Check it on level ground at the normal running temperature. If cold drive it around the block before checking.
When Checking The Oil In Your Car Is It Supposed To Be Hot Or Cold?
If you check it hot, you need to wait several minutes after shutting off the engine to allow the oil to drain down so it will register on dipstick.
Owner's manual should go into this.
Owner's manual should go into this.
I think if you check it first thing before running the engine the oil will all be down in the crankcase and be at the level that is the truest for reading the dipstick. So I say cold. If the car has already been running just wait a few minutes for it to seep back down to the crankcase and then check it in this scenario it's ok to be hot! So both hot or cold is my answer depending upon how you check it.
If it's hot leave it for 10 minutes, and then check it...!
If you check it cold it gives you a better reading
That is the way I was told to do it, jnawrocki, really knows Cars!
ALWAYS check when the engine is warm. Since it expands under heat you don't want to read while cold other wise you may add too much.
You should always check it after it has set for a couple minutes if hot to let all oil drain back in to pan an cold always pull dip stick an wipe off first then re stick to read more accurate