Chevy 5.3 oil capacity quandry..

[falconbrother]

I bought a used 2000, 1500 Suburban 4x4 with a "new" (40,000 miles) engine from a wreck in it. Long story but, my wife picked it out, test drove it, etc.. She's actually pretty good at that, historically. I was too busy with work to fool with it. When I checked the oil the first time there was just a drop at the tip of the dipstick, which got my jaw tight.. I added two quarts to get it to the full mark. The oil in the pan was fresh and new and I could find no leaks and it wasn't smoking so.. I changed the oil the other day, added exactly 6 quarts, which is what 00 - 06 5.3s call for, and at 6 quarts it barely touches the tip of the dip stick.

I thought that maybe I had the wrong dipstick but, it really looks like the appropriate one.

Doing some research and it seems that 2014 and later 5.3s use 8.5 quarts of oil. Could they have bolted a 2014, 5.3 into a 2000 chassis/4L60e transmission? I suppose I will try and search out the VIN from the engine block and see what it will tell me about the year model that the engine came from.

It's fun to play with anyway and runs perfect.

[falconbrother]

I have it figured out. The dipstick tube is all wrong. It couldn't be seated properly and wasn't seated. In the short run I cut two inches out of it, connected the two ends with a 1/4 inch fuel line and two hose clamps. Now it works fine but, I need to find the right part.

[Grit_dog]

^ That's a good plan.
Simple and effective.

[falconbrother]

I have been doing some reading.. It seems that the dipstick changed in the 5.3 about a year after it came into production, from the 5.7. So, in mid year 2001 the dipstick changed. The tube I have looks like a new one and I suspect it's the wrong one. The block may be a 2001.5 and later but the dipstick tube they ordered may be for the 2000.5 - 2001. I can fix this even if I have to use an aftermarket. I'll just change the oil, put in the six quarts and measure off on a new stick where the full mark should be. Or, I can cut about an inch and a half off of the top of the existing tube and see where I can get it stretched out enough to hold the top of the dipstick securely. This old Burb was bought as a fun project anyway. If it stops being fun I'll sell it.

[72cougarxr7]

GM dipsticks will normally have a 7 or 8 digit part number stamped on them. Write down the part # and call your dealer with the last 8 digits of you'r vin and they should be able to verify if it is correct.

As others have said, make sure the dipstick tube is seated all the way into the block.

[kw_00]

That looks like the first gen 5.3. Only the numbers on the block will tell you different, see if it's an iron block or aluminum. As fas as the dipstick goes, well after several years of use the holder loves to break off at the bottom. Check around the base of it and see if it has been replaced. A sign is when u can see fresh scatch marks from someone trying to pull the old one off. They love to break at the base and then sometimes the bottom part stays in and other times it falls into the pan. It looks to me that that's the correct dipstick holder with that engine. My first gen 5.3 had the same Holder but a single piece dipstick. Now the top covering of the engine came fro the first gen 5.3, it's square where as the newer ones went to a round type. This does not appear to be a new 5.3 version to me just by looking at the pics. But I don't know where it came from, if it came from a junk yard then they tend to slap any missing parts on it just to sell it. If not then sometimes they are bad about what year or version the engine is. So point is to look at the numbers on the block and check them out.....you can't trust what the seller is telling u. Not that he may be deceiving you intentionally but he himself may just not know.
On edit.... Looking at the pic...that is for sur the older or first generation. It has an egr valve older style...... First gen motor had that exactly as pictured.

[Camper_G]

Several dipsticks are put together like that. Not just GM.

Based on your photo i can confirm that is not the new ecotec V8 5.3.

That is the older generation.

Are you sure the base of the dipstick tube is all the way, fully inserted into the oil pan's mounting boss? Maybe whoever put the engine in didn't get the tube in right, or they used the dipstick from the old engine with the new and it's slightly shorter?

Good luck. Your wise to be looking into it. I'd be concerned too

[falconbrother]

Camper G wrote:

Mkos1980 wrote:
The newer motor wouldn't be able to work with your current ecm. The reluctor ring on the crank is differant. They would have had to use a 5.3 with a 24tooth ring vs a 58tooth and all of those were 04 or 05 and prior.

You beat me to it. Exactly correct. The 14 and newer 5.3L are a completely different engine than the prior generation 5.3s. Not saying it could not be done, but it would be a TON of work and not very likely in your case. The newer Generation 5.3s take 8 quarts. The owner's manual is wrong, it was later corrected to 8 quarts. I hope it was just a fluke thing in your case and all is well.

Just by looking this engine seems to be dressed like the older Vortec, not that I know anything about the 14 and up design. But, I can't figure out why the dipstick would read incorrectly, assuming it is incorrect, which I don't believe at this juncture. It's a long dipstick that is like a two piece that is scabbed together about halfway down. Let me go get a picture. Does this look like the stock dipstick in a 5.3 Vortec?

[Camper_G]

Mkos1980 wrote:
The newer motor wouldn't be able to work with your current ecm. The reluctor ring on the crank is differant. They would have had to use a 5.3 with a 24tooth ring vs a 58tooth and all of those were 04 or 05 and prior.

You beat me to it. Exactly correct. The 14 and newer 5.3L are a completely different engine than the prior generation 5.3s. Not saying it could not be done, but it would be a TON of work and not very likely in your case. The newer Generation 5.3s take 8 quarts. The owner's manual is wrong, it was later corrected to 8 quarts. I hope it was just a fluke thing in your case and all is well.

[Mkos1980]

The newer motor wouldn't be able to work with your current ecm. The reluctor ring on the crank is differant. They would have had to use a 5.3 with a 24tooth ring vs a 58tooth and all of those were 04 or 05 and prior.

[falconbrother]

LIKE2BUILD wrote:
That era of 5.3 should take 6 quarts.

It's a 2000 model but, the engine that was installed only had 40,000 miles and that happened like six weeks ago, or less. I suspect that any 5.3 would bolt into that chassis. It could have been from a Silverado, Avalanche, etc.. It's a big oil pan but, looks stock to me. I will try and locate the VIN number and look that up. It will at least give me the year and model.

[LIKE2BUILD]

That era of 5.3 should take 6 quarts.

[the_bear_II]

My first thought was an aftermarket higher capacity oil pan added during the engine swap or too short of dipstick. But a newer engine is certainly a possibility because crate engines from a dealer or source like Summit is a common swap.

My old truck 7.4L chevy would use a quart of oil every 1000 miles with no visible smoke. I added a product called Restore, it's an oil additive at auto parts stores. It stopped burning oil after 500 miles.