Most automobile manufacturers recommend that you change your oil every 3 months or 3,000 miles. If you don’t change your oil on that exact schedule, you will probably not notice any difference in the way your car runs. This schedule was created in order to make sure that the oil gets changed before it begins to get too dirty and cause problems. If you wait too long to change your oil you will begin to experience engine knocking and other performance issues that can reduce the life of your vehicle.
How Oil Protects Your Engine
The oil in your car performs two important functions. It lubricates the engine parts so that they operate freely, and it keeps the engine from overheating. When the oil is new it is extremely viscous, which means that it is able to create a thin coating of lubrication for your engine that keeps everything running smoothly. The same oil travels through your engine over and over again each time you drive your car. The oil keeps the engine cooler by reducing the amount of heat from the friction of the parts rubbing together while the engine is running.
Sludge Builds Up Over Time
As you continue to drive your car in a normal fashion, the oil begins to pick up particles of dirt from the engine. Each time the oil travels through the engine it picks up more and more dirt. Eventually the dirt will begin to discolor the oil and make it thicker. Clean engine oil is a light honey color. As the oil gets dirtier it becomes dark black. Dirty oil is referred to as sludge. When the oil develops too much sludge it loses its ability to properly lubricate your engine, which can cause the engine to run at a higher temperature.
Oil Levels Go Down
If you don’t change your oil for an extended period of time you will notice that the oil levels will begin to drop. That is partly because the oil becomes more dense as it gets dirtier and picks up more sludge. Oil levels will also go down through the simple act of evaporation. Oil takes a very long time to evaporate, but eventually it will. The oil level will also go down over time because of the small amount of oil that is left coating the engine parts each time the oil travels through the engine.
Worst Case Scenario
The worst possible result of neglecting to change your oil is that the oil will be unable to run through the engine any longer and the engine will seize up. A seized engine is basically an engine that has become too dry to run any longer. The moving parts fuse together and are unable to move because there is not enough oil to lubricate them. You will probably notice a knocking sound from your engine long before it begins to seize. If you don’t ever change your oil, you could cause serious damage to your car’s engine.
- How to Change the Oil in a Car?
- How to Check Oil in Car?
- What Oil Does My Car Need?
- What Type of Oil for my Car?
- How to Check Engine Oil?
