Broken dipstick tip

[almo]

Any body have the dipstick tip break off on their D/A. The tip was bent, (on looking closer it was attached by one strand) when I held the tip it broke off. I was luckey it didn't in the motor. Stealer charged $ 39.80!

[madmatt]

never heard of such

[Mark Rinker]

I've had one break off as well...same thing, it dropped off OUTSIDE the engine, just dumb luck as it had been loose for awhile.

If your dipstick tip is floppin' - ya better get a new one! :D

[DickWells]

Holly Cow! Any feel for these having been abused by station attendants? Glad I'm the only one who looks in there on mine.
I'll look at mine in the morning. Hard to immagine that a steel cable would fatigue in there. I hate those things, anyway. Hard to read with clean oil, and you have to wait for oil to drain down the check tube before you shove the stick back in.:(
DW

[Freightliner3]

I replaced mine last week 40K on truck.I check oil almost every day when hauling.The strange thing is,it was good one and bad the next.I cut the end off with a grinder and bought a new one at first Chev dealer I passed.
Cost $54.00
I

[DickWells]

I did check mine this morning, Didn't learn a thing. Looks brand new. My guess would be, after looking at it, is that when they swage that tip on there, the machine must push the tip metal right into the strands, almost beyond the yield point. I doesn't show, of course. Wonder what the exact process is, and if there's enough variation in the materials and forming operation to make some bad ones along with mostly good?
Wonder, too, if there's a resonance down there in the 6.6 that causes the tip to wiggle back and forth? Darn. Just when I was getting complacent, again.
DW:)

[Rabbler]

Fairly common. There is a TSB that covers it.
Good thing you caught it before somebody added 20 quarts to the sump :D