How Long Can I Run My Car With Too Much Oil? [Explained]

Everything has a limit, and if you go beyond it, it brings adverse effects.

Adding oil to the car has the right proportions. Likewise, driving the vehicle with too much oil in it has some limitations and directions.

If you are thinking about driving with too much oil, it might lead your vehicle towards malfunctioning. So in this article I am going to answer the common question many car owners are confused about- how long can I run my car with too much oil?

Before you dive deep into the article, let’s find out the quick answer to the question.

How Long Can I Run My Car With Too Much Oil?

Adding too much oil or getting the tank overfilled is quite common, especially if you don’t know how much oil you should fill.

As you probably know, car oil and its regular checking is all about the right performance of your vehicle. And if you somehow neglect this factor, it will certainly promote many problems that can also damage one of the essential components of the car.

First of all, you should not exceed the recommended limit of oil in our car. However, if you have overfilled the vehicle, you can drive 1000 miles around the week practically. However each car model and its manufacturing approach is different. So, if your car is older or has a difference in mechanics, you may need to reduce it by 100 miles.

Depending on how much oil is overfilled, driving a car with too much oil damages the engine as well.

But if you notice any of the following signs while driving with overfilled car oil, stop the car right away. It can be the indicator of major damage in your car so you better take it to the mechanic.

• Too much smoke from the exhaust
• Minimal engine performance
• The dashboard warning lights
• Strange sounds from the engine

How much oil is too much in the car?

It depends from car to car. Depending on models and the direction of each car engine, the oil limitation may vary. For instance the Audi A7 should get 6.4 liters of engine oil but if you fill it with more than 6.4 it would be considered too much oil and that can lead to the damage of the car components.

So how much overfill is bearable has no direct answer as of yet. 

Having said that, if you exceed a small quantity of engine oil, it won’t cause major damage to the car engine and you won’t face any problem in your vehicle. 

For instance you can get about 10% extra oil in your car with zero issues, the motor will burn the excess oil anyways. For 10% oil exceeding you can use the dipstick’s minimum and maximum markers.

Here is how to find out if your car has too much oil

This can be a trick if you don’t keep an eye on the car engine oil. Therefore, as a general practice you should keep the maintenance and check of your car always highlighted. 

So if your car don’t show any notification or sign for too much oil, you can check that by looking at the dipstick. The level up oil means there is too much oil in the engine. The foamy substance in the dipstick means you should change the engine oil right then because the foam indicates engine malfunctioning.

Also Read: How Long Can You Drive On 0 Oil Life

Is there any way to remove excess oil from the car? 

Yes, you can take out the excess oil from your car using the right tool such as the siphon or fluid extractor.

For example, you can use the hand pump siphon for excess engine oil removal. For that, you need to insert the siphon tube within the dipstick tube, which then goes to the engine oil pan. Then pump the excess oil and confirm the oil level. However, if you are unsure, it’s better to take your car to the vehicle.

What happens if you keep on driving with too much oil in the car?

You might be thinking that an overfilled car with engine oil will drive longer. Conversely, if you overfill the car with oil, it won’t start. The reason is too much oil into the engine cylinder, causing the spark plugs to go bad. 

Therefore, the tip of the plug gets coats with the engine oil and the spark plug fails to ignite the spark as it should. So, too much oil will not let your car start.