Hey guys,

Is there any way I can see what my oil looks like? The dealer CLAIMS that it was changed before being resold, but I'd hate to go off that assumption for a year and end up running old oil that might hurt the car.

If I can see that it's nice and brown vs disgusting black, it would go a long way to making me feel better.

Any way to do that without a dipstick?

 

Unless you check it fairly quickly after changing, it's hard to tell visually with any certainty after say the first week or two.

If you still want to check, I would probably check it at the highest point after cooling down, so that likely would be at the oil filter.

Good luck.

 

Agree with JSBear on location to get oil. That is probably the easiest. If you really want to know for sure if the oil is good, grab a sample and send it in to an oil analysis laboratory (e.g. Blackstone) and they will tell you if the oil is good. If you ask me thats too much trouble to go through. I would just change it if you are concerned. I do the oil analysis on my old oil I am changing out to see how things are in the engine and if my oil change interval is good.

 

oil is cheap! if you dont trust them just change it when you purchase the car! no harm no foul! plus you will get to know the car a little sooner

anticipate oil changes every 3-4k, in my mind its cheap insurance

 

Good points all. I'm just going to get it changed. Feels like a waste of a couple hundred bucks, but I'll sleep better at night.

Thanks!

 

I was going to say 'just change it' so you know it is the right oil and right viscosity...not just 'new'..

But "couple of hundred"???? You using a P dealer for that??

 

Dealer will do it for 170 and includes a handwash. Not a great deal, but I figure it's about 80 bucks more than doing it myself without the "OMG this car has way more oil than I thought!" mess that I've seen described all over here.

 

If you want a real good look, just take the filter off and dump the contents into a glass. That will give you maybe a couple of ounces.