Checking your Motor Oil
There is a light on your dashboard that lights up when your oil is low. When this light goes on you need to add oil to your car. In order to know how much oil to add, you need to check how much oil you have in your car. Checking your oil is a simple task that anyone can do and no special equipment is needed.
Your car needs to be turned off when you check the oil. Have a rag or a piece of paper towel with you to clean off the dip stick. You are now ready to begin.
The dip stick is on the motor. You need to open the hood of your car unless you have the rare rear motor. There should be a handle in the cab of the car that you will pull to unlock the hood. You then have to run your hand under the hoot to find the latch. The first time can take a while but once you know where to look for it, next time will be a cinch. Your auto manual can help at any point if you can't find something.
Lift the hood and lower the prop that will hold it up. There should be a groove to put the prop in to keep it from slipping. Look for a metal loop or a grip that allows you to pull the dip stick out of the engine. It will be quite long, just keep pulling until the whole stick is out of the engine. Be careful, there is oil on the stick and you don't want to get it on your clothes.
Wipe all the oil off of the dip stick using your rag or paper towel. Reinsert the dip stick all the way into the engine, be careful with this make sure it goes all the way in to get an accurate reading. Pull the stick back out and look for the oil line on the dipping part of the stick. It should tell you how much oil you need to add.
If there is no oil on the stick there are two possible reasons. Either you didn't push the stick all the way back in or you are down more than two quarts of oil. Try reinserting the stick. If there is still no oil, open the oil reservoir and add a quart of oil and recheck the level. Check and add until you are at full, be careful not to overfill.
Place the cap back on the reservoir and then place the dip stick firmly back in place. You are now set. Be sure to have your oil changed according to the directions for your vehicle, most likely every 3000 or 5000 miles.
