nagata

Alright, the previous owner of my 96 GT installed a Lokar oil dipstick when he did the BBK long tubes. According to the receipts he gave me, it came from Summit Racing, P/N LOK-ED-5014. I went to Summit's site and that is supposed to be the correct P/N for a 4.6L.

However, in doing my first oil change on the GT today, I found that the dipstick shows more than full after only 5 quarts of oil, when the capacity is 6 quarts. So, that's not good. I'm not sure what point it shows full, as I drained the oil, changed the filter, then poured 5 quarts in and started the engine, let it idle for a minute, checked everything, lowered it, then left it for 30-45 minutes before checking the dipstick. After I found that it's showing an inaccurate oil level, I added another 3/4 of a quart to bring the total to 5.75 quarts, to make sure it has enough oil but avoid over-filling.

Has anyone else had this problem? Seems like the dipstick is too long...Any possible fix? I'd opt for a stock dipstick, but I've read that there is a clearance issue between a stock dipstick and long tube headers. Thanks.

Tim99GT

Ok, here's what you do. On your next oil change, put all 6qts in the motor. Check level on dipstick. Wipe and reinsert dipstick. Pull it again, note the level on the dipstick.
Now go to a work bench or concrete for that matter. Take a small hammer and chisel and mark the dipstick for the correct level indicator. Problem solved...

And yes, some ppl have issues with their dipstick readings. They are not 100% accurate.

WannaBeGearHead

Isn't his oil pan only 5qts? lol

nagata

Fair enough, that makes sense, I just hate jerry rigging something. I know dipsticks aren't 100%, but it seems odd that it would be this off. With 5.75 quarts in, the oil level is above the flat part with markings, onto the braided steel stick. And yes, I'm positive I only put 5 and 3/4 quarts in Thanks!


Hmmm, I hope not. If it is, then Ford has some explaining to do, as the manual says the 4.6L oil refill capacity is 6 qts with a filter change, which I did. It shows 5 qts for the 3.8L. The oil pan definitely looks stock, the PO said he never changed it and he did all the engine work and bolt ons. Hope I didn't put in too much oil because I had bad info.

cliffyk

The 4.6L V8 was originally spec'd for 5 qts of oil, however in 2001 3rd party testing revealed hints of (and real) oil starvation when turning sharply and generating prolonged high lateral loads. Because of this report, and I suspect their own testing, in 2002 Ford changed the fill recommendation to 6 qts.

From the 2001 OM:


From the 2002 OM:


The only change was the recommended fill and the dipstick. If I owned a pre-2002 MY GT I'd run 6 qts, my brother has run 6 qts in his '99 for nearly 3 years--it has 150k miles on it now...

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I wanted to add a link to this TSB (TSB 03-8-3) as well. It relates to the changes in the dipstick markings made since 2002, and that the proper oil level is anywhere in the crosshatched area between the upper and lower marks. The TSB also explains why oil observed levels will vary, and why there's no need to obsess over it.

If your car is earlier than the 2002 MY, and you run 6.0 qts, you may wish to mark your dip stick as suggested above--the safe range will remain the same size, just displaced upward by the extra quart (or just "eyeball" and remember the new level).

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PS: It would be nice if someone could "sticky" this so that I don't have to re-type it all the time...

nagata

Thanks for posting that up! That might explain why this dipstick is inaccurate, though it still seems like a lackluster product since it's supposedly for all 96-05 Mustang 4.6s. Oh well, I'll try to mark it and just live with it. Thanks for the responses!

cliffyk

Is the stick removable from the handle (I've seen some with set screws and/or pins fastening the stick)? If so you could make note of the distance between the markings and the proper level, remove the handle and shorten the top end of the stick--then reassemble...

WannaBeGearHead

[QUOTE=cliffyk;6597212]If I owned a pre-2002 MY GT I'd run 6 qts, my brother has run 6 qts in his '99 for nearly 3 years--it has 150k miles on it now...
[QUOTE]

I run 5qts now and it is in the middle of the min and max. But I will start running 6qts because of the above statement.

Xemeth

I have a Lokar dip stick too. Mine reads slightly low when I put 7 quarts in (yes, 7, it's better if the motor is made to rev high, which mine is), but I just figure if I put the 7 in and the oil shows up on the dipstick, I'm fine.

jvog

hmm. Mine seems to read low. Does anyone else have a hard time gettin a readable amount of oil on the end? It just doesn't seem to hold oil