SWMBO has herself a 2002 Fiat Punto, anyway after giving it a wash and wax on Saturday I decided to check the tyre pressures and Oil level. The tyre pressures were well down but what surprised me was how low the Oil level was, it was that low it wasn't even registering on the dip stick. She was going somewhere so I told her to drop into the petrol station in the Fiat garage on the way and get the attendant to check it & put some oil in it. He said it was well down and put 1 litre in it and gave her another litre to put in as he had to attend to something (I haven't had time to check it since, so not sure how much is in it now). The car was serviced 8k miles ago but surely it shouldn't go through oil that quickly ?

Is there anythings I could check for to see why this might be happening ? Btw theres no oil deposits on the driveway.

One thing we have noticed is the leaves on one of the little trees at the front door is black with something on them (she reverses her car in beside it).

Any suggestion ?

Check the rad and oil filler cap ASAP, feckin Puntos are notorious for head gaskets failing... look for a white goopy mayonaise type substance, if present get the HG checked soon... dont leave it as it will only make the bill bigger....

My current ZAFIRA 02REG 102K on clock is using 1-2 lires every 2k at present

Dealers say's normal for mileage. 6 weeks to my new Octy can't wait!!!!

Check the rad and oil filler cap ASAP, feckin Puntos are notorious for head gaskets failing... look for a white goopy mayonaise type substance, if present get the HG checked soon... dont leave it as it will only make the bill bigger....

I did open the oil cap to show her where the oil goes, I don't remember seeing anything white. Would the rad cap also be white ? if that was the problem I assume it would be loosing coolant (the gasket went on a 96 Punto I used to have :( ).

Could it be anything else ? or is there the chance its just thirsty :confused:

My current ZAFIRA 02REG 102K on clock is using 1-2 lires every 2k at present

Dealers say's normal for mileage. 6 weeks to my new Octy can't wait!!!!

I think theres only around 38K on the Punto, due a service around 40k but it might be worth doing it early. The backstreet garage that services my dads cars only charge me 150 punts to skim the head and replace the gasket around 6yrs ago, :eek: jaysus where did te time go.

Has it had any oil put in since the service 8000 miles ago other than the 2 litres now?

Has it had any[/u'] oil put in since the service 8000 miles ago other than the 2 litres now?

No, sorry I kept meaning to check the level and I didn't. Do you reakon it could be okay and have burned that much in 8k.

Personally I would check it... After all, officially, you're meant to check water & oil before even driving anywhere - in reality, once a week is probably a good minimum...

That said I should check the Furby tomrrow at work, once it it on a level floor

Just had another look at its been around 6k since the service.

Now theres too much bloody oil in it :eek: . It must be nearly 5mm or more above the max line after being stopped for 30mins or so (that must be a least 1/2 litre too much). I think that the oil was just about touching the bottom of the dip stick before it was topped up. I tried to take some of it out there with a 5ml seringe and some earthwire covering (its all I could get my hands on), I only got a small tin full out of it out.

I have always heard too much is bad, but how much is too much !

Anything above the full mark on the dipstick is too much. You really do need to drain the surplus oil asap to avoid engine damage. Can you get at the sump plug to loosen it enough to allow oil to trickle out? (i had to do this to my son's 200SX recently following a service by a garage).

Anything above the full mark on the dipstick is too much. You really do need to drain the surplus oil asap to avoid engine damage. Can you get at the sump plug to loosen it enough to allow oil to trickle out? (i had to do this to my son's 200SX recently following a service by a garage).

I feared thats what you might say, f**k it .

Bugger this post is pretty irrealavant now but yes it'd be loosing coolant too, rad cap could also have mayo in it depending on how long the gasket had gone etc..

just get a cheap basin and some cardboard to protect the driveway and drain a wee bit out, if you drain too much, just pour it back in...

Guys,

Thanks for your responses, just an update.

Around 10pm last night I decided I better go out and try and take more oil out of the car (don't worry the neighbours already think I'm nuts ), unfortunately I didn't have allen keys big enough to open the sump nut so had to revert back to the syringe and tubing. After about an hour I reakon I had about 1/2 litre out of it. With the oil slightly warm it was just under the Max mark on the dip stick, to verify I checked it again this morning when completely cold and it was right at the Max mark.

Do you think there could be much damage done to it ? she must have only driven 30-40 miles with too much in it.

Do you think there could be much damage done to it ? she must have only driven 30-40 miles with too much in it.

With a little luck you should have got away without any doing any damage. And given that the oil level hadn't been checked for ages, the fact that it was so low is almost certainly explainable as normal oil consumption. If there are no signs of oil in the coolant, coolant in the oil, lots - and I mean lots - of visible vapour from the exhaust on a cold start, difficulty starting and rough running, then stop worrying! If you are concerned, however, book the car in early for its next service and get it checked.

With a little luck you should have got away without any doing any damage. And given that the oil level hadn't been checked for ages, the fact that it was so low is almost certainly explainable as normal oil consumption. If there are no signs of oil in the coolant, coolant in the oil, lots - and I mean lots - of visible vapour from the exhaust on a cold start, difficulty starting and rough running, then stop worrying! If you are concerned, however, book the car in early for its next service and get it checked.

When you say rough idling do you mean this could have be a result of the too much oil or the too little ?

To be honest it does seem to be a bit rough when taking off, its as if your not matching revs and letting the clutch out, its not just with me it seems to happen as SWMBO has also noticed it. I think it idles ok but I think I'm going to have to give it a look over after everyones comments She won't be too happy when I tell her she should get it serviced early.

I meant rough running due to cylinder head gasket problems, GAFF, which is what I had with my Peugeot 505. You are probably being over-sensitive about the car right now so follow through on the advice about getting it serviced and checked.

Heres some pictures I took of the car this evening, it doesn't look too bad but is the white inside the oil cap anything to be concerned about ?

Looks normal to me. Stop worrying!

Looks normal to me. Stop worrying!

Denis, thanks for the help (I just wanted expert advice ).