My handle on dipstick broke off and has fallen down inside, on my 2003 chevy tracker I can see it but cannot grab it, any suggestions ?

 

Thin magnet?? How far down do you think it is?

 

extending wand magnet

 

Same thing happened to my 2000 Tracker 4x4 2.0L I4. Apparently this is a thing. Fortunately someone fished mine out and put a zip tie around the top. Yours, can you reach it with a pair of needle nose pliers or (preferrably) a pair of surgical tweezers?

Bought mine yesterday, unbelievable 20K miles, owned by snowbirds. Problem was, lots of dust and oil grime under the hood. LOTS. I'm wondering, where's the oil leak? Turns out it was the zip tied goofy oil dipstick. Not only does the zip tie prevent you from getting an accurate reading on your oil level, but also, it doesn''t allow for a proper seal when the dipstick is reinserted. Result - oily crankcase ventilation all thru the engine compartment. Ordered new dipstick from Amazon, I wouldn't drive far without it.

Turning now to why these are breaking. Given the positive crankcase ventilation, that's my guess. Pops up, just a little, under normal oil pressure, then the unsuspecting owner chops it off when shutting the hood.

So I'm gonna hang a little weight on mine or something, to prevent that from happening.

 

Mechanical fingers?

 

what she said ^...

 

do you drink wine? If yes, good. the spiral corkscrew tool works the best...screw it down into the dipstick. If it fails...drink the wine. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corkscrew


do not use pressurized air into the pcv or oil cap to pop it up...the pressure on the crankcase may blow out the rear main seal.