For those who can't change their own oil, how do you avoid overfilling?
 

Oil overfilling has been discussed here in the past, and obviously the best way to avoid it is to do it yourself. Alas, some of us don't have that option. So for those of you who have your oil changed by the dealer or some other garage, what do you do - if anything - to avoid overfill? Do you tell them to only add x.x quarts? Do you ask them to do anything special to remove as much oid oil as possible??

I've toyed with the idea of telling them to add only, say, 4 quarts, and then later adding the remainder myself, just to get it right.

If they can't do it without overfilling then you need a new mechanic. Just check it your self before you leave.

Find someone who will use your oil & filter and charge you for labor.
Bring 4 quart bottles.
When I do it, it costs $20.
Some guys just pocket the cash without doing a receipt, especially on the weekend.

^ I've always brought my own oil and filter to the dealer. But I like your idea; I usually bring the 5-qt Castrol bottle; think I'll start bringing four quart bottles from now on. That way, they can't overfill.

This is the dumbest thread ever.

I got my car's engine oil changed 2 days ago and they overfilled it! It was higher than the top line on the dipstick. They had to drain half a quart lol.

Yup. That's the issue.

Get an oil extractor. Extract through the dipstick tube.

In fact, if you have a S1 you can do the whole oil change yourself in 15 minutes without lifting the car.

The best way to avoid overfilling anything is not to pour in too many much, just sayin' ...

Never mind that I used to race my RX8 with a 1 qt. overfill and never had an issue. Your question isn't dumb, it's the people who spout generic stuff off without really knowing what they're talking about ....

^ Well needless to say, if I were still doing my own oil changes, I wouldn't be adding too much; I'd be adding precisely the right amount of new oil to bring the level to the full line on the dipstick. But when the dealer or some other garage is doing the change, that's out of my control.

Appreciate all the suggestions here! I'm gonna go with the "bringing only 4 quarts of oil to the dealership and top it off myself" idea. That oughta work.

Get a Fumoto oil valve so that you can esily change your oil quickly and reduce the level in case of overfill

^ Not sure what the message here is exactly, but I'm gonna assume it's "dont get an oil change when the arrival of a category 3 hurricane is imminent".

Best guess is BC meant to post that in the B@W thread

Whatchoo talkin bout?

:suspect:

Yeah, I get it now.

I may get one, I'm getting too old to be rolling around on the ground under cars.
:(

Works great on my S1 RX-8 and CX-3. Worked well on my Infiniti G37x. The tube was destroyed by my 2.7L Hyundai Santa Fe back in the day.

I love it on my '8 because I can get to everything from the top. Mine has 1qt markers on it so I know how much came out and I always get a bit over 4 qts each time.

Try a oil plug change valve: Fumoto. Makes quick oil changes in between oil filter changes.

https://www.rx8club.com/series-ii-di...change-184207/

I also use an older oil container and I fill it up to ~ 4.0L then transfer only that amount after my frequent oil drain period (~1000 mi); 4.2 L with oil filter change.
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rx8...8db77717a.jpeg

The other idea is the one I saw at my local independent BMW dealer - they use an oil can with spout:
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rx8...dc9eff36a6.jpg

What brand is it?

It was an off brand but it's identical to the PELA 6000. I know this because I've bought replacement parts directly from PELA's US distributor for it.

Here:

Each of the ribs is roughly 1 qt.

There are bigger ones that are better if you have a garage and a compressor to power them but this is nice because it's big enough for our cars and you can cap it, put it in your trunk and drive it to the parts store to dump (mine even came with a pour spout.

I've had mine for 8 years and the only part that has needed replacement is the tube that goes into the dipstick hole after the Hyundai 2.7L motor shredded it.