ALT-8 What to do when your Oil Light comes on
Anyone who drives a car should know what to do if the oil light comes on.
If your oil light comes on you should check your oil immediately. If you know how to check your oil, you should pull over at the nearest safe place, turn the motor off, pop the hood, then wait a few minutes to allow the engine to cool and then check your oil level. If you are indeed low on oil, you will need to add the necessary amount. Be careful not to add to much as that is not good. If you don't have a quart of oil on hand, you will need to get to the nearest location and buy some oil to put into your vehicle.
If you don't know how to check your oil, you should go to the nearest place to get help from someone who does know how to check it. At that point, please have that person show you how to check your oil.
Checking the oil on your car is not hard and it is something that everyone who drives a car should know how to do. Yes, even women should know the basics such as checking the oil level.
It is always a wise idea to have a dry rag, a quart of oil and a funnel in the trunk of your car just in case you ever need it.
If your oil light comes on and upon checking your oil you find your oil level is fine. I would suggest checking it again later after the car has sat for an hour or so. If the oil level is still fine, it would be wise to take it to your mechanic and have it checked out a bit. It could mean you need an oil change or you may have a clogged oil filter or it maybe an issue with the oil light itself.
A Beginners Guide to Checking Oil:
- Drive to the nearest safe place, park your car and turn the engine off. Open the hood and wait about ten minutes for the engine to cool.
- Look under the hood and find the dipstick. Wipe the dipstick off with a dry rag then insert the dipstick back into its place, be sure you get the dipstick all the way in the holder.
- Pull the dipstick back out and look at the oil level on the dipstick. You will notice a full line and below that you will see the lines that say add 1 quart.
