Before you start your car you need to check the oil in the engine. You never know when it will be low. If you have a front-wheel drive the dip-stick (the little rod you pull out of the engine) will normally be near the front and on the outside of the engine, near the radiator. Always wipe the dip-stick off with a clean paper towel and put it, the dip-stick, back into the little tube in the engine, and pull it back out so you can get a good reading. On the end of the dip-stick, there will usually be one or two marks and the word *FULL* written near the top mark. There may be some hash marks (////) with the word "ADD" near them. That means the engine is a quart low and needs it very badly. What you are looking for is for oil to be up to the full mark. If the oil is only to the bottom mark, or below it, that means you are at least one quart low of oil and you need to add a quart. What color is the oil? If it's a dark color it's okay. If it is very black and thick, you need to change it, and the filter. Is the oil grey...milky looking? No, don't tell me that! If it is you probably have a cracked block, a cracked head, or at least a blown head gasket...I hope that's what it is! You should check the anti-freeze, or summer coolant (depending on what time of the year it is) in the radiator or reservoir. To check the automatic transmission fluid you will need the engine running and in park. The engine and transmission should be hot...like after you get home from visiting your in-laws. The transmission fluid will swell as it gets hot. So if you check it cold and have to add some, it will probably be over full and that is not good for the seals and gaskets, or your pocket book. |
