Chevy TrailBlazer, TrailBlazer SS and GMC Envoy Forum banner

Oil Changes

2.7K views 8 replies 6 participants last post by  TRAILBLAZRBURKE  
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
Hey everyone, I think I goofed up badly. I saw in the owners manual that the I6 engine takes 7 qts. of oil. So I bought a 5 qt jug of Mobil 1, and i had some individual qts of the same oil to complete the change. Problem is I lost count of the amount of oil I put in, and a day later notIced I put 8 qts of mobil 1 in the engine, (had 1 empty 5 qt. jug and 3 empty qts). Since then I have noticed a drip on the driveway every day. I figured at first it was just residual from the mess I made taking off the oe filter. This is when I did some checking and discovered I put 8 qts. Obviously, I know I need to drain some oil out,, and will do so today. My question is: Has this created a leak by possibly damaging a seal? When i drain and refill to the proper amount I will check filter, plug, clean it all up. Other than that, I'd appreciate some input. :eek: thanks

I know that I'm a total bonehead, so please go easy on me :eek:
 
#2 ·
I'm sure there's quite a few on this board who are more qualified and that can go into detail of the problem of overfilling the engine oil.

Do a search on google for "overfilling oil" and you will come up with a bunch of hits; plenty of reading material to scare you. Putting too much oil in definitely can mess up your engine big time; and yes, it can cause an oil seal to leak, which is one of the minor problems it can create.

The I6 engine only takes 6 1/2 qts of oil. The manual says 7 qts. 8 qts definitely is too much.

Personally, I would start all over and put a new filter and new oil in and go from there.
 
#3 ·
Nah, just drain a enough out that it shows between the min & max marks on the dipstick. When you remove the filter, oil goes EVERYWHERE, particularly if you left the skid plate on and reach up through the access door.....mine dripped for days the last time I did it that way. (Now I remove 3 of the 4 bolts and turn the entire skid plate).

Are the oil drips clean/clear or dirty looking? .... If its dirty looking oil, most likely the remants of old oil dripping from between the frame and such.
 
#4 ·
Yeah, I planned to re change the oil. I think I'll leave the filter on it, as long as I see nothing leaking from it. Truck only has about 75-100 mikes since this oil change, and about 3000 overall. So I hope the seal is going to be ok. Funny when I look at the dipstick, It's not showing as overfilled, but then again, this seems to be to hardest dipstick in the world to read. As dumb as that sounds. Can't really see if the drips on the driveway ar from new oil or old, been raining alot on my uphill driveway, so it gets all wet underneath.
Thanks, Burke
 
#5 ·
No, the I6 takes 7qts with a filter change man, believe me. I have changed the oil on my 02 I6 for the past year and half to 2 years and have always drained out 6.5qts + filter oil. 7qts goes in and I check the level to see if I need to add any more or pull some out, every time its a hair below the full mark on the dipstick.
 
#6 ·
Yes, it is definately 7 quarts, not 6.5

I would leave the oil in and change the filter. That should drain close to (not quite but close) a quart and put you in a safe range. Much cheaper and easier than draining all the oil.

I've overfillled lots of my vehicles by about 1/4 of a quart and never had any problems with leaks. But yeah 1 quart overfilled is pushing it even on a 7 qt system
 
#8 ·
The filter will hold almost a full quart including the oil that will drain out when you remove it. This should bring you down enough to keep you safe. When you remove the filter check the gasket to see if it is damaged, this may be the source of your leak from over filling if you really have one.
 
#9 ·
Last night I cleaned every thing up, drained the oil, and put new oil in. I loosened the filter thinking it may have been too tight and crused the gasket. I then noticed the filter was actually good and not leaking. So I re tightened to hand tight. So far no leaks!!:) I only put 6 qts of Mobil 1 in, and that filled it completely. So RozmerJJ, you would be correct with regards to the 1 gt. in the filter. I am going to keep my eye on it just to make sure seals are ok. I'd like to think they are good because the truck wasn't driven hard/far, and it was only overfilled 3 days. Thanks for all your help:cool: