hello, I have two y-block powered cars, a 312 and a 239. the books state when changing the oil w/ filter you should add 6 qts, both cars have identical dipsticks and I have no reason to believe the dipsticks are not original to these engines. If I add the recommended 6 qts., both engines read considerably over filled. if I add 5 qts., its dead on the full mark. both engines have spin-on filters. could ford have been this far off on calibrating the dipstick? has anyone else experienced this? also I am going to open this can of worms, I have had the 312 for over 20 years and have always used Castrol 10w30 with never any problems, I use it I both cars, any thoughts or opinions on type of oil to use? thanks, doug.

It's possible that the oil capacity is reduced since they have spin on filters and not the cartridge filters.
Did you check your levels after running the cars to see if the levels have gone down?

~DJ~ AKA "Bleach"
1956 Ford Fairlane Town Sedan 30K original miles

hello dj, yes I have checked them and they still read over the full mark?

The only other thing I can think of is that there is some oil that is not getting completely drained out. You'd be surprised sometimes how much oil remains after that last drop drips out of the oil pan.
I go as far as suction every bit of oil out I can from the oil pan. I even give the engines a few turns by hand so I can drain out a little more oil left in the passages. In most cars I can get at least another 1/2 quart / liter that way.
After refilling, I bump the engines over a few times without starting to get some oil flowing before a full start.

~DJ~ AKA "Bleach"
1956 Ford Fairlane Town Sedan 30K original miles

Passenger cars 1955 and 56 and 57 fords 272-292-312s hold 5 qts including filter from my experience of owning too many ,well maybe not too many?? The Tbirds hold 6 qts including filter with rear sump oil pans. I don't know the number for pickup trucks which had a different rear sump pan.

-Gary Burnette-

hello gary, why do you suppose the owners manuals say 6qts.,? can a spin-on filter make that much difference? I have always just put in 5qts., but since I found the y-block forum I thought I would post the question. what type of oil do you use? thanks, doug.

If you are at some point going to redo the engine, avoid any modern engine oils that have the "star burst gear" on the label. Those oils are for modern roller valve train engines. The "anti scuff" additives are reduced in those oils, as per government directives.. Most oils of 10-40 weight & up are o.k. for zinc phosporus anti scuff content.

Paul

This is a bit of a bird walk from Doug's original question, but related to what DJ had to say...

With the spin-on oil filters, I use a funnel and fill the new disposable oil filter before installing it on the engine block.

It's amazing how much oil it takes to do this, if you fill it, wait a minute, and see how the oil is absorbed by the element allowing you to add yet more oil two or three additional times.

By following this procedure of filling the oil filter before installing it on the engine block, when you start the engine you'll find that the 'idiot' light indicating oil pressure goes off virtually immediately, or the reading on your oil pressure gauge rises immediately as you crank the engine.

While not as good as an auxiliary pre-lube system, me thinks the oil gets where it needs to be much quicker after you've drained the crankcase and changed the oil and filter.

Regards,


NoShortcuts
a.k.a. Charlie Brown
near Syracuse, New York