Can Too Much Oil Damage Your Motor?, Mechanic Added Too Much Options

[windforfun]

Ran it for about 1 hr prior to draining excess oil. The motor is a "73 1.7. Thanks.

[Van B]

Like a quart extra or to the top of the fill neck too much? Lol

[Shivers]

I run a quarter quart or so high always

[Puebloswatcop]

Most likely no significant problems. It will generally end up in the cylinders and make sludge. If it seems like it's not running smooth, pull the plugs and see if they are oil soaked. If they aren't and you're not showing signs of excessive blue smoke from the exhaust, you should be fine.

[Jake Raby]

I see engines permanently damaged from too much oil. At the maximum I feel the oil level should never go above the full line. People get too afraid of running too low, so they over fill “to be safe”.

[Sea Rooster]

I see engines permanently damaged from too much oil. At the maximum I feel the oil level should never go above the full line. People get too afraid of running too low, so they over fill “to be safe”.

"At the maximum I feel the oil level should never go above the full line."

Is this cold or hot?

[emerygt350]

Jake, what is your feeling on type of filter? I have ended up with two different sizes (long, and less long) and that has a not insubstantial effect on how much oil the engine needs. And I second the sludge, I accidentally overfilled some time ago and I am still burning the sludge off the pistons.

[Superhawk996]

I'm going to start a new religion based around oil mysteries . . . (IMG:style_emoticons/default/huh.gif)

What type to use?
What weight to use?
What brand of oil is best to use?
Check it at high tide or low tide?
Check at full moon, Harvest Moon, or Blood Moon?
What day of week to check it?
What is the optimum oil temperature?
What brand of filter is best?


Sheesh! Just fill to the marks the OEM put on the dipstick and use the standard filter. Life doesn't need to be so hard.

[emerygt350]

I do notice some different behavior as far as oil temp and pressure depending on filter. I mean, it is the most critical health component of these engines so a little attention here goes a long way for longevity, Particularly when you race it.

[Superhawk996]

I do notice some different behavior as far as oil temp and pressure depending on filter. I mean, it is the most critical health component of these engines so a little attention here goes a long way for longevity, Particularly when you race it.

I was being playful but realize my flippant response may have come across as me being an (IMG:style_emoticons/default/bootyshake.gif) clown.

We can do a whole dissertation on Tribology. There are engineers that do only Tribology for their whole career.

Here's the thing. Keep you oil & filter changed regularly (let's just go with the old 3,000 miles myth) on an air cooled engine and life will be good - generally speaking.

On temperature -- temperature and viscosity go hand in hand. Use multi viscosity oil to help offset the effect.

To dig deeper, an oil filter really does nothing for you w.r.t racing. It will catch chunks -- that's about it. If you're seriously taxing your oil, change it every race if need be. The most important thing that you can do for any engine is to have the bearing clearances set properly when the engine is built - race engine or otherwise. Here's the thing about pro racing, the engine only needs to last one race.

With respect to filter size -- fill oil, start car, shut down car, let sit a couple minutes, then recheck oil level. Once the oil filter has filled with oil, and you recheck the oil level, the size of the filter become irrelevant. It could be 1 pint, or 1 gallon, you would accommodate the volume lost from the sump to the filter on the recheck.

With respect to oil pressure loss across various filter brands -- Yup - it's true. Lower filtration efficiency = lower pressure loss (generally speaking).

We could go on about oil & all the nuances. That is what I was joking about.

But the bottom line is -- don't make this too hard. Fill with oil (to mark on dipstick), go drive (IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif)

And to address OP question on over fill . . . . if it is overfilled, drain some. You did the right thing (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smilie_pokal.gif) Yet another good reason to do maintenance yourself . . . the world if full of dopes (IMG:style_emoticons/default/slap.gif) . . .. including me.

[Lockwodo]

I'm going to start a new religion based around oil mysteries . . . (IMG:style_emoticons/default/huh.gif)

What type to use?
What weight to use?
What brand of oil is best to use?
Check it at high tide or low tide?
Check at full moon, Harvest Moon, or Blood Moon?
What day of week to check it?
What is the optimum oil temperature?
What brand of filter is best?


Sheesh! Just fill to the marks the OEM put on the dipstick and use the standard filter. Life doesn't need to be so hard.

To which I would add, whether or not to use full synthetic? Synthetic oil decreases friction and increases horsepower, but some worry it'll result in oil leaks. What say you guys?

[emerygt350]

I just noticed the difference between a mobil1 filter and a kandn which was shorter by a good inch. Oil runs hotter with the shorter filter but that may just be random chance and seasonal change. Going to switch back to the Mobil in a little while and see if that changes. I like the higher temps I am seeing with the shorter filter. Could be seasonal though.

[Van B]

I'm going to start a new religion based around oil mysteries . . . (IMG:style_emoticons/default/huh.gif)

What type to use?
What weight to use?
What brand of oil is best to use?
Check it at high tide or low tide?
Check at full moon, Harvest Moon, or Blood Moon?
What day of week to check it?
What is the optimum oil temperature?
What brand of filter is best?


Sheesh! Just fill to the marks the OEM put on the dipstick and use the standard filter. Life doesn't need to be so hard.

To which I would add, whether or not to use full synthetic? Synthetic oil decreases friction and increases horsepower, but some worry it'll result in oil leaks. What say you guys?

Lol… a leaky engine results in oil leaks. Don’t blame the oil, just replace your old worn seals.

[bbrock]

Here's the thing. Keep you oil & filter changed regularly (let's just go with the old 3,000 miles myth) on an air cooled engine and life will be good - generally speaking.

Can you elaborate on this? I'm getting ready to do my first 3,000 mile oil change since rebuild which will happen regardless of answers here, but have been contemplating oil change intervals. Porsche recommended 5,000 mile oil changes with 50 year old single weight oil formulations. What's the rationale for shorter oil changes? More interesting, let's hear the myth busting. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/happy11.gif) My owner's manual says, "Under normal driving conditions it is unnecessary and uneconomical to change oil at intervals shorter than is described in the Service-Schedule of the Maintenance Record." And oil has advanced significantly over the 50 years since that was written.

[Big Len]

Here's the thing. Keep you oil & filter changed regularly (let's just go with the old 3,000 miles myth) on an air cooled engine and life will be good - generally speaking.

Can you elaborate on this? I'm getting ready to do my first 3,000 mile oil change since rebuild which will happen regardless of answers here, but have been contemplating oil change intervals. Porsche recommended 5,000 mile oil changes with 50 year old single weight oil formulations. What's the rationale for shorter oil changes? More interesting, let's hear the myth busting. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/happy11.gif) My owner's manual says, "Under normal driving conditions it is unnecessary and uneconomical to change oil at intervals shorter than is described in the Service-Schedule of the Maintenance Record." And oil has advanced significantly over the 50 years since that was written.

Lots of different opinions when it comes to oil.
My own is running synthetic is fine if you're using the car in cold winter. Syn flows better in cold than conventional, but since the molecules are smaller, they may get past older seals, hence the leaking comments.
If your only running the car during the typical driving months like I do, then conventional VR-1 20W-50 is fine.
My personal tip is once all the oil is drained out, I pour a couple of ounces of fresh oil in and let it run through the engine pushing all the old oil out. You'll see it come out dark, then light at the drain plug. Once that's done, screw the plug back on and fill'er up.

[porschetub]

I just noticed the difference between a mobil1 filter and a kandn which was shorter by a good inch. Oil runs hotter with the shorter filter but that may just be random chance and seasonal change. Going to switch back to the Mobil in a little while and see if that changes. I like the higher temps I am seeing with the shorter filter. Could be seasonal though.

Why not just use OEM filters ? ,I do that will all my VAG cars and never had an issue,I use the larger capacity OEM ones on T4 and my 911 motor in my 73 914.
My experience overfilling a T4 resulted in excessive fuming and oil burning..not good,with a 911 it is even worse as you as you can blow seals and the motor will smoke continually and not just on cold start which to a point is normal.

[wonkipop]

Here's the thing. Keep you oil & filter changed regularly (let's just go with the old 3,000 miles myth) on an air cooled engine and life will be good - generally speaking.

Can you elaborate on this? I'm getting ready to do my first 3,000 mile oil change since rebuild which will happen regardless of answers here, but have been contemplating oil change intervals. Porsche recommended 5,000 mile oil changes with 50 year old single weight oil formulations. What's the rationale for shorter oil changes? More interesting, let's hear the myth busting. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/happy11.gif) My owner's manual says, "Under normal driving conditions it is unnecessary and uneconomical to change oil at intervals shorter than is described in the Service-Schedule of the Maintenance Record." And oil has advanced significantly over the 50 years since that was written.

back in the 60s and 70s in aus it was relatively common for folks with VWs to do oil changes at twice the recommended min intervals (5,000) VW specified. 5,000 miles was roughly twice a year for mileage in average use (and a lot of other cars besides VW had identical 5000m or twice yearly changes). 3 monthly changes were common amongst the fastidious. my mechanic back then, a german, was more specific with his views. his opinion was you had to keep the oil fresh in the australian summer. so i did roughly 3 changes. car was a daily driver. 1 at start of high summer and 1 at end then one in between. this was because oils were mineral based back then and they did break down when the engine ran hotter. and they did run hotter in summer down here. that was the reasoning.
i would have thought synthetic oils are better at not breaking down in use and can go further between changes. esp in colder winter months.

EDIT.
i should add i drove a type 3 squareback. type 3 suitcase engines were notorious for running hotter than type 1 beetles down here. so the advice from my mechanic was to an extent focussed at the type 3 specifically.

[emerygt350]

That's a good point. I always use synthetic, and specifically synthetics that can withstand up to 365 degrees before thermal breakdown. If you change your dino regularly during hot months you have nothing to worry about but I like the extra protection just in case...

[bbrock]

i would have thought synthetic oils are better at not breaking down in use and can go further between changes. esp in colder winter months.

I've read that while synthetics don't break down as fast as conventional, they still get dirty so still should be changed at the same interval. I've always run synthetic in my cars and will do the same in the 914 after one more cycle with VR1.

Still interested to hear why @Superhawk996 calls it the "3,000 mile myth." I'm pretty sure there are some nuggets of wisdom he has to share.

[Badinfluence1]

Ran it for about 1 hr prior to draining excess oil. The motor is a "73 1.7. Thanks.

No damage done- it will put extra pressure on the push rod tube seals and others if ran hard but an hour of regular driving- it should be fine, look at the spark plugs to make sure they are clean