Filling that previously dug out hole syndrome...

[transitdude]

Hi,

God, I'm asking so many questions at the moment!

Doing the oil and coolant change has got me stumped recently.

Oil capacity is 6.5L. Extracted the oil and filter and replace with new items. Could only get 5L back in.....

Emptied out the coolant so no more was dripping. User manual stated 10L dry capacity but could only get 6.4L back in.....

Am I doing something fundamentally wrong when performing these bits of maintenance?

[AndyG]

You need to run the engine for a bit so that the oil filter fills up And as for the cooling system, did you empty the block

[transitdude]

yeah, I did both just after coming back from a run.

I assumed for the latter (coolant change) that with the engine being hot the thermostat would still be open allowing any previous fluid around the engine to filter out? - maybe I was wrong..

[AndyG]

To get ALL the water out you'll have to remove the engine heater matrix and radiator and give them a good shake Highly unlikely There will always be water left in the system

When changing the oil, the drain plug must be the lowest point of the sump or again you will be leaving old oil in the sump You can never get all the old oil out
Just one of those things

[Guy88]

if you did the oil after a run there will still be oil around the engine. you need to let it settle for about an hour. this way it will still be warm but it will be mostly in the sump

[AndyG]

if you did the oil after a run there will still be oil around the engine. you need to let it settle for about an hour. this way it will still be warm but it will be mostly in the sump

It really needs to be as hot as possible and it will then carry out any sh*t with it
So I guess that the best way is to pull up in the evening after a long run and drain it (with the oil filler cap off) over night This should give you the best oil change

[MICKA404]

same thing happened to me, drained oil after a run left it for 2hrs on level ground, put new oil in and it was about 3/4 in above the full mark had to drain some off, is this common on mk 6 or should the engine be flushed as well when oil is changed.
mike

[transitdude]

the only vehicle i've managed to drain nearly all oil out of was a Nissan Micra. I used my 3 Tonne trolley jack to lift the front up so the car was 45 degrees in the air. Looked at bit crazy but extracted those lumpy bits out of the bottom.

[AndyG]

Maybe the sump has been redesigned so that five litres will do the trick