With the 700, you HAVE to follow the manual procedure for checks if you want to keep an eye on oil level and judge any usage.
Above 50F- idle for 5 minutes
Below 50F - idle for an additional 5 minutes (10 total).
<DO NOT rev or race the engine (like, say, driving around for 30 minutes?). The owners manual doesn't talk about this, but the factory service manual says not to do it because it gives an inaccurate reading!>
After shutting off, wait 2-3 minutes and check. The oil will be a touch lower until about 2:30 seconds, then that last little bit settles in.
Oil capacity is meant as a rough guide, but the ultimate judge is the dip stick. It depends on how long you drain it, and having the front higher will cause more to drain out. Some have to add 3.5 and even 4 qts to get to the proper level, and mine usually falls within that range....but I can say that 3.1 has never come close to getting it full. I bet if you check it now using the proper procedure, you'll now find it to be low...or at least not all the way full.
