Oil Dipstick

[Adam Atchinson]

has anybody else noticed that the dipstick on the 2.2 is less that useless or is it just or me or my car that is diffrent as i checked the oil 2 weeks ago and it came up as half full but it came back from service today and they said it was on the bottom of the dip stick

[R1star]

Thats if you can read it.When you pull it out the design just makes the oil smear all up the the dipstick.Spoke to a tech at the toyota dealer and he agreed with me.I now look at the back of the dipstick to try and get a reading.With out doubt the worst design on any car I've owned.

[Adam Atchinson]

thank god its not just me then as i thought it was half full when it turns out it was nearly empty when it went to dealer

[acetip]

Thats if you can read it.When you pull it out the design just makes the oil smear all up the the dipstick.Spoke to a tech at the toyota dealer and he agreed with me.I now look at the back of the dipstick to try and get a reading.With out doubt the worst design on any car I've owned.

There are afew other cars that have this problem,only way to get a 'clean' reading is to leave reading for while so any oil thats got up the dipstick tube can drain away.but you only get one chance as the reading will smear again when you put the stick back.even when you wipe the stick.i agree poor design along with a few others on the car.

i think its cos the tube is too narrow at the base.

[Daveyonthemove]

Completely agree with all the comments on here. It's a nightmare to monitor properly.

Te only dipstick i have used that is worse, is my works van (Vauxhall Movano) which is a plastic dipstick that coils around in a small spiral, so getting it out is impossible without smearing oil everywhere.

Bring back the good old fashioned metal and straight dipsticks than can be read easily in any weather conditions.

[acetip]

Must be nightmare for anyone on a long trip who needs to check level say at a garage having to stand about long enough to do so .Then if the sump does need topping up then you have to go through the waiting game again to check the level is ok.

[Big Auris]

Dust the bottom marker section of the Dip Stick with talc, and this will show you the exact level, we used this method on Rolls Royces for the very same issue

of not being able to get a correct reading

[Adam C]

What you guys need is the 2SZ-FE engine from the Yaris!

Jokes aside, it has probably the best design of dipstick, it's practically straight down and nothing fouls it so I don't feel the need to wipe it first, just whip it out (level is always at the top marker, car has never used a drop) and back in again.

The 1NR-FE engine which replaced this has a not-as-good design in that it ain't straight in so it will be fouled when you pull it out. When I first got the Yaris with that engine (I have both mentioned), I at first thought the dealer had overfilled on the service - too used to the other car - but a quick wipe & retry gave the answer.

Did anyone here have a Starlet? There was always something on the inlet manifold that meant pulling out the dipstick could be hazardous for your fingers.