Checking oil w/Strut tower brace?

[CrazyHippie]

Lol my skin is thick enough. I don't have an issue with the jokes, they were inevitable.

Seriously - you have more room if the sound tube is removed. Pulling it from the front side of the strut brace works best for me. It takes two hands. One holds the dipstick handle, while the other guides the stick out of the tube, near its opening. When removing it, the objective is to guide it out so that when the end emerges, it doesn't fly away uncontrolled and hit something. I read the side with the clearest liquid 'line' and I always wipe it, re-insert and read it several times for consistency. Re-inserting it is also a two-handed job, and the objective is to slide it into the tube a bit at a time without it kinking.

OK, now it's open season on jokes about my wording, so have at it!

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[WD Pro]

Sound tube and brace is no problem :

Don't worry about a solid upper brace blocking the dip stick, it was a pain at first but I stumbled on a method that makes it very easy :

1. Stand on the left side of the car level with the brace.
2. Right hand on the right side of the brace, down low just over the top of the dip stick tube.
3. Left hand on the left side of the brace holding the dipstick.
4. From the front of the car, point the end of the dipstick under the brace at your right hand.
5. Feed it down the dipstick hole with your right hand in small movements, maybe 75mm at a time.
6. Don't apply any force with the left hand, use that hand just to keep the dipstick as vertical as possible and to stop the top of the dipstick from flopping around and / or marking the strut bar.

That method is that easy, it really makes the position of the strut bar a non issue

WD

WD

 

[OldbutNew]

Seriously - you have more room if the sound tube is removed. Pulling it from the front side of the strut brace works best for me. It takes two hands. One holds the dipstick handle, while the other guides the stick out of the tube, near its opening. When removing it, the objective is to guide it out so that when the end emerges, it doesn't fly away uncontrolled and hit something. I read the side with the clearest liquid 'line' and I always wipe it, re-insert and read it several times for consistency. Re-inserting it is also a two-handed job, and the objective is to slide it into the tube a bit at a time without it kinking.

OK, now it's open season on jokes about my wording, so have at it!

I have found that the more you re-check the level, the more oil the stick is dragging up the inside of the tube. After one or two tries, there is enough oil deposited on the inside of the tube to make accurate readings even tougher.
And, yes the sound tube delete makes things easier!

 

[Unbridled5.0]

I have found that the more you re-check the level, the more oil the stick is dragging up the inside of the tube. After one or two tries, there is enough oil deposited on the inside of the tube to make accurate readings even tougher.
And, yes the sound tube delete makes things easier!

Definitely. First pull to clean it, then the next pull is the only one I consider accurate. Everything after that pull is a mess.

And yea, I did the sound tube delete. Didn't realize at the time how important it would be to checking the oil with a stb. Very glad that stupid thing is off the car.

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