Your car may be clean on the outside, but is it clean on the inside?
The life expectancy of your car depends on your answer. Motor oil gets contaminated by substances like dust, metallic shavings and even antifreeze. And did you know that the additive package, which is part of your fully formulated motor oil, will break down in time and become a contaminant, too?
As contaminants are whipped into the oil, sludge is formed. This sludge will stick to parts of the engine causing the engine to perform less efficiently. Eventually, this sludge can cause engine failure.
Neglecting oil changes is hazardous to your engine’s health, especially if you drive under severe driving conditions, which most people do. Severe conditions include making short trips, driving in stop-and-go traffic, extended idling, driving in dust or dirty air, towing trailers and cold weather driving.
Changing your oil every 3,000 miles or 3 months, whichever comes first, is generally recommended. However, you should follow the recommendations in your owner’s manual. Even a car that is not running will get oil contamination as a result of accumulated moisture. If the car isn’t run long enough to get rid of the moisture, it becomes damaging.
