Posted on 05/21/2025 4:42:50 PM PDT by where's_the_Outrage?
Ever wondered when your last oil change was and needed to check the oil level? Most of us don't have this problem — when we take a car in for an oil change, the mechanic will usually put a sticker on the windshield to let us know when's the next time to come in for a visit. But let's say we don't have a sticker or any kind of maintenance reminder. So we pop open the hood and look for the dipstick. Wait ... where did it go?!
Once, dipsticks were the go-to method for checking oil levels and finding out if your oil has gone bad. But as odd as it may sound, many cars don't come with dipsticks anymore. Some sources say it's because automakers don't trust us to use them, so why make them? (That's kind of along the lines of rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it, right?) Or maybe it's some kind of conspiracy to keep drivers coming in for oil changes more often. But in actuality, it's because a lot of things are going digital.
"With digital oil level measurement, customers can easily monitor their vehicle's oil level in their vehicle's driver display and receive timely alerts if oil level is outside normal limits," Mercedes-Benz spokesperson Andrew Brudnicki told Automotive News Canada in 2024 (via SlashGear). "This proactive approach helps to avert potential engine damage."
It may just be us, but technology doesn't fix everything. Sometimes, one solution can undo all others. Using the dipstick was fast and easy. Some cars even had dipsticks for checking transmission fluid. Now, drivers are left to rely on a touchscreen to know if their car needs oil.
(Excerpt) Read more at jalopnik.com ...
“I have 3 vehicles with oil bath air cleaners. I really like them.”
I had one decades ago. Hated it.
Yes, manual chokes, and my dad taught me how to drive on an old Chevy wagon with a 3 speed column shifter. Tire iron was under the seat in case the linkage bound up.
Though I never had a step on starter some of the diesel trucks I drove had a step on Jake brake. And a split axle. Lots of related dairy farm stories as well, praise God.
“I have a 1998 version of oil level warning “
Level or pressure?
What car?
As a young man I drove a 64 Ford heavy dump truck with two transmission. Instead of a two speed axle splitting each gear, the second transmission split each gear 3 times. Talk about a nightmare to learn to drive. But I did it. It was an awful lot of double clutching and listening to the engine RPM’s knowing when to do it.
The first transmission was a 5 speed, the second a 3 speed. So in essence it was a 15 speed.
I had a snow blower truck with three transmissions. When blowing snow I put it in low, low, low. It went so slow I could get out, walk up front to the blower, start taking a leak. By the time I was done the trucks cab door would be beside me and I just got back in it.
Level I think. 98 Firebird. The old sending unit prob I think.
Perhaps there is another problem....... Ford and UAW
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