so i opened to the hood today to see how hard it would be to replace the grill cause thats in consideration. i figured i might as well check the oil level too. on the dip stick was the oil and what looked like light green snot. at first i that it could be coolant so i figured i would take another sample. i put the dipstick back in and pulled it out slowly and half way up noticed some plastic from the dipstick broke off and was going to fall in all the way. luckily i saved it but i now know the light green snot was melted plastic as i saw some other plastic starting to come off. i need some guidance on what to do. i got three options as far as i know:
1. keep driving and forget about it
2. oil change asap
3. tear down complete engine and look for more melted plastic.
as far as i can tell not much plastic got in there, i would say the half the size of my pinky fingernail and about a millimeter thick.

 

i had a VERY similar problem.

my orange dipstick plastic surround was very brittle and little pieces were crackling off. i had a hard time gettign it out, but i gave it an oil change and put a little oil through it and just let it drain out right through, and then closed it up and added the correct amount of oil. i dont think much (if any at all) got down anywhere. it happened about 7k miles ago and have not noticed a single problem with my car, ever. so idk

definately an oil change, maybe a seafoam just to clear everythign up as long as you at it

 

it could be due to oil or under hood heat. i'd do a coolant flush and oil change. that should fix it.

 

coolant flush for what? it has nothing to do with the coolant system.

the plastic just becomes brittle after 10+ years and the harsh environment under the hood. the engine oil doesnt get hot enough to actualy melt the plastic, but the pieces could get caught in the pickup screen and clog it. just change the oil and flush it out like has been suggested, most of the pieces should come out, they cant really get sucked into the engine.

 

well thats what i thought too, that the oil wasnt hot enough to melt the plastic, i mean i barely even register 150 degrees most times on my oil temp guage. so if its not hot enough to melt, what the hell else could look like light green snot on my dipstick? just a note, havent noticed any unusual coolant temps

 

Weird, "snotty" stuff on your dipstick is likely due to condensation. This is normal and is most often found under the fill cap.

As for the broken dipstick tube, I recommend replacing those with your 40K mile service, stick and tube. It's less than $20 in parts and will save you a lot of headaches in the future. A broken dipstick tube not only allows oil to spit out while cornering, it can create a vacuum leak.

The dipstick goes directly into the oil pan. The oil pump has a pick-up screen. If any debris gets past the pick up screen, the oil filter will grab it. If it manages to get past both of those, well, then it just wasn't meant to be (or you have a really crappy oil filter). You can keep your eyes peeled for a low oil pressure light, but looking for it constantly will just make you paranoid.

In other words, I wouldn't worry about the broken plastic. If you ever have to pull down the oil pan, pull the plastic bits off the oil pump pick up screen.