I have a quick question. I searched the forums and did not find anything. I have a new NX350 Premium, and really pleased with it.I just took it on a 900 mile road trip. I checked the oil level once the oil started to darken, and found the level much higher than the full mark on the dipstick. I will talk to the dealer service department later but wanted to pose the question here first. Is this something I should be concerned about?

when I check the oil I pull the dipstick, wipe it then reinsert it to read it. I am wondering it I am pulling oil up the tube and getting an inaccurate reading. Thanks for your input.

 

It is a PITA to read. Mine does the same thing. Clean oil is almost impossible to read without a laboratory analysis of the dip stick and even then, one side of the stick shows a different level that the other side, LOL. I change my own oil so I started out being meticulous about the oil level being exact to the micron on the full level, but quickly realized I was chasing ghosts. These days, as long as the oil still looks like oil and is present nearish the full mark regardless how much might adhere to higher portions, I'm good.

 

My '22 NX350, '15 RX450h and the '13 GS350 all did the same thing. Hard read on the oil level. And yes, I'm old school, if you do the pull, wipe, reinsert and pull again your dragging oil up into the dipstick tube making it harder to read the oil level on the stick. And I too thought the car oil was over-serviced. I found it better to just let the car sit overnight and do a one pull check in the morning and it's always been good. It was interesting to note that the older the oil got the easier it was to read and I'm not talking just about the color. Out of the 4 Lexi's I've owned, none of them has ever used oil even after 170k miles on the GS.

 

Here's a video on that! Start at 4:35 time stamp

First off he doesn't mention check your oil on level ground not on a slope of any kind. Fluid expands when hot and oil is a fluid. With your car at operating temperature or after a good drive, stop and park on level ground, wait a minute, pull out and wipe dip stick, reinsert and check. Cold engine temp will give you a lower reading.

 

I just got my first free oil change from the dealer at 1200 miles. Whenever someone else changes my oil I must verify the level. After parking with a fully heated engine I waited 10 mins and then checked. I could barely see the oil level since it was so clear, not sure if this is because it's 0W-16 or an early oil change. After a couple of dipstick inserts, wipes, checks, and angling the dipstick to the overhead light to see the level, I was satisfied that the oil was "full". I think not checking the level when too hot or cold is key.

 

I'm on board with all of what you're saying and of course always check on level ground. I believe the original poster MOTT and I see the same thing when we do the double dip on the stick. Hot or cold. The dip stick drags oil up into the tube and makes the reading it hard sometimes on the second dip. You get extra oil on the dip stick above the full level and at first glance you think it's way overserviced. If you angle the stick just right, you can kind of interpolate the level as being OK. I just found it easier to do it in the garage, level floor after it sits overnight or at least for a few hours and just one pull of the dipstick. Yes, the oil level may be "slightly" over the full mark doing it this way. Especially if you keep it full. Because all the oil has drained back to the pan overnight. My other cars don't do this. I just assumed it was a Toyota/Lexus thing...

 

I appreciate the input. I feel pretty confident that I am seeing a correct oil level after multiple tried. i really do think I was seeing oil being pulled up the oil tube and giving me an incorrect reading at first.....that plus oil with 1k miles on it is still pretty transparent and hard to read.

Now to though more gas on the fire. I intend to drive this NX for 150k miles. I will change the oil at about 1200 miles as a low cost precaution. I haven't bought too many new cars in my like, but when I do I always try to change the oil at about 1k miles to be overly cautious and to remove any metal from the new engine. Seems like a pretty inexpensive way to protect the motor.... then it will 5k mile changes after that.

Thanks again

 

Check oil when engine is warm rather than sitting overnight.

 

I used to do the "motoman break-in" on my motorcycles and when I first did it on a Yamaha FJR I inspected the oil as I was pouring it out of the drain pan the the glint of metal suspended in it was amazing. Second oil change and no metal filings.

 

I did the math on engine oil thermal expansion. from 70 degrees F to 200 F (operating temp) you will see an expansion of about 0.226 US Quarts or 0.213 Litres on a 4.4 US quart / 4.2 Litres of full oil pan specs per Lexus Manual.

So if dipstick dots from high to low are representative of 1 US Quart, the shift in level would be about a quarter of that distance by eye from cold to hot. I hope that's clear as mud.

So if at hot temp it should be at top dot. If measured cold it should be a quarter distance down from top dot. So you could effectively leave car to cool down and have oil settle as well on dip stick. Pull it out with no wiping and just read the stick. It shouldn't be right at top dot but a little below to be a true full fill.

 

I drilled this series of holes in my dipstick, now its very easy to read.
I find it best to pull the dipstick in the morning when the oil has settled, there is no oil left on the tube walls to confound the reading in the am.

 

This is simple and it will always work !! I would bet that a cold engine will probably hit the second to last highest hole when properly filled as oil volume will shrink when cold as I mentioned above.

I would be interested in you letting us know what results you get on your dipstick with a cold engine and just a single pull.

 

after sitting all night is what most folks have done for eons and is fine.
manual is turn off vehicle, check after 5 minutes.

always engine off, level ground. which ever method, just make sure to check it twice using the same method and always perform the way to establish a trend.

 

The level shown on my dipstick is on my cold engine, taken before drive in the am.
Difference in oil level between 1st and latest photo , my garage floor has a slight slope -
1st photo nose/front pointed IN , latest photo nose/front pointed OUT.
I’ll add a new current, clearer photo soon. (Done 7/21/25)

 

Brilliant, where's your eBay store?