Oil mysteriously disappeared.

[Pacfanweb]

When your mechanic said this " Mechanic said oil all gone, dipstick completely dry. "

He is full of poop. If all the oil was gone it wouldn't have ran 5 minutes. Just because it isn't touching the dipstick doesn't mean it is empty.

As many have said leaking or burning, its gotta be going somewhere. It can get burned a little at a time over the course of 6 months and be low and off the dipstick without any obvious signs.

If it were leaking you would have oil on the engine somewhere telling as much.

True, and not necessarily true. I've seen vehicles leave the dealership and go for a drive after an oil change and come back with the oil light on....never filled with oil.

I've personally run one for 15-20 minutes while cleaning the injectors....I had done a complete 30k mile service on it. Oil change, coolant, tranny fluid, brakes, plugs, fuel filter, etc.
edit: This was a 92 Explorer, 4.0
It was a Friday and it was my last job for the day. Tool truck was there, so I hooked up the injector cleaner and let it run, went on the tool truck for about half an hour. The cleaner had enough fuel to run for 15-20 minutes.
Came back, it had run out of fuel and shut off. Unhooked the cleaner, buttoned everything up, went to road test it and go home. As I backed out of my stall, I noticed a red light on the dash. I looked up over the hood and on my bench was 5 qts of unopened oil. Oops.

I shut it off. Engine hadn't made a sound yet. I put the oil in it, still no noise. Okay, so it's still under warranty, I'll go drive it and see how it does. Ran the hell out of it for about 10 miles. No noise. I let it go.
2 years later, I did the 60k mile service on it. Still running fine.

They don't always fail like you think they might without oil.

That said, for OP....if you're not leaking, it's consuming the oil. That can happen. You are responsible for checking it. And not showing on the dip stick doesn't mean there's no oil in it, it usually only means you're probably 2 qts low. Which isn't good, but it's not going to kill your motor, either.

 

[killster1]

no oil on the dipstick doesnt mean no oil is in the engine. my car (2016 honda accord) seems to burn a quart of oil in the summer (80,000 miles) i suspected pcv valve as well, but winter oil changes have not been burning oil. (i do drive 120-130mph often)

well it seems to be back to burning a little oil, im at 4200 miles and when i go 60 mph around 90 degree turn the oil light turns on. Still have not changed my pcv valve but ill change the oil today and see how clean it looks/tastes ;P

 

[mindless1]

Odds are it is leaking past valve seals or piston rings as already mentioned You might try high mileage oil. Do the leak down test.

Mechanic said out of oil, but how much oil needed to be added to get to the full mark on the dipstick again?

Catalytic converter can't do much to decrease blue smoke, before it is ruined from deposits doing so, then you'd get a downstream O2 sensor code. Most will just go out the tailpipe but in this case, at a low enough rate not to notice.

 

[pcgeek11]

I've personally run one for 15-20 minutes while cleaning the injectors....I had done a complete 30k mile service on it. Oil change, coolant, tranny fluid, brakes, plugs, fuel filter, etc.
edit: This was a 92 Explorer, 4.0
It was a Friday and it was my last job for the day. Tool truck was there, so I hooked up the injector cleaner and let it run, went on the tool truck for about half an hour. The cleaner had enough fuel to run for 15-20 minutes.
Came back, it had run out of fuel and shut off. Unhooked the cleaner, buttoned everything up, went to road test it and go home. As I backed out of my stall, I noticed a red light on the dash. I looked up over the hood and on my bench was 5 qts of unopened oil. Oops.

I shut it off. Engine hadn't made a sound yet. I put the oil in it, still no noise. Okay, so it's still under warranty, I'll go drive it and see how it does. Ran the hell out of it for about 10 miles. No noise. I let it go.
2 years later, I did the 60k mile service on it. Still running fine.

Sorry, I do not believe you ran an engine for 15 - 20 minutes without any oil in it with no damage.

I'm also glad you are not my mechanic.

 

[zinfamous]

Sorry, I do not believe you ran an engine for 15 - 20 minutes without any oil in it with no damage.

I'm also glad you are not my mechanic.

At least 10 minutes!

 

[pcgeek11]

At least 10 minutes!

It may run, but I'll guarantee there is damage long before 10 minutes pass.

 

[zinfamous]

It may run, but I'll guarantee there is damage long before 10 minutes pass.

too many factors to consider and tech keeps changing: oil weight and tolerances. an engine of 20 years ago and the oil spec for those things is quite a bit different than what we have today. tighter tolerances and lighter weights in these tiny 4 bangers. You'd be surprised.

 

[pcgeek11]

too many factors to consider and tech keeps changing: oil weight and tolerances. an engine of 20 years ago and the oil spec for those things is quite a bit different than what we have today. tighter tolerances and lighter weights in these tiny 4 bangers. You'd be surprised.

No, I wouldn't be surprised. I have been employed in the automobile manufacturing business for over 25 years and still am. Tighter tolerances means less room for error, no oil pressure to the bearings means there is no layer of oil and the bearings are making contact between two friction surfaces. There is damage and the life of that engine has been shortened by quite a bit at best.

The tighter tolerances is why they use the lighter weight oils and synthetic oils. Well that and to meet the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards.

, I'm still glad he isn't my mechanic! Run a customers engine like that and not say anything about it.

 

[Torn Mind]

Toyota is conservative and hence they are still 20 years behind other engines. Not that its a bad thing since they build them up durable in the first place.

Plus, it's solely for the fuel economy that lighter weight oils are used in Toyotas. Why tell people to preserve an engine that people are going to dispose of anyway?

 

[ondma]

No, I wouldn't be surprised. I have been employed in the automobile manufacturing business for over 25 years and still am. Tighter tolerances means less room for error, no oil pressure to the bearings means there is no layer of oil and the bearings are making contact between two friction surfaces. There is damage and the life of that engine has been shortened by quite a bit at best.

The tighter tolerances is why they use the lighter weight oils and synthetic oils. Well that and to meet the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards.

, I'm still glad he isn't my mechanic! Run a customers engine like that and not say anything about it.

Granted, the main use of lighter weight oils is for fuel economy, but there is some (probably considerable) benefit in cold climates in that the oil circulates much better on start up.

 

[pcgeek11]

Granted, the main use of lighter weight oils is for fuel economy, but there is some (probably considerable) benefit in cold climates in that the oil circulates much better on start up.

Yes... That would be true and most specifically true for synthetic oils.

 

[Torn Mind]

Granted, the main use of lighter weight oils is for fuel economy, but there is some (probably considerable) benefit in cold climates in that the oil circulates much better on start up.

I thought the 0W is what indicates better startup performance in hardcore cold like Canada and Alaska and the 20 or 16 is what matters when the engine has sufficiently heated itself? So things like 0w-40 exist.

 

[Pacfanweb]

Sorry, I do not believe you ran an engine for 15 - 20 minutes without any oil in it with no damage.

I'm also glad you are not my mechanic.

It happened. Was almost 30 years ago. And every mechanic has done something similar along the line somewhere when he was young and starting out. Believe what you like, but what I described was the truth.

I've seen cars leave the dealership after an oil change and come back with no oil, still running fine. Filled them up and off they went.

In my case, the engine was just idling, not under a load.

I've seen engines with 50k+ on them with the the original oil filter, never been changed, still running.
In fact, had a Tempo come in like that once, wanted and oil change. The oil literally wouldn't drain...just hung there like it was gum. Engine was still running fine. Doubt it lasted much longer, but it drove in.

 

[Pacfanweb]

No, I wouldn't be surprised. I have been employed in the automobile manufacturing business for over 25 years and still am. Tighter tolerances means less room for error, no oil pressure to the bearings means there is no layer of oil and the bearings are making contact between two friction surfaces. There is damage and the life of that engine has been shortened by quite a bit at best.

The tighter tolerances is why they use the lighter weight oils and synthetic oils. Well that and to meet the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards.

, I'm still glad he isn't my mechanic! Run a customers engine like that and not say anything about it.

Told the manager about it. It was his call. I said "I let it go", but that was after the manager ok'd it, since it wasn't making any noise.

 

[Pacfanweb]

I thought the 0W is what indicates better startup performance in hardcore cold like Canada and Alaska and the 20 or 16 is what matters when the engine has sufficiently heated itself? So things like 0w-40 exist.

That is correct.

 

[ondma]

Told the manager about it. It was his call. I said "I let it go", but that was after the manager ok'd it, since it wasn't making any noise.

I would not assume because the engine isnt making any noise currently that it will not have problems related to oil consumption or other component failure down the line.

 

[Pacfanweb]

I would not assume because the engine isnt making any noise currently that it will not have problems related to oil consumption or other component failure down the line.

True, but like I said....same vehicle came back for the 60k service (that was during the 30k) and was still running like a champ. So it didn't hurt THAT one. And it had plenty of warranty left, so I assume management would have gotten it covered that way had it ended up with an issue.

The point was, not that you should do such a thing to your motor like that dumb kid did almost 30 years ago, but that low or no oil isn't an automatic death sentence for your motor. Things vary.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

[I feel so lucky . . . with my quarter-century-old SUV . . . and the never-ending appearance of nickel-sized oil spots on my oil-drop-pan . . . These other disasters described by the OP and posters live only in my nightmares while sleeping . . . ]

 

[mrblotto]

Reminds me of a couple weeks ago. Went to get the oil changed on the Rav4

mechanic: here, you need to sign this release form, you have no oil in your engine
me: you mean there's no oil on the dipstick, right?
mechanic: yeah, that's what I meant
me: That's kind of a BIG difference, dont you think?
mechanic: sheepish chuckle

The manager happened to be there too, so I asked him (nicely mind you) to remind his employees the difference between the 2.......smh. Got the oil change for free too for some reason. I harbor no ill will towards anyone there, just not cool when someone uses FUD helter skelter to make people panic.

 

[DaaQ]

Nope, just the Engine Alert.

Just to make the point, the Engine Alert, or Check Engine Light (CEL) can mean many things nowadays. I don't believe there is a low oil pressure light, Heck even if you have the oil gauge in the dash cluster, it is not going to tell you the oil level, only if you lose pressure.

Funny story, the old GM gauges would move around alot because they were giving accurate information. I am going to use Ford in this example because it's what I am familiar with and know most about. But they decided to change their gauge reporting scheme. OIL gauge for instance, it's always in the middle. If it has any oil pressure it will be in the middle of "normal" NO oil pressure will drop the needle to L. Honestly I have never seen one ever go to the H mark.

Back to OP question, it is possible most all of the oil that could be picked up from the pump was in the upper portion of the engine. Giving a no oil on dipstick reading. Also do not over estimate the State vehicle inspection workers.

 

[Jimzz]

At least 10 minutes!

Idling is a lot less workload on a motor than driving it. Theres a reason motors warm up much faster driving than idling.

 

[shortylickens]

Well, my bitch is finally showing her age.
At 98 thousand miles her radiator cracked and leaked. Car overheated on highway. Did that chugging hiccup thing and I was able to safely get her off the highway. Garage man said it needed replacing.
I'm wondering if I want to put up with the constant nagging and whining of a mature car, or trade her in for something young and peppy.

Maybe an Audi?

You guys find Audi's to be expensive or cheap to maintain?

 

[Pacfanweb]

Well, my bitch is finally showing her age.
At 98 thousand miles her radiator cracked and leaked. Car overheated on highway. Did that chugging hiccup thing and I was able to safely get her off the highway. Garage man said it needed replacing.
I'm wondering if I want to put up with the constant nagging and whining of a mature car, or trade her in for something young and peppy.

Maybe an Audi?

You guys find Audi's to be expensive or cheap to maintain?

Euro cars being expensive to maintain is kind of a given.

 

[pcgeek11]

If you want a more trouble free vehicle get a Toyota.

Here is Consumer Reports' ranking of the major automotive brands, according to their average reliability score:

1. Mazda (83)
2. Toyota (74)
3. Lexus (71)
4. Buick (70)
5. Honda (63)
6. Hyundai (62)
7. Ram (58)
8. Subaru (57)
9. Porsche (55)
10. Dodge (54)
11. Infiniti (54)
12. BMW (52)
13. Nissan (51)
14. Audi (46)
15. Kia (45)
16. GMC (43)
17. Chevrolet (42)
18. Volvo (41)
19. Jeep (41)
20. Mercedes-Benz (40)
21. Cadillac (38)
22. Ford (38)
23. Mini (37)
24. Volkswagen (36)
25. Tesla (29)
26. Lincoln (8)

The 10 most reliable cars of 2021, according to Consumer Reports:
1. Toyota Prius

2. Lexus NX

3. Buick Encore

4. Lexus GX

5. Honda HR-V

6. Toyota Prius Prime

7. Hyundai Kona

8. Audi A5

9. Audi A4

10. Mazda CX-5

The 10 least reliable 2021 models, according to Consumer Reports:
1. Chevrolet Silverado/GMC Sierra 1500

2. Subaru Ascent

3. Volkswagen Atlas

4. Jeep Compass

5. Volvo XC90

6. Chevrolet Colorado/GMC Canyon

7. Tesla Model S

8. Jeep Wrangler

9. Ford EcoSport

10. Volvo XC60

 

[Vic]

The dipstick on Nissan VQ engines is notoriously difficult to read, and a "dry dipstick" could be as little as a quart low.
That said, you should check it more often than 6 months.