What Frank said. To add to that, yes my stick looks like the one you pictured. The waves in the stick just keep the stick centered and keep it from rattling around in the tube. If you are at the bottom wave, you are WAY over full. Look at the bottom if the stick about 1.5 inches up and you should see 2 lines. These are the LOW and MAX levels when HOT. Cold level will be below the LOW line about .25 inches or so. Always check with the engine running and in PARK. The gear really doesn't make any difference, it's just that PARK is the safest one to use.

PaulM

__________________
84 500 SEL (307,xxx miles)