I have an 84 GSL SE. I decided to change the oil this week. Everything went find. I was pretty sure it takes 4.4 litres of oil. I put that in, ran around the block, and parked it.

Today I check the oil and it looks like I have over filled the oil. The dip stick is showing the oil well past the full level.

So I guess I have two questions, what should I have filled it with? Should I drain the extra? I did some on line searching and it appears over filling can cause some pretty serious issues. Won't take long to drain a bit, but I will have to jack her up -- she is low -- and undo the screw to let some oil fall drain. And I would likely do that tomorrow. Want to take her for a drive before the snow falls :-)

Any feedback, greatly appreciated.

Cheers,
Duane

 

With piston motors, too much oil is almost always worse than too little. With the added oil over what it should hold, there is less space for the oil to expand as it heats and can/will put undue pressure on seals as well as other parts/aspects of the motor. With a rotary, I'm not sure the same applies, but the principle makes sense. Too much oil means more pressure on the motor.

 

u will be fine ... drive the car and check win it hot ..

 

Duane.
Just for the overall "health" of your engine,drain out the excess oil.
Too much oil will cause excessive oil pressure.You don't need that on a 25 year old engine.But about 4 litres is the Norm for filling.(check your manual,or hood sticker info).Remember though,that a rotary uses a bit of oil up,and injects it into the engine(OMP),so If it is "just" over the fill line I wouldn't really worry,but WAY over I would drain it.
The oil: Viscosity wise,you are OK with a 10-w-30.(in Canada).

 

You should have no problem with the excess oil. The problem with excess oil in piston engines isn't that it causes excess oil pressure (the oil still has to go through the pump pickup, at the bottom of the sump - the added height of the oil above it is not significant, or likely measurable with any but scientific grade-instruments). The piston problem with overfilling the oil is that the crank throws and counterweights will actually spin through the oil - which is a serious drag (and load) on the crank (windage - the crank winds through the oil, and picks it up like taffee), and foams the oil badly, leading to loss of lubrication, since air bubbles don't lube.

The e-shaft and rotors can't physically run in your pan oil, and your extra oil will just mean extra time before oil used by your MOP will demand you add oil

Rotary racers (myself included) routinely add an extra 1/2 to 1 litre if running in a class that allows no internal engine mods (like a windage tray to prevent oil sloshing), to lower the chances of high-speed cornering leading to oil being sloshed away from the pump pickup. Also helps to prevent the distraction of the low oil level sensor buzzing frequently.

 

I don't see how having too much oil in the pan causes increased oil pressure like someone said... The oil pressure is set by the regulating valve, as long as your not low on oil, your pump will produce as much presure as it can, and the spring valve will bleed off the rest... EI, you wil be fine,

but to the increased pressure comment... I call BS... I do agree with rx7racer though, where too much oil in a piston motor causes the crank to splash into it, that is true...


J.