Introduction

For some car owners, we may take our cars for granted- that’s to say whether it’s nice and warm outside, or everything is frozen, we often expect our cars to start, every time and to work as we would expect.

However, for that to happen all of the cars different engine parts and other components need to work correctly, and for that to happen garages, like ours need to carryout regular maintenance of many different types of cars, in order to protect the car from increased wear, and also to help improve efficiency.

So, why is engine oil so important in particular?

Well, if we could see on the dashboard of our car, on the LCD panel how our cars engines work  each time we drive, we would be rather impressed, as they sure work very hard.  

For example, within our engines we would see pistons moving, turbos circulating and the engine rotating to produce power.

Now, as you would expect, with all that power, and rotation of the pistons, these causes friction, and as a by-product heat- so to help keep an engine lubricated, we need engine oil.

This is why engine oil, whether its in a 1 litre petrol car, on in a 3.1 V-6 engine, our cars engines, whether diesel or petrol need oil.

And not just any oil, a cars engine needs a quality oil. This is why its important you use the right garage, like ours, which will offer quality car parts, such as oil filters, and which always use the right quality engine oils.

So, is all engine oil the same?

The simple answer is no, there are many different types, for example there’s synthetic, mineral oil, just to name a few, then there’s the additives that are added to some oils as well, this is to help with preventing the oil from breaking down as fast. Then there’s the all-important viscosity of the oil.

So, no not all engine oils are the same, the engine oil used in say a modern BMW engine, with start / stop technology, is going to need a totally different type of oil for say a classic car that what built in the 60’s.

The price of engine oil, well that can differ massively as well, from your cheaper options which may cost say £10.00 a litre, to highly engineered oils, which are designed for say a high-performance racing cars and can be very expensive. But as any good garage will tell you, ours included, its always worth buying top-quality oil, as its absolutely crucial in helping your engine to run correctly.

Then there’s engine oils designed for certain engines, so, this might be for diesel engines, petrol engines, engines with start / stop technology and also hybrid engines. Yet, sometimes oils are designed for certain car brands as well, and this is important too, as some car manufacturers will only recommend a certain brand of oil.

Why should I regularly check my cars oil level?

Its so important to stay on top of your car maintenance, that’s to say, whether your car needs a full service, interim service, or lets say just an oil change, its crucial that this work is carried out when its needed.

Yet, even if your car is not due a service, you should still be checking fluid levels, such as the engine oil level, as if this runs too low for example, well, the engine could simply overheat, seize and the resulting damage can sometimes be so large, that some garages, in some instances might say that the car is uneconomical to repair- so this is why engine oil, and servicing of a car is so important.

Should I be asking the garage which engine oils they use?

We would say yes, most definitely, for some car owners, they might think, well, it’s a garage, they can take care of changing the engine oil, but we think you should still be checking a quality brand of oil is used on your car.

Cheap engine oils we think are a false economy, instead what you want is a quality oil, the exact oil that your car manufacturer specifies.

Make sure you check your cars service history

It’s a good idea to check your cars service history, and make sure you know when the next service interval is, that’s whether the car needs an interim service, full service, or just the engine oil filter and oil replaced, we can help.  

So if your looking for garages in Cardiff that offer car servicing, why not book your car in with us?