til you get her to the proper level, and it’s that easy.
