oil question?

[hayabusa1285]

how much damage can it cause to put to much oil into there car? not talking like 2 quarts over saying if i put 6 in and it hit a lil over the H mark

[nytehawk]

You know, that's a good question. I don't have an answer for you, but I've often wondered that myself too -- especially when I recently noticed that the service shop slightly overfilled the trans fluid in my wife's car.

When the owner's manual says "do not overfill the oil" one would assume the designers must have allowed a little margin for overfilling error before bad things happen...

[Miles69]

From what I have read, too much oil can damage seals from excessive pressure, but I don't know how this would happen since the crank case is vented.

[hayabusa1285]

ya because i thought if anyhting it would just burn off if there was to much

[raymo19]

I little over is no problem. Too much and the oil in the pan will begin to froth and the froth does not lubricate like a fluid. This will cause damage.

[gomarlins3]

Just drain some out.

[Rocketman]

Sounds like a practical solution to me! :thumbup:

[repiv]

A "little" over is not a big deal. Putting in 6 qts doesn't really tell you much since various S2000s can take anywhere between 5.0 to 6.0 qts and be just right. If you are over the "H" mark by about the equivalent of 1 "x", that's about 0.2 qt. This is nothing. I think you can go as much as about 1.5 "x" over and still be OK.
Oil pressure will not be affected since this is determined by rpm. The pump will pump the same pressure at any given rpm and oil temp so long as the pump is always full and pumping oil (as opposed to too low a level when it can suck up air).
A significant overfill would bring the level of the oil in the crankcase high enough that the "big ends" of the crankshaft would slam down into the oil. This whips up the oil and creates foam. Foamed oil not only does not lubricate well or cool well, but if there is a big enough layer of foam, oil dropping back down from the valve area of the engine will have a tough time getting through to the oil pan. Eventually, there will be a big pool of oil a the top of the engine. This will get pushed out the PCV system and front breather system and your exhaust will kill mosquitoes. So yes, you'll eventually burn it off but too much oil getting into the combustion chamber isn't all that good. Our engines have a sort of "windage tray" under the crankshaft and above the oil in the pan. This is to minimize oil sloshing, so a little overfill is taken care off and won't likely get to the "big ends". I'd say that you're OK till you get to around 0.5 qt. Then you'd better keep an eye on the exhaust and consider taking a bit out.

overfilled the trans fluid in my wife's car.An overfill in a tranny or a rear diff is much different than an overfill in an engine. It also depends on if you're talking about an auto or a manual. In our manual trannies, it is actually acceptable and some (myself included) would recommend a slight overfill of about 200cc. Even the rear diff can benefit from an overfill of about 100cc. Those casings are quite small and the fluid volume must do a task that is quite demanding. A little extra fluid in those will be of good use. More volume means a greater capacity for heat transfer and contamination uptake. There are no parts like "big ends" to come crashing down into the fluid. Parts are already immersed in the fluid.

[hayabusa1285]

well my friend was behind me the other day and said he saw blue smoke(oil getting into the intake values is what im guessing). so just to be safe im goin to do the oil change sooner than expected. i ran about 1000 miles with i guess it over just a tad but just to be safe im just goin to change it out.

[repiv]

well my friend was behind me the other day and said he saw blue smoke(oil getting into the intake values is what im guessing). so just to be safe im goin to do the oil change sooner than expected. i ran about 1000 miles with i guess it over just a tad but just to be safe im just goin to change it out.
I don't see any reason to change it out. It's still new oil. Burning off a bit doesn't make what's left go bad. I suggest you take a real good reading** on the oil level so you can estimate just how much over you still are. Remember, each "X" is about 200cc. Estimate how many "X's" over the upper line. By your first description, it didn't sound like it was that far over. Besides, your car may have previously smoked anyway. Some do, especially if there's no cat or if the PCV valve is getting old.

** Do it the way Honda suggests. After engine gets to full operating temp, do the check. Park on a level surface, engine off, yank out dipstick, wait a few minutes, put clean dipstick back in, pull out and take a reading in good light. Or if it's more convenient, check it first thing in the morning before you crank it up, but only if the car sits on a level surface.

If it's more than about 400cc to 500cc, just remove the drain plug for a bit till enough oil comes out. Shouldn't take long to dump 1/2 qt.

[hayabusa1285]

well i was simple goin to change it for the fact i pay pennies for the oil as for my friend works in a part store. but u r correct i had removed the cat and car does have over a 100k on it (just cranked over 100 two weeks ago). but i did have a Honda tech whom a know personally and actually is on this thread and he said when we adjusted the values that they looked good. so do u think with the add oil and the no cat i would smoke like that. i was told before it would smoke just a tad and my friend could also be throwing thing a lil out of contact from what he saw. he did make it seem like the thing was throwing blue smoke out in which case i would believe i would be able to see something of this when i looked in the mirror. (which i do quiet often). i dunno either way i wanna get some of the oil out. if i am over to much do u think a lil over 1000 mile would have hurt it in anyway?

[repiv]

so do u think with the add oil and the no cat i would smoke like that.

i was told before it would smoke just a tad and my friend could also be throwing thing a lil out of contact from what he saw. he did make it seem like the thing was throwing blue smoke out in which case i would believe i would be able to see something of this when i looked in the mirror. (which i do quiet often).

do u think a lil over 1000 mile would have hurt it in anyway?

Unless you had more than 1/2 qt over, I'm inclined to think that the smoke your friend witnessed was due to the missing cat. The cat not only serves to remove unburnt hydrocarbons, but it also helps to reduce the amount of smoke that eminates from the exhaust.

What your friend saw may or may not have been "blue". The added soot from a cat-less exhaust can produce smoke that's hard to read in certain kinds of light and conditions. Our engines tend to run a bit rich anyway under certain operating conditions. This richness, combined with the soot may lend to the appearance of a blue hue.

Many of the early S2000s burned oil as a matter of normal behavior. Burning oil for 1000 miles is not big deal for this, if in fact, you were burning it due to an overfill, which at this time, is not proven.

Just figure out what the oil level is now. It may very well be a matter that needs no further concern. If it's really keeping you up at night, do a spark plug read. It will be most revealing. Heavy oil burning will show up on the plugs. I'll bet your plugs won't look any different than any other S2000.

[hayabusa1285]

thanks repiv your always alot of help and give such detail answer back. :thumbsup:

ill up date ya sometime tomorrow.