• dual_sport_dork 🐧🗡️@lemmy.world
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    2 months ago

    New cars absolutely do have dipsticks; they’re the ones designing them.

    Notwithstanding the potential for software bugs or other issues inherent with monitoring oil levels only digitally, monitoring just the oil level is not the sole purpose of the dipstick. Being able to physically see a sample of the engine oil is a vital diagnostic tool and can alert an owner or mechanic to a head gasket problem or other oil contamination issue, or if something is grinding metal shavings into the oil, etc.

    For what it’s worth I have yet to actually physically see a new vehicle without an oil dipstick. I guess they’re out there, but so far I’ve been lucky. But I have already had quite a few automatic transmission equipped cars without a transmission dipstick cross my path, and that’s already enough of a pain in the ass. If you’re lucky there’s a side plug in the transmission case you can use to check the fluid condition and level (after crawling under the vehicle…) but in a lot of cases there isn’t even that – your only recourse is to drop the transmission pan off entirely, which causes you to lose all the fluid in the process. And you’ll probably also have to replace the gasket while you’re at it. Needless to say, this is an incredibly moronic design decision.

    • cecilkorik@lemmy.ca
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      2 months ago

      I thought it was hilarious when I saw that Briggs and Stratton has been selling small engines featuring “no oil changes needed” (or possible). They advertise that it’s “oiled for the life of the engine” … well, by definition, yes, that’s like saying “if you light a man on fire he’ll be warm for the rest of his life”. These companies are so predatory and transparently trying to turn durable products into disposable replacement services, it’s unbelievable.

      • dual_sport_dork 🐧🗡️@lemmy.world
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        2 months ago

        Can confirm; I used to manage a hardware store with an attached small engine repair shop. There’s a reason Briggs and Stratton abbreviates so readily to “BS.”

        They’ve been trying to do the absolute bare minimum possible to maximize profits and making their machines flimsy and deliberately uneconomical to repair for several decades, now. All I can say is that we ought to be thankful for aftermarket parts.

        • dan1101@lemm.ee
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          2 months ago

          IMO Briggs started losing their way with those automatic throttle engines that always wind up surging over and over for me. BRRRRrrrr BRRRRrrrr BRRRrrrr over and over.

    • seathru@lemmy.sdf.org
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      2 months ago

      For what it’s worth I have yet to actually physically see a new vehicle without an oil dipstick.

      It seems to be mostly a euro thing. BMW stopped using oil dipsticks nearly 2 decades ago. Land Rover also somewhere in the late 00’s.

      But I agree it’s a moronic idea. Not only does it prevent you from checking oil condition like you said; if it’s after an oil change, it takes about 15min just to check the level (and another 15 if you messed it up). At $150+/hr shop rates, that adds up.