Q: I had an oil change on Friday -- dash indicator still says I am at 10% oil

asked by on September 12, 2016

First time I've ever used Synthetic Oil (on my mechanic's recommendation), and my car is showing that I'm at 10% and the oil light in the dash remains on even several days after the oil change. Is this normal?

My car has 64000 miles.
My car has an automatic transmission.

Change Oil and Filter $103.58 - $181.08 Get a Quote

Synthetic oil is primarily designed for high performance driving and high mileage driving, although it will not hurt your vehicle at all. The 10% dash light is an indicator that is measured by the amount of mileage in between oil changes. The mechanic may have simply just forgotten to reset the light which is usually done at each oil change. You can easily do this yourself by doing the following:

  1. Turn the ignition switch to the ON (II) position
  2. If the engine oil life is not displayed, press the SEL/RESET button on the steering wheel repeatedly until it is
  3. Press and hold the SEL/RESET button on the steering wheel for more than 10 seconds
  4. The remaining engine oil life reset mode will be shown on the multi-information display
  5. Select Reset by pressing the INFO (up and down arrow icons) button, then press the SEL/RESET button to reset the engine oil life display
  6. The maintenance item code(s) will disappear and the engine oil life will reset to 100%

The statements expressed above are only for informational purposes and should be independently verified. Please see our terms of service for more details

Get an instant quote for your car

Our certified mechanics come to you ・Backed by 12-month, 12,000-mile guarantee・Fair and transparent pricing


Experienced Mechanic?

Earn up to $70/hr

What others are asking

How do I program the universal remote system?
Located on the headliner between the driver and passenger, the universal remote is comprised of 3 buttons. These buttons are programmable so that you can program them to work with your garage door. For a rolling code style garage door...
Water appears to come up from under carpet when it rains
If you have a water leak when you are not moving, then you will need to first isolate the area of the car that is getting wet. The most common areas are the right or left front of the car....
My heat blows out of the passenger vents but blows cold air out of driver vent...what is the issue???
Hey there. The temperature blend door on the left side is not switching from cold to warm. The temperature actuator needs to be replaced and the linkage checked. Have a local expert inspect the cooling system (https://www.yourmechanic.com/services/ac-is-not-working-inspection) to verify these...
Check engine light, VSA On light, and EPS light all on while driving.
Car warning lights come on for numerous reasons (https://www.yourmechanic.com/article/all-about-car-warning-lights-by-brady-klopfer). The Check Engine Light is the most common light and may be on for several possible reasons. The VSA light relates to the vehicle stability assist system which is like a...
How can my power steering leak all of a sudden when it wasn't driving for 30 days?
Hey there. This suggests your power steering pump (https://www.yourmechanic.com/services/power-steering-pump-replacement) may be failing or you have a leak elsewhere in one of the power steering lines. The power steering system operates on very high pressurized hydraulic pressure (in some cases as...
Cambelt or Chain driven?
Hi there. Look at the engine and see if there is a plastic cover on the front or an aluminum cover on the front. If there is a plastic cover then the engine is driven by a timing belt. If...
"service engine soon" light came on at the same time my low gas light came on. It has not turned off since I put gas into the car.
Hi Rebecca. The Service light is a vague warning and can indicate something as simple as too many miles between oil changes to potentially serious faults in the engine. In most cases, the low fuel level would not trigger this...
My Car Goes Into Limp Mode Around 2 RMPs And Stalls When I Come To A Red Light
Code P0730 relates to an incorrect reading between the input RPM speed sensor and the output speed of the transmission RPM sensor. When this happens, the ECM will produce this code indicating a fault has been detected. Code P0128 relates...
My car won’t accelerate passed 20mph but the RPM accelerated all the way to 7 or higher . One day my heat went out
If engine speed is steadily increasing but the car is not travelling faster, there is something amiss with the transmission. Perhaps the transmission is not shifting out of the low gears. The recommended service to get the underlying fault pinpointed...

Related articles

A Buyer’s Guide to the 2012 Honda Civic Hybrid
With With more and more consumers looking for better fuel efficiency, hybrid cars are taking off in ways that most of us never thought possible. Today, America’s top-selling compact car, the Honda Civic, is offered in a hybrid model with...
The Best Used Cars to Buy If You Have Kids
Once Once you have kids, the kind of car you have becomes very important. Suddenly, the amount of space, entertainment features, reliability, safety, and easy to clean interior become the top priorities. Here’s a list of vehicles meant to satisfy...
The Risks of a Cheap Oil Change
Quick lube shops promise cheap, fast oil changes; their secret is skimping on low quality oil and unskilled labor.