406oc.co.uk

Silly damned question, this, but...

Is the dipstick meant to be a completely straight piece of metal, with no twists or kinks in it (other than the notches for MAX and MIN markers)?

I pulled mine out today and it was twisted, like a drill bit:



I have never actually pulled the dipstick out of this car so I have no idea if it's meant to be that way or not. I can't imagine why it would need to be that way, so I'm guessing it's meant to be completely straight. I couldn't untwist it, no matter how much force I put into it.

Thing is, if it IS meant to be straight, what the hell could have caused it to twist so badly?

And, how much (roughly) should it cost me for a new one, should I need one? And are all 406 dipsticks the same, or are they specific to the engine?

On the plus side, the oil is still the right kind of colour, so it doesn't need changed - might just need topped up.

Mine is twisted towards the bottom, supposed to be like that i think!?

Odd, could be a variation of dip sticks! Mine is straight but twisted towards the bottom. Never seen a twisted one.

Don't ask me to walk through the snow to see mine but as far as I remember it's got a 90 degree twist on it somewhere.

I fink yours is a 1.8 D9...
1174 43
D8F 1 11A03A ENGINE OIL SUMP FILTER PROBE INJECTION XU7JB AND WITHOUT AIR CONDITIONING
D8F 1 11A07A ENGINE OIL SUMP FILTER PROBE INJECTION XU7JB AND AIR CONDITIONING
D8F 1 11A10A ENGINE OIL SUMP FILTER PROBE INJECTION XU7JP4 AND WITHOUT AIR CONDITIONING
D8F 1 11A15A ENGINE OIL SUMP FILTER PROBE INJECTION XU7JP4 AND AIR CONDITIONING

That's be all Pugs 'n' Citroens with these lumps, alternatively they're about 6 quid.

Pugman406 wrote:Mine is twisted towards the bottom, supposed to be like that i think!?

Mine is twisted around 5 or 6 times, not just the once.

Captain Jack wrote:Odd, could be a variation of dip sticks! Mine is straight but twisted towards the bottom. Never seen a twisted one.

Mine is twisted along the whole length of the stick, not just at one end.

steve_earwig wrote:I fink yours is a 1.8 D9...

Yep, it's an early D9 (November 1999), and it's a 1.8l 16v petrol with fuel injection and digital climate control.

£6 is very fair; I'll get on to the breakers tomorrow and see if they've got one that will fit mine. Thanks for the part numbers Steve; they'll come in handy.

I'd have grabbed a photo of it, but I'd got grease and dirt all over my hands by that point, and really didn't fancy trying to operate my Blackberry. And it's dark now.

i have two 1.8's one D8 and one D9 and they are both slightly twisted, not as tight as a drill bit buy they definatly both twisted i think its something to do with helping it find its way down the dipstick tube