dipstick won't fit?

Okay, this is wierd. I bought a new dipstick for my 2001 with 1.8. The old dipstick loop on the top was broken. The new dipstick goes in about 10 inches and stops. I can't force it to fit. The old one fits with ease.



There's a bumped area near the bottom of the dipstick where the crosshatching is for the oil level, and the replacement hasn't much of a bump. I bent the metal around to make the new look like the old; no luck. I took a hammer and pounded it flat; no luck.



Do the little yellow things with the ridges have anything to do with the fit? I'm stumped.



thanks,