Changing your oil is a very important part of being a car owner, and many car owners already take steps to observe and change their own oil regularly. One of the things many people are confused about, however, is what engine oil to actually use in the car. Manufacturer manuals provided with a vehicle always recommend people use genuine manufacturers oil in the car or risk the potential for issues to arise due to the use of inferior materials, but is this actually the case? In this article, we take a look at what kind of oil you should really be using in your car.
Looking to the manufacturer’s handbook
Depending on which mechanic in Newcastle you ask regarding motor oil to use in a car, you’ll likely get a lot of different answers. This is in part because oil is such an important part of a vehicle – good motor oil is key to ensuring that components don’t rub against each other and cause preventable damage. It’s therefore the case that regularly changing your oil can afford your car a much longer lifespan than it otherwise would have. To make sure that car owners put the right oil in their car, vehicle manufacturers will often be very specific in an owner’s manual about what oil is suitable for the car. Regardless of what kind of oil is recommended in the manual, however, it’s crucial that you don’t skimp out when it comes to replacing the oil in your car. Using high quality motor oil recommended by the owner’s handbook will guarantee that you are using independently tested oil that is superior to most other oils – and the manufacturers endorsement should evidently already demonstrate this.
Other considerations to make when looking at motor oil
Although choosing manufacturers oil will land you a high quality product, that doesn’t mean you have to choose what the manufacturer recommends. Well known manufacturers like Castrol and Penrite produce oils that are of a consistently excellent quality, although you can’t simply choose any brand of oil that these brands produce. You should play special attention to the rated viscosity of the oil when looking for oil from one of these brands, as the viscosity will demonstrate how easily oil can flow at specific engine temperatures. This will enable you to find the perfect engine oil for your specific car’s running temperature and the kind of climate you typically drive your car in. to put it more into perspective, oil should be able to run freely while an engine is cold and maintain consistency as the engine gets hot through regular operating scenarios. Your owner’s manual might also give you an idea of the kind of oil rating you should be using, so keep an eye out for this as well.
Looking after your car
Looking after the oil in your car is vital to the long-term health of your car’s engine, and taking care of this lubrication regularly can very easily save you thousands in the long-run, particularly if you consistently use high quality oils. Remember that you don’t necessarily need manufacturer recommended oils, but using these is a simple way for you to know that you’re using a high quality oil for your car without needing to invest a lot of research.