2015 Volvo S60: Not the Slickest Oil Check

Edmunds.com

The long-term test of our 2015 Volvo S60 is nearing its end. Service intervals are every 10,000 miles and, as we haven't quite cleared 20,000 miles yet, we're unlikely to take it in for its next service. I was curious what the engine oil level has been during 10,000 miles of driving though, so I went to take a look.

Cue minor frustration with electronic engine oil monitor.

Read the full story here

banhugh

I guess Volvo doesn't want people to check your engine's oil level without the key...

daryleason

In truth, with the build quality that most of the car companies offer here in the US, even FCA and the "cheap" Kia/Hyndai offerings, I doubt seriously that most people really check their oil levels anymore. The only people that do are people like me who grew up doing it, people who own really old, high-mileage cars, and the grease jockey (and that one is iffy, I've seen guys just watch the display on the oil feed when filling the oil). What I'm curious about is what people are going to do about checking their oil in 15 years when that digital display goes wonky. It'll be too old to be worth spending the money to replace the cluster.

kirkhilles1

daryleason said:

In truth, with the build quality that most of the car companies offer here in the US, even FCA and the "cheap" Kia/Hyndai offerings, I doubt seriously that most people really check their oil levels anymore. The only people that do are people like me who grew up doing it, people who own really old, high-mileage cars, and the grease jockey (and that one is iffy, I've seen guys just watch the display on the oil feed when filling the oil). What I'm curious about is what people are going to do about checking their oil in 15 years when that digital display goes wonky. It'll be too old to be worth spending the money to replace the cluster.

Well, its getting to the point to where while cars are lasting longer, they then reach a point to where they are not financially feasible to fix due to their complexity. Should a system like this fail, my bet is that the car wouldn't allow you to drive (or would be flashing crazy warnings). I'm sure there are more and more (and going to be more and more) cars that are in beautiful/excellent shape otherwise but have thousands of dollars worth of electronic components that would need to be replaced before drivable.

saulster

This is unfortunately Volvo unnecessary complication in action. You also need to have the key in the slot in the dash to get the windshield wipers into the position that allows cleaning the windshield. Which most of us do a lot more often than checking the oil. Why, why, why?

If the key fob is in your pocket, you can drive the car, right? So why not check the oil level or set the windshield wipers? I do not EVER put the key fob into the dash slot when I drive this car, no reason for the extra trouble. Except to deal with Volvo's apparent need to make me do extra for nothing.

throwback

This particular LT car has been so forgettable for me I am surprised every time I see a post on it. I guess I am old school but I just don't have a lot of faith in these electronic oil level checks. I have no problem with tire pressure monitors, but when it comes to fluids, I have a strong preference for visual checks.

reminder

Love me a dipstick.
Simple & effective.
No need to reference a manual.

allthingshonda

Why not just put the dipstick there? Will it hurt anything? You could still have the fancy electronic system if you want to but the dipstick would be a always there reliable backup.

daryleason

allthingshonda said:

Why not just put the dipstick there? Will it hurt anything? You could still have the fancy electronic system if you want to but the dipstick would be a always there reliable backup.

I agree with you, @allthingshonda , but considering how tightly packed everything is in cars now, they may have chosen not to mess with it. For reference, on the Edmunds Mustang GT, one of the posts they made was how the oil level's dipstick is blocked by the cross-brace. It could be a packaging issue. Volvo may have decided it was better to just go with the digital monitor and save the complaints about the physical location. Or they didn't think it was worth the $1.20 it'd have cost for every car when they were including the display.

PF_Flyer

Color me a Luddite with a dipstick. This reminds me a lot of "smart" printer cartridges that can monitor ink levels. More than once, I've had a brand new cartridge that thinks it has no ink and had to be replaced because the printer wouldn't print.

banhugh

Think with your dipstick Volvo!

stever

I dunno, the dipstick in my old Outback was about impossible to read.

daryleason

You know you drive an old car when you also calculate Hours per Quart and Miles per Quart on your vehicle. "Well, it's Thursday, I need to buy another quart of oil for the truck tomorrow."
"Didn't you change the oil last week?"
"Naw, I just add more. It leaks out too fast to get dirty."
"Didn't your wife say someone stole your truck on Tuesday?"
"Yeah, but I followed the trail and got it back...it's all good."

mlin32

I see nothing wrong here on Volvo's part. Electronic checks are actually quite convenient and well, other carmakers have used it for awhile.

What's wrong with reading the owner's manual to learn how to operate a vehicle? I do it all the time; even when my prior Mazda3 was on order, I found the owners manual online and read it before taking delivery.

obrady2016

Thanks so much, Brent Romans ! We had the same issue, and were only able to know how to check oil level on our first Volvo (2016 S60) , after your most helpful article here. :-)