I Should Not Check My Oil Ever Because I Can't Tell

So about a week or two ago I checked the oil level on my parents' minivan.  It wasn't drastically low, but it was low enough that at some point I would out some oil into the car -- not a whole lot, but enough to where I think it would make it a difference.

At some point earlier this week (or was it late last week?), when the weather was relatively warm, I put in, oh, a quarter to a third of a quart of oil -- enough, like I said, to make a difference, but not so much that it would ruin the engine (since Father put in oil less than a month ago).  Then, before I left the library (where, to update my last blog post, I spent about 90 minutes total), I checked the oil level again.  Frankly, if the level rose, I couldn't tell.  If the dots on the dipstick are only measuring a quart of oil (at least according to the websites I have read), there should have been an appreciable difference.  But if I go by the dipstick, it's as if I didn't put it any oil at all.

I remember once when my old car, the Lexus, was nearly empty of oil, and I was warned by the mechanic about it.  So I became obsessed with making sure oil was in the car ... to the point where I was told by another mechanic when I brought my car in that there was too much.  The van is working fine, so I think I am putting in too much oil.  In fact, I think I'm overthinking all this.  Maybe I shouldn't fool myself into thinking I need to add oil, because by the looks of it, what the hell do I friggin' know whether it needs it?