Transmission fluid added to my oil

Question

I have a 2008 Chrysler Town & Country & my oil was low but I thought it was my transmission fluid so i added a quart of transmission fluid to my oil but the oil dipstick is still reading low so should I just add a couple quarts of oil or should i get an oil change?

Answer 1

I don't think it will hurt anything. Transmission fluid does not have the same lubricating properties as engine oil but they are similar. In my opinion you should change your engine oil and filter sooner rather then later and you should be good to go.

Answer 2

A small amount of trans fluid will not hurt anything in this engine. But my opinion is that the oil should be changed. If it were my car I wouldn't want anything but the right oil in my engine. My 05 Town and Country has over 250,000 miles and still strong.

Answer 3

so i added a quart of transmission fluid to my oil

A quart of transmission fluid shouldn't hurt anything.

but the oil dipstick is still reading low

Hmm

so should I just add a couple quarts of oil

You should definitely maintain a safe level of oil at all times. If you need a "couple" of quarts in between oil changes then you have much bigger problem lurking in your engine.

or should i get an oil change?

You can but the more important thing is for them to identify why you are losing oil.

An engine should be losing ZERO oil in between oil changes.

If you are running low on oil then it is either leaking somewhere or burning.

Leaking is usually easy to find since one part of your engine will be considerably dirtier than the rest.

Burning is much harder to diagnose since it can be caused by things such as:

• Driving aggressively
• Waiting too long in between oil changes
• Using the wrong oil
• Worn piston rings

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At most I would tolerate a half quart of lost oil in between oil changes; unless it's a Subaru 😂