My fiat 500 pop is only a few months old. I have topped up the oil before fine no problems. I thought I would add some more as the car was smelling funny so I checked the oil and it looked low and added some oil, dunno how much 1-3 litres maybe? Anyway went to drive it and half way down the street I noticed a lot of smoke coming out the back, some small amount of smoke and rumbling in front. Called Fiat roadside assist they say don't drive it wait till Monday... (Got it back down the road to my house in a very scary drive made worse by my partner doing it and he just doesn't understand how to do anything in it)

What's wrong? Did I break it?

Ok, firstly, only ever check the oil level on a cold engine with the vehicle on a level surface. Secondly, the difference between the low to high mark on the dipstick is usually less than 1 litre, unless you are in a bus or a truck. You should add oil about a cup at a time, and keep checking the dip stick each time to see how the level has changed. Oil is thicker than water, and it may take a minute or two for the level to change as it gloops through the engine.
If you have added too much oil, it can over pressurise the engine, forcing oil past the various seals in the engine.
You would have been better stopping the car immediately, and getting it recovered rather than drive it home.
I hope you have been lucky, and the garage can just drain the oil and refill to the correct level (4.5 litres ish), and hopefully no lasting damage done.

Firstly if its only a few months old it shouldn't be drinking oil. Maybe half a litre max every few 1000 miles if its a 16v and your razzing it everywhere!

Also check oil level about an hour after you've driven it! If your driving then checking it 5mins later most of the oil will still be draining back to the sump, giving you an artificially low reading!

I tend to try to keep my oil level mid between max-min on a dip stick then you've no chance of overfilling!

Sounds to me like you've seriously overfilled the engine with oil. I would recommend not driving it and call AA! You'll feel like a bit of a fud, but I guarantee you'll never do it again.

FYI overfilling is as bad as running low on oil! So don't drive it until its checked!

Yeah it seams to be leaking now after the boyfriend drove it home will have to get it towed on Monday I guess. Main issue is there is no min or max mark on the dip stick, just some vague diagram on the lid of the engine.

The lesson is thatt if you don't know what you're doing, leave well alone

I don't understand why your breakdown provider aren't at your place now draining excess oil and checking it over?

There's also the question of what oil you used. Did you make sure it was the precise specification for your engine?

It seems likely from what you have posted that you have seriously overfilled the engine with oil. The most important thing now is not to start the engine again until it has been checked and rectified by a competent person. If you run the engine again in its current state, you risk making things much worse.

You have done the equivalent of dropping your mobile in a toilet. The only chance you have of rescuing it is to keep it switched off and let someone who knows what they are doing sort it out.

I will keep all my fingers crossed for you that the engine is not seriously damaged.

divapink said:

Yeah it seams to be leaking now after the boyfriend drove it home will have to get it towed on Monday I guess. Main issue is there is no min or max mark on the dip stick, just some vague diagram on the lid of the engine.

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Can we possibly see a picture of the end of the dip stick, I'm curious as to what yours looks like

If its a 1.2 they only take 3l of oil from totally empty... Just hope you've not blown a seal due to the excess oil as it won't be covered under warranty due to user error

There is no need to try and humiliate people for asking for help just because they have less or little knowledge of something and/or have done something wrong. Isn't the purpose of a forum to seek and give advice? No one likes a smart Alec.

So I'm in the wrong place if I ever make a mistake with my Bravo then and don't want to be ridiculed it would seem.

Venters said:

Take a pill. Anyone who claims they haven't done something that someone else would consider stupid has either never done anything new or is a liar.

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Too right!

On a slightly separate note, approx. 150,000 people per year fill up with the wrong fuel in the UK according to figures from the AA. That's a lot of people who forget which pump is the right one!

We all make mistakes, I am sure the OP would rather have the 500 up and running again ASAP. And we still don't know 100% that it is down to an overfill of oil...it seems that is most likely, but who knows? It might be something else - the very first line of the post says something was smelling bad beforehand...

Super Uwe said:

Too right!

On a slightly separate note, approx. 150,000 people per year fill up with the wrong fuel in the UK according to figures from the AA. That's a lot of people who forget which pump is the right one!

We all make mistakes, I am sure the OP would rather have the 500 up and running again ASAP. And we still don't know 100% that it is down to an overfill of oil...it seems that is most likely, but who knows? It might be something else - the very first line of the post says something was smelling bad beforehand...

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That would be some coincidence......

Trying to get the right oil level on my Punto auto gearbox has been a nightmare so I can somewhat sympathise. The space between the empty and full is minimal and as stated on here you have to let the oil feed through to get a proper reading. Personally if its new I would have been straight down the Fiat dealer and said where the f**k is my oil going, don't assume because its new its not faulty. Also all the advice in the world is of little use after the fact. Get Fiat to check it and don't do anything with it until they have. I will be dead in about 30 years so I don't have the time to join in the petty argument of who said what. People need to look at themselves and how they write as things can easily be misunderstood or not taken as intended. Damn I have just wasted a few minutes mentioning it instead of being useful to a fellow human being. There are enough a**holes out there, I don't intend to be one of them (unless you ask the wife, in which case I am the biggest a**hole going)

On another note I have always appreciated the help and advice given in this forum that has not been judgemental as I am aware I know very little and can easily do things wrong. I would have been quite upset had someone berated me for being an idiot. Sometimes it seems people don't know the obvious, we need to step back and look at things from others points of view. Life is not all black and white to everyone

30 posts I've had to delete, using my tablet!
Do you know how much of a pain in the hoop that is?

Venters said:

30 posts I've had to delete, using my tablet!
Do you know how much of a pain in the hoop that is?

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Lucky you get paid so well

Venters said:

30 posts I've had to delete, using my tablet!
Do you know how much of a pain in the hoop that is?

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Ah but that is why you are so good at being a wonderful, marvellous, fantastic moderator Mr Venters :worship:

Can we have an X rated section of the forum where things are not deleted?
I mean deleting 30 posts means I have absolutely no idea what has gone on and what people are talking about!

ahmett said:

Can we have an X rated section of the forum where things are not deleted?
I mean deleting 30 posts means I have absolutely no idea what has gone on and what people are talking about!

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That is your punishment for being late to school.

Andy Monty said:

If its a 1.2 they only take 3l of oil from totally empty... Just hope you've not blown a seal due to the excess oil as it won't be covered under warranty due to user error

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I assumed they'd MEANT to say 1.3 litres of oil topping-up, roughly what's needed between "off the dipstick" and top of "full" mark..,

most people could judge between 1 litre and 3 litres.., when pouring in from a 5 litre container,

chances are we'll never hear what the actual fault was ,

Charlie