MK1 Valver, Too much oil!

[cliokiz]

Hi there!

I recently filled up my valver with oil as it was running very low, but annoyingly i've filled it up too much. The oil level is about an inch above the 'max' level on the dipstick, which i know is not a good thing.

I've experienced a serious lack of power recently, and i thought initially it was because i had unplugged my ECU for a few hours (which i did at the same time as filling up my oil), but i've covered a fair few miles now and it still hasn't improved, and it has just dawned on me today that it's probably due to the excessive oil, especially after reading what effects it has on the engine on a Google search!

So, i need to empty some oil out before i kill my engine.

What's the best way of going about it? Jack it up and stick it on some axle stands? I'm guessing there's a plug underneath that i'll need to unplug, will it be obvious? Where do i need to look? Also, would it be a bad idea to refill the car with the oil i take out when it gets low again, or should i not use it again?

Cheers folks!

 

[JJsRT]

Sump plug mate, has a square hole in a circular head ( if that makes sense ) will probably be 2 under the car (ones for the gear box so don't undo that)

Gets a bit mucky so get a container and some rubber gloves lol

 

[cliokiz]

Cheers for the advice.

Anything i can look out for that the sump plug will be near? Don't wanna drain my gearbox oil lol

 

[uzi-spray]

here the sump plug should look like this but without the oil leakin lol

 

[Sami]

Gearbox drain plug is near the radiator half way up the gearbox so don't worry about that!

Sump plug is facing the rear of the car on the back of the sump on the bottom of the engine obviously, need a square bit to remove it watch out though the oil will piss out so undo it very slowly so you only drain as much as you need to!

 

[bmh.01]

I've used a 500ml syringe and some tubing to suck it out the dipstick hole in the past.
Have found that when using the drain plug for letting a bit out it tends to spray oil everywhere when you try to put it back in no matter how fast you are.

 

[steviet]

why not just give it an oil+filter change? empty it, change the filter, fill it properly, reading a haynes manual to find the correct oil capacity.

 

[cliokiz]

Oh joy, i look forward to that then, lol

Cheers for the pic, i'll see what happens i guess.

Need to get the oil out though before i kill my engine!

 

[TriO`]

will it really be that bad for the engine?? just give it a thrashing and burn some oil away

 

[cliokiz]

Well i didn't think so, but it's seriously lacking some power!

I thought it was definately the ECU, but i was reading what too much oil does to an engine and it sounded nasty. Mentioned the oil becoming frothy and very high oil pressure, and if the pressure gets too high it can break an oil seal. Also the engine will be submerged in oil and it'll be battling with it to move. There's a max mark for a reason and mine is way above it, so it can't be doing it any good.

I would change my oil filter and change my oil, but it has already been done VERY recently, and i filled it up from the minimum level with brand new oil so i'm not chucking it away!

I've tried giving it a trashing but it feels like you're driving with the wind against you, it just can't punch the power out, and my finger points at the oil. I'll empty some out later and see what happens...

 

[BRUN]

just out of interest, have you noticed what pressure your getting ?

 

[cliokiz]

When starting the engine from cold, the pressure needle is at the top of the gauge, stays there for a while, then eventually settles at just above 3 bar. I believe they should idle at around 1.5 bar, well thats what it used to settle at.