What Is Included In A Standard Oil Change?

When you pull up to get an oil change near your home or workplace, sometimes you can not really understand why you’re having an oil change or what an oil change really is. Simply put an oil change is when you take the fuel oil out of your engine and put it back in the fresh engine oil. You will need to change the oil filter during the oil change and put on a new one. The oil and oil filters do so much for your engine that having daily oil changes is the best way to keep your vehicle safe.

Motor oil keeps your engine lubricated, and as most parts of your engine are made of metal, there is a risk of corrosion or friction erosion. When your engine oil gets older, it loses the ability to keep your engine lubricated, and that’s what makes you need to change your oil frequently. The regularity of your oil changes depends on the type of oil and filter used.

The oil filter is often adjusted during the oil change, which is because the oil filter is a tool for cleaning the fuel oil when it moves through the engine. The reason it has to be modified is that it often loses its performance and can not clean the engine oil. Once the oil filter can no longer clean the engine oil, the oil has very little time left to keep your engine safe.

Do You Need Synthetic Oil?

Only if your manufacturer calls for it because it can cost two to four times as much as conventional oil. Synthetic oil is engineered to be more effective in resistance to breakdown (and thus lasts longer) and to withstand high temperatures.

There are cases where this failure tolerance will help to extend the life of your engine. If you’re doing a lot of short trips, standard motor oil can never get warm enough to burn off moisture and impurities, which means that it may not do enough to protect your engine.

Your lifestyle is another factor. If you live in an area with very cold winters or very hot summers, or if you use your vehicle for towing or transporting heavy material, synthetic oil is your best bet,” he says. While synthetic typically hold up better and can operate for more miles, it is equally important not to extend oil changes beyond the time period recommended by the manufacturer — usually six months or a year if the engine is not driven for many miles or for many short trips.

Synthetic oil can also support engines that are vulnerable to building sludge; some Volkswagen and Toyota models have had problems with sludge in the past. This residue, created as oil breaks down, can obstruct the flow of oil, leading to the rapid death of the engine. Synthetic oil may be useful in these engines because it helps minimize the build-up of sludge, helping to prolong the lifetime of the engine.