Stupid rookie move - oil everywhere

[echecsqueen]

So early this am when I had about 5 extra minutes before I had to leave for work I had the genius idea to quickly add some oil to the 1988 3.2. It was near the bottom of the fill line. Being the clever girl I am, I was putting the oil in with the engine running and the oil overfilled the funnel by a big "glug" (large mouth 5 liter oil jug). Oil sprayed everywhere. I mopped the big puddles off as best as I could with a super hot engine, but there is oil spray all over the engine and everything in the compartment. Most of it landed on to of the fan and is on the belts etc.

Is this a problem?
Will it hurt anything?
It seems resistant to being washed off the paint....is it corrosive?

i have already thrown my scrubs away (saturated) - what else do I need to do?

The driveway is covered in oil droplets as well....

thanks,
humble queen

[BK911]

Engine degreaser!
The purple spray stuff works pretty well.
Also some oil dry or kitty litter will soak up the spilled stuff.

[echecsqueen]

do i spray it everywhere? into the air intake?

[JoeyD1005]

By overfill, do you mean that it ran out of the oil filler neck and sprayed over? or you overfilled in relation to the dipstick. Gigantic differences on that one haha. I overfilled once and it fouled my plugs pretty badly and developed a misfire. The fix for me was to drain the oil and refill to the proper amount. Dont be surprised if you develop a bit of a smoke show now as a result.


Best of luck.

[uwanna]

Sounds like she filled the funnel too fast and it overflowed as the oil
couldn't flow fast enough through the small spout on the bottom.

[jferrante]

Brakekleen will work as well as simple green - you will get some smoke but let it burn off and you should be good.

[Jesse16]

I would just wipe up as much as possible and use purple or green degreaser with rags to help the wiping. No spray into the air intake. You can take the air-cleaner cover off and clean it that way if you want. Belt ?? maybe just wipe it off some again with some cleaner. Will probably be fine.
Inside the engine compartment is very resistant to oil so its really cosmetics.

[echecsqueen]

Thanks all -

I didn't overfill the oil tank, i overflowed the funnel but when I did it was a big "glug" so it splashed.
what about the paint? is it (the oil) corrosive at all ?(probably a dumb question but am just being sure)....
Is it okay that the belts are oily? will they slip?

[T77911S]

its a good rust preventer .

don't feel bad. when I had my 914-6 me and oil got along.
ever since I went 911/930, I seem to wind of with several qts on the floor.


I took the 914-6 for an oil change one time. you had to unbolt the oil line at the tank to drain the oil. I to9ld the guy to be careful. needless to say he wound up with oil all down the front of him.

[Jesse16]

I think your belt will be fine but needs to be reasonably clean. Would recommend wiping it off or spraying with brake cleaner maybe including the pulley surfaces. Remember, the belt lives with the engine and will resist most anything that occurs under the hood. Our engines tend to be very oily.

[echecsqueen]

Thanks everyone....reminder to self.....don't start ANYTHING on this car when strapped for time.

[GothingNC]

Originally Posted by echecsqueen

Thanks everyone....reminder to self.....don't start ANYTHING on this car when strapped for time.

I feel your pain.

Just did the same thing with the Mini and the oil covered the exhaust manifold.
After a 10 mile drive most of the smoke cleared up....

[Rodsrsr]

Rookie.

[jlex]

Oil attacks and degrades rubber. Be careful to clean up the fan belts & pulleys. Anything else in the compartment that's made of rubber should be cleaned of oil.
You did check the oil level when the engine was fully warmed up & running at idle, right?

[boyt911sc]

Originally Posted by echecsqueen

So early this am when I had about 5 extra minutes before I had to leave for work I had the genius idea to quickly add some oil to the 1988 3.2. It was near the bottom of the fill line. Being the clever girl I am, I was putting the oil in with the engine running and the oil overfilled the funnel by a big "glug" (large mouth 5 liter oil jug). Oil sprayed everywhere. I mopped the big puddles off as best as I could with a super hot engine, but there is oil spray all over the engine and everything in the compartment. Most of it landed on to of the fan and is on the belts etc.

Is this a problem?
Will it hurt anything?
It seems resistant to being washed off the paint....is it corrosive?

i have already thrown my scrubs away (saturated) - what else do I need to do?

The driveway is covered in oil droplets as well....

thanks,
humble queen

Humble queen,

If you checked the oil level of a cold 911 engine on a level ground and could see the dip stick with oil mark, you have sufficient oil. And compare the oil level with a fully warmed and running engine. As long as I have oil on my dip stick when cold and not running, I get the warm oil level between the two marks (low and high). The cold oil level on the dip stick could go up between 1~ 1.5" from cold not running engine to a fully warmed running engine. I use this guide to determine how much oil I have in the tank before driving out of the garage.

Tony

[cknoll77]

No worries, I've been doing my own work on my cars for over 20 years and could easily make a similar mistake when rushed for time.

As long as the engine wasn't overfilled there's not much to worry about. Air cooled engines always seem to have a healthy layer of oil on them... the up side, as mentioned, oil helps guard against corrosion. As for the oil that got on the paint, I would just wash with regular car wash. If that doesn't work then a light polish and wax after. I wouldn't recommend using any de-greaser on the paint as this would strip the wax and could leave odd marks/spots on old paint.

[gazzerr]

Don't feel bad. Very easy to do. Done it myself.

[echecsqueen]

Thanks all - for the words of wisdom....and encouragement. I am a bit frustrated with both of my cars at the moment - ok, well in actuality I am frustrated with myself. Some days everything I touch on these cars goes poorly. Fix one thing and in the process bugger up another. argh, well,l I am glad I didn't overfill the engine.

Glad to know the trick about checking cold and mentally adding an inch or 1.5 to get approx level - thanks...I have been checking hot and running at the end off the day. Nice to have a way to check before a long trip

[Tony V]

In regards to stupid, I've got you all beat:
Couple of weeks ago, I decided to change the oil in our 2003 PT Turbo. Only takes 5 quarts. Got it done and figured I'd bring the oil to my buddies shop for recycling. Driving to the shop I smelled oil and wondered if I hadn't tightened the filter enough. Opened the rear hatch to find the container had opened and spilled oil all over the place. Seeped into the rear carpets and smelled awful. Pondering what to do, I recalled the Farmers Insurance commercials, touting their unusual claims. I called my State Farm agent and they covered it. $3200.00! They stripped out the interior, cleaned everything, installed new carpets and mats, cleaned and conditioned the leather seats. All covered under the $100 deductible comprehensive coverage. No claim ding either. Makes your belching oil spill sound like a party!

[cabmandone]

I have had oil spit back at me several times. Get a funnel with a larger outlet so it can handle the flow of the container you're pouring from. You still have to pour slowly but not as slow as some of the funnels with smaller outlets. I honestly don't get too worried about filling until I can see the low line. I run my car at about the half way point on the dipstick. When I can see the low line, I'll add. These cars hold A LOT of oil.