Broken Oil Dipstick Tube

[Randy_in_Ohio]

I checked  the oil last night and when I pulled the dipstick out I was kinda surprised to find no oil on the end of the dipstick. So I grabbed a half gallon of Rotella 15W-40 and poured it in there and was even more shocked when I pulled the dipstick and found it was still dry! Looked under the RV to make sure I wasn't pouring it on the ground or had a huge leak and found nothing i?? so I grabbed another gallon of oil and continued to pour more oil in checking as I went and still found no oil on the dipstick! After a gallon and a half of oil I realized something was amiss. by this time it was getting dark and I still had to clean up and eat dinner... I was going to just let it go for the night but it was really bugging me that I poured all this oil into the engine and the dipstick was still coming up dry and there wasn't an oil spill in the driveway! So I checked under the doghouse and found that the oil dipstick tube was broken about an inch before it enters the engine. Apparently, the dipstick was not going into the engine but rather right beside it and from what I could see in the dark with my flashlight it looked like there was some sort of blockage in the tube where it broke. At this point I decided to call it a night.

I know better than to run an engine that is overfilled with oil so at this point I think I will just drain the oil in there and replace with 2 gallons of 15W-40 and a  two quart oil filter. But what should I do to fix the dipstick? I have a feeling this is not going to be an easy fix and I may just decide to leave it alone since I don't put a whole lot of miles on it anyway and I change the oil before I put it away each winter. It doesn't seem to burn any oil and I assume there is an oil idiot light that would come on if it did drop to an unsafe level. I'm also considering finding an oil dipstick that would just fit into the part that is broken off or cut the long dipstick down and make a mark on it where it is at the full level. I'm looking for any suggestions and ideas you guys may have.

By the way, I would like to find the person who designed this oil fill tube and smack them upside their head! Really, who thought it would be a good idea to run the oil fill tube and dipstick tube 7 feet to the front on the vehicle and not leave enough room to tip an oil container into it to fill it? I have used every funnel and combination of funnel and hoses to try to fill this thing easily and still have not found a way to do it without getting oil all over the place!  Does anyone have any good suggestions on how to do this without making a huge mess?

[Oz]

This is going to sound really dumb but, I took an empty oil quart container, the kind that has the spout on one side, not the center, and cut the bottom off at an angle so that the "lip" I created was shorter at the side where the spout is and longer at the opposite side.

I'd pour some oil into the small "reservoir" that created and then lift it.  The part I cut away from the other side allowed me to tip it up pretty far so the oil would drain into the filler tube. 

Of course, this takes a while longer than just pouring the bloody stuff right into the valve cover...

... but hey, necessity is the mother of invention... no matter how silly it may seem.

[Stripe]

I refill my oil the ol' fashioned way..  I pour it in through the valve cover cap.  On the other hand, if pulling up the DH isn't convenient, you can get a relatively inexpensive drill powered pump to use as a transfer system.  I use my Cordless Makita that I got at Goodwill for US$15.00..

[cncsparky]

The tube is just an interference fit into either the block (small blocks?) or oil pan.  Sometimes a booger to get out.  Clamp some vice grips on it and tap it out with a hammer.  Not sure where to get a new one.  There are some fancy aftermarket ones available tho. 

[Randy_in_Ohio]

Thanks for the responses guys. I stopped at Summit Racing on my way home last night and they had some oil dipstick tubes but not the long type that is in there now. I decided to hold off and see if I could find one of the long ones like the one that is in there now but the more I think about it... I think I'm just going to pick up one of the short dipstick tubes that include the dipstick and install that.  while I'm at it, I think I will eliminate that long oil fill tube and just put a cap on the valve cover. It just doesn't make sense that I would have to remove the DH to check the oil and then get out of the coach and walk around to the front to add oil. Besides, I have a feeling I will find a bunch of gunk and corrosion in that oil fill tube not to mention it's damn near impossible to pour oil into it anyway. I may even get lucky and the oil cap on the end of the oil fill tube will fit the hole in the valve cover, if not I shouldn't have a problem finding a cap for it.

[legomybago]

I dont even bolt down the DH on our 86'....nice and easy to remove to do inspections...

[Oz]

I quit using the front tube as well, mostly because of the same reasons.  I did remove it at one point and just put a breather filter in the valve cover and added oil there.  I put the tube back on when I sold the RV.

[Oz]

Let us know what tube and stick you get and how it works out.

[Randy_in_Ohio]

I dont even bolt down the DH on our 86'....nice and easy to remove to do inspections...

I only use two bolts but will probably use none as well once I'm done with this. the DH is pretty heavy and probably isn't going to go anywhere.

[Randy_in_Ohio]

Let us know what tube and stick you get and how it works out.

I sure will Mark. I think I will probably go with the braided SS one I seen at Summit last night, it should provide a little more protection from the high heat in this area. I'll make sure to note the part number.

I'm surprised that more folks haven't had this problem. It seems that with it being located so close to the manifold that it would be a big problem.

[Randy_in_Ohio]

I went to Summit Racing last night and picked up an oil dipstick with tube. I got their house branded one (Part# sum-g3866) and a basic push in oil cap (Part# trd-9787). The oil cap on the end of the fill tube didn't fit. 

I didn't have time to install the dipstick because it was getting dark and I was also draining all of the water and pumping in some anti-freeze preparing for the cold weather we are expecting this week. So I soaked down the fitting where the dipstick tube enters the oil pan with Kroil and put the new dipstick tube in the freezer. When I get home tonight I plan on removing the old dipstick tube and installing the new one and the doing an oil change. I'll report back on how it goes. 

Here are links to the parts I got:
http://www.summitracing.com/dom/parts/sum-g3866/overview/

http://www.summitracing.com/dom/parts/trd-9787/overview/

[piorun]

I tried driving with DH not secured and it flew open on the highway. I would not recommend driving with it unsecured.

[EarlJr]

By the way, I would like to find the person who designed this oil fill tube and smack them upside their head! Really, who thought it would be a good idea to run the oil fill tube and dipstick tube 7 feet to the front on the vehicle and not leave enough room to tip an oil container into it to fill it? I have used every funnel and combination of funnel and hoses to try to fill this thing easily and still have not found a way to do it without getting oil all over the place!  Does anyone have any good suggestions on how to do this without making a huge mess?

This thing is my best friend. I use it for filling into the valve cover, or from the front if I'm feeling lazy and don't want to move whatever crap we've got stacked on top of the dog house. I got a second one for anti-freeze since the overflow bottle is a PITA to get at as well.

[Randy_in_Ohio]

Well, It didn't go so well last night.  The old dipstick tube came out with a couple taps of a hammer and a chisel, But putting the new one in proved to be a little more difficult. I wasn't able to get the tube to go down the small opening between the block and the manifold... so I had to push it up from the bottom and the bracket that screws into the spark plug heat shield and manifold was getting stuck on something, I believe it was the spark plug... Anyway... I had a friend helping me and he had the not so great idea of bending this bracket to make it fit... by the time we had it situated in place the hole in the bracket would not reach the hole in the manifold and the chrome tube looked like it had been thrown out from underneath a lawnmower! I decided to go back to Summit Racing and get the flexible dipstick tube I had seen and I'm going to give that a try tonight. I'll report back and post the part number... if it works.  I think If I had taken my time, removed the spark plug, and not had my friend trying to bend the thing up it may have worked but still would have been a PITA.

[Randy_in_Ohio]

While I finally put this to bed. Ended up going back to Summit and picking up the flexible dipstick tube and it worked great. This tube allowed me to remove the fitting at the bottom and easily guide it through the manifold... putting that fitting back on after fraying up the stainless steel braiding was a little more difficult... I should have wrapped the end of the tube with tape before pushing it through so the braid didn't get screwed up... I will next time. This was a much better fit into the oil pan too since it has a rubber O ring I feel better knowing it is sealed up well. my only worry is that the plastic tube within the stainless steel braiding will melt when the engine gets hot I assume they made it with high heat in mind... I guess we will wait and see.
Thanks again for the help.

Here is the part I used:
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/hfm-ss39/overview/make/chevrolet

[MotorPro]

The inside is teflon so it won't melt