You can buy inexpensive wireless GPS speedometers/odometers for $35-$60. Some mount on the dash or side post, some include a Heads Up Display, and others stick on the windshield.
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 ...
They do it all over again
That made me laugh!!!!
Darn, you beat us as you posted. Only a dipstick would buy the junk they are selling now.
The manufacturer has to get through the warranty period.
They don’t want you in there messing with the oil level or adding whatever to it.
Instead they want it to just shut down until it’s put in the shop if the level goes low or it gets too hot etc.
You can buy inexpensive wireless GPS speedometers/odometers for $35-$60. Some mount on the dash or side post, some include a Heads Up Display, and others stick on the windshield.
Grits and greens!
From the short lived series Enos.
So you were like 10 or 12 when you signed up for Free Republic in 2006?
They are electric?
The app costs $00.00
It will not find best route, avoid of traffic delays, cops ahead, and warn you if you r speeding on 10,0000,000 streets in USA. Your gadget may not be able to do all that. Plus your gadget costs money. The GPS app is free, no cost, no contract.
Visual inspection of the oil can show metal pieces indicating wear. You can feel the viscosity of the oil to tell if it’s really old (broken down).
Gee, I wonder why the automakers replaced the manual $1.00 solution that worked well for 100 years and never needed repair with a $300 digital solution? It’s a mystery, I tell you!
I remember driving my uncle’s old Monte Carlo during my last two years of college. That thing was always burning oil, and it sometimes leaked transmission fluid. But those old, reliable dipsticks were there to let me know when I needed to replenish those items.
So will somebody’s engine overheat and destroy itself because a fault in the electronic display prevented them from seeing that the oil was too low? (I thought cars had a low oil indicator for ages also.)
Well, other than often the speed limit is changed for some political (read “revenue enhancement”) reason, that seems a pretty good idea. Better is to actually pay attention to the speed limit signs, they DO change, at least around here...
...and the odometer?
This thread is filled with comments about manufacturers making cars more complicated, so let's promote a smart phone instead of an inexpensive replacement speedometer/odometer.
Nothing is free. The Waze app costs you Big Brother selling your data to everyone they possibly can.
Waze is an app that sells users to advertisers and data management companies, while masquerading as a travel app.
I was driving a new Chev cargo van today (company van). The digital display on the dash said the left rear tire needed air as pressure was low. I stopped at a Firestone store and the guy checked it and said the tire had the 80 PSI required. The warning won’t go away. Will I have to put masking tape over the digital warning display so I don’t have to see it?
The have been doing this with transmissions for a while now. You have to have the car on a lift and remove a plug to check the level. If you want to add then you have to able to pump the fluid in from below.
The answer is to just stop buying these cars. And let them know why they got no sale.
There are/were services that would analyze a sample of oil from the engine for wear conditions. Useful for evaluating used car purchases.
Oh great, another sensor that will fail and costs $770 to repair.
https://repairpal.com/estimator/engine-oil-level-sensor-replacement-cost
Who often does a dipstick fail?
How often did an old throttle pedal cable system fail vs a new digital pedal sensor?
Only $250 for the repair.
https://repairpal.com/estimator/throttle-position-sensor-replacement-cost
This is getting stupid.
New cars are a POS.
Overly complex and with lots of points of failure makes them unreliable.
Loaded with proprietary parts, limited availability of parts (other vendors or how long they have them in stock) make keeping the car on the road difficult long term.
People are stupid for going along with this.
Long gone is the time where someone would get on their knees and look at the underbelly of a car to see if they can easily get to the oil plug. Today’s car shopper wants lots of USB ports, a cool design, and something which tells the world about them.
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