MarineBlue03GMC

Well I recently went to one of those quickie lube places because I was to lazy to do it myself.

Anyway I checked the dipstick after I had driven it for at least 40 minutes, with the truck off, and the oil mark was 1/2 an inch above the top circle/cross hatch marks on the dip stick. I have a 03 GMC Sierra with the 5.3L engine. Anyway I am trying to decide wether I should drain a little oil out of the engine through the drain bolt to bring the oil level down. I got my oil changed yesterday and noticed it was too high today.

What do you guys think I should do? Is it not a big deal? I have checked out a few pages and forums on the net that say that a little extra (no more than half a quart) of oil is not going to really cause damage. I figure if I have a 1/2 inch extra then that cant be more than 1/2 a quart of oil.

Anyway if anyone can give me any suggestions I would really appreciate it!

thanks,

Glenn

CashDudeHomie

iTrader: (5)

I use a 5 qt jug of Mobil 1 and a 1 qt bottle of Mobil 1. I crank it and let it run through the filter and stuff, then let it sit for about an hour or 2 and it will be about 1/4 or 1/2 inch above the top hole. I wouldn't worry about it unless it is that high right after your truck was running, because there would still be even more oil up in the engine.

DuckOfDeath

There seems to be confusion as to how much oil our trucks hold - my friend owns an oil change place and he swears his documentation says 6.25 quarts with filter. My truck's documentation says 6.0 quarts, and when I put in 6 quarts of Mobil 1, it reads just right on the stick.

I don't think the .25 quart is going to hurt, unless there's a windage problem or the crankshaft is splashing against the top level of the oil and robbing horsepower. The 1999 and 2000 trucks don't have windage trays, I don't know about newer models...

jlwz71

iTrader: (3)

Sorry Mr. Duck but my 99 5.3 came from the factory with the windage tray. All gen IV motors have them. I have had several apart including mine and they all have had trays that attach to the main caps.

DuckOfDeath

Well, cool! I was using a Haynes Manual as my reference... My bad - I apologize for assuming too much. Thanks for clarifying!

<small>[ October 06, 2002, 09:57 PM: Message edited by: DuckOfDeath ]</small>

Nick99Chevy

</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Originally posted by jlwz71:
<strong>Sorry Mr. Duck but my 99 5.3 came from the factory with the windage tray. All gen IV motors have them. I have had several apart including mine and they all have had trays that attach to the main caps.</strong></font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">You mean Gen III ? <img border="0" title="" alt="[Big Grin]" src="gr_grin.gif" />

MarineBlue03GMC

Well I got under my truck tonight and drained off maybe 1/4 of a quart or more. I checked the dipstick and when cold the oil level is perfect. I also drove my truck to normal operating temp. and checked the oil. Once again everything looked cool. I also noticed that my truck had WAY more power than when it had that extra oil!

Earlier today when I drove my truck with the extra oil it really felt sluggish and slow! I cant believe that little amount of extra oil made so much of a difference! Anyway my blue beast is back now that the oil problem is solved!

Thats the last time I every play the lazy man and take my truck to some place for an oil change. <img border="0" alt="[Banging Head]" title="" src="graemlins/gr_banghead.gif" /> I feel stupid for even doing it now that I see how easy it is to do an oil change on this truck! I dont even need to jack it up and the oil drain bold/filter are right next to each other! Wow super easy and very cool!

Thanks for the responses.

jlwz71

iTrader: (3)

Yes you are right. Gen III motor. I suck. <img border="0" title="" alt="[Sad]" src="gr_sad.gif" />

Neil 6.0

MarineBlue03GMC, can you take a look and see what size oil filter that the quickie lube place used, (it might say it on your receipt)? A guy that works at one of the GM truck factories has said that the 2003 motors are coming off the assembly line with the smaller LS1 oil filter (pf44), instead of the bigger pf59 that the previous years had. The pf44 holds about a ½-quart less than the pf59. If they used a pf44 (or aftermarket equivalent) and poured in 6 quarts, that could be the reason it was overfull.

MarineBlue03GMC

I used my own Mobil 1 oil filter and I found this filter by looking at the 2000+ model year application chart. It doesnt look especially small though. The original filter was pretty small though so I think the 03's are coming with smaller filters.

Anyway last night I drained off all the excess oil, about 1/3-1/4 of a quart. Then I drove it and it seemed to have WAY more pickup and better acceleration. I cant believe a little extra oil makes such a difference. Next time I will be sure to change the oil myself. I still cant believe how easy it is to change the oil on these trucks!

So do you guys think its best to check the oil when its cold or hot? I was told to check it when its cold.

Oh I just ordered a set of hotchkis springs and Doetsch tech nitro slammers! I should have them installed this weekend! I am going to post some step by step pictures when I do the install!