Everyone knows that cars need regular oil changes to function properly, but why is this basic service so important? Although many people will claim to feel a difference after having their oil changed, often there seems to be no perceptible difference in performance before or after. If you got an oil change recently and noticed no difference in how your car's sound, performance, or gas mileage, then you may feel as though you are changing your oil too often or even that you are wasting money on this vital procedure.
Of course, assuming you are following your manufacturer's recommended maintenance schedule, nothing could be further from the truth. But why are oil changes so vital? Read on to discover why it is so important to always stay on top of this basic maintenance procedure.
Internal Engine Damage Is Expensive
If you aren't a car person, then it may seem as if anything that goes wrong under the hood has the potential to be wildly expensive. While this may be true depending on the car in question, there are many things that can go wrong and they are not all equally expensive or difficult to fix. Any modern car has a huge array of components under the hood other than the engine, ranging from basic equipment such as alternators to turbochargers or superchargers. While some of these components can be very expensive to replace, nothing compares to the expense of pulling your whole engine to repair internal damage.
Without proper lubrication, the damage that will occur to your engine is almost guaranteed to be internal. Depending on the age and model of your car, this could lead to repairs that may cost thousands of dollars. In some cases, internal engine damage may even drastically exceed the value of the car.
Poor Lubrication Affects Longevity
While leaving your oil unchanged for years and years can have catastrophic consequences, most people don't wait quite this long. In reality, foregoing an oil change rarely causes enough damage to destroy an engine or lead to serious damage. It does, however, cause additional wear on those same internal components. This may not matter if it only happens once or twice, but extended oil change schedules over a long period of time can wear out these components. This can lead your engine to run more inefficiently or even result in major damage down the line.
It's Cheaper Than Replacing Parts
Although the cost of an oil change will vary by vehicle make and model, they rarely cost more than $100. For most cars, a simple oil and filter change will cost about $60 and doesn't need to be carried out more than a couple of times per year. Compared to the cost of replacing an engine or replacing a car, this is incredibly cheap insurance. Proper oil changes even help to keep a car's gas mileage where it should be, so some of that cost comes back to you at the pump.
Next time you think about extending your oil change for just a few thousand more miles, remember that the money you are saving now can easily cost you thousands more in the future. To learn more, contact local oil change services.
Share2 May 2019
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