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Why do I have so much trouble reading the dipstick on my 05? I think what I'm seeing is oil getting caught on the stick edges when I pull it in/out of the tube. But it seems to cover half the width of the stick. And it's pretty consistently there if I try multiple times. I've attached an example photo. Also what's with the spiral design of the stick? Am I supposed to twist the thing as it inserts?
Those are hash marks, not spirals. To the TOP of the hash-marks, is full. To the 2nd dot, is just a tad
over, but is fine. You pull it out, wipe the end clean, then quickly, IN and OUT.
THIS, the one on the bottom, is a spiral Dip-stick:
Why spiral? Well, they don't start off that way. They fill the engine with proper amount of oil, capacity
specific. Then they twist the dip stick to shorten it until it reads full. Ford is not the only manufacturer
to do this, and it's been done for year's on certain style dipsticks. It also makes it easier to put in and take
out once you find the sweet spot... Why do they do it? The same engine is going into a lot of different
vehicles. In each vehicle the engine sits at a different angle. So, they fill it with the oil amount it calls
for, then twist it till it measures full. So, some can have tighter or looser winds based on the angle of the
motor. Rather than have a set inventory of calibrated length dipsticks for every angle, they use one to
reduce costs, twist till it reads full, then cut the top and put the handle on. That makes it "adjustable."
Oh, and that goes for transmission ones too...
Last edited by 08'MustangDude; 04-09-2019 at 05:16 PM.
How is it that each S197 mustang engine gets installed at different angles? Are the mounting tolerances that large? If you were to say they twist each dipstick for a different type of vehicle/engine, that makes sense actually.
It seems to me that the spiral may make the dipstick want to spin and the edges more likely to catch oil in the tube, which is causing my difficult reading of the level.
How is it that each S197 mustang engine gets installed at different angles? Are the mounting tolerances that large? If you were to say they twist each dipstick for a different type of vehicle/engine, that makes sense actually.
It seems to me that the spiral may make the dipstick want to spin and the edges more likely to catch oil in the tube, which is causing my difficult reading of the level.
Show me where I typed, that each mustang engine sits at a different angle, I dare you.
Never mind, I will:
Originally Posted by ME
The same engine is going into a lot of different vehicles.
In each vehicle the engine sits at a different angle.
I know English is a hard language to master, but be patient...
There is nothing there that said every S197 engine is at a different
angle... So, you consider "a lot of different vehicles" as each
different S197 that rolls of the line? I can't see how you got that...
I have never had issues reading oil levels from spiraled dip-sticks, and that
includes transmissions ones too...
From browsing some other forums, the consensus seems to be that the twisted design keeps the dipstick more rigid, and tries to resist kinking when inserting into the tube. Perhaps it also keeps the flat part centered in the tube.
04-08-2019, 09:35 PM
Trouble reading spiral dipstick
