When you pull up to get an oil change near your home or office sometimes you may not really understand why you are getting an oil change or what a oil change really is. Put simply an oil change is when you take out the motor oil from your engine and put back in new motor oil. During an oil change you also have to change the oil filter and put on a new one. The oil and oil filter do so much for your engine that getting regular oil changes is the best way to keep your vehicle healthy.
The motor oil keeps your engine lubricated, and since most parts of your engine are made from metal there is a possibility of rusting or erosion from friction. When your motor oil gets old it looses its ability to keep your engine lubricated, and that’s what makes you need an oil change regularly. The regularity of your oil changes do depend on the type of oil and filter used.
The oil filter is also changed during an oil change and that is because the oil filter is the tool for cleaning the motor oil as it runs through the engine. The reason it has to be changed is that it also looses its effectiveness, and then cannot clean the motor oil. Once the oil filter can no longer clean the motor oil the oil has very little time left to be able to keep protecting your engine.
How Often Should I Get an Oil Change?
An oil change is needed whenever your oil has lost its ability to protect your engine, but that isn’t a mark that is easy to know. The best way to know how often you need an oil change is by the owner’s manual in your glove box. Your owner’s manual will tell you the amount of kilometers between oil changes. The length between oil changes is usually 5000KM – 7500KM depending on the make and model of your vehicle. This is a safe number given by your vehicle manufacturer and when using conventional motor oil, you should always stay inside these numbers.
You can add kilometers to the interval of each oil change by switching to synthetic oil which lasts at least 10,000KM and can last up to 15,000KM. Synthetic motor oil also improves engine performance and fuel economy since it is a better lubricator. We recommend highly that you switch to synthetic oil when getting your oil changed.
Where to Get an Oil Change Near Me?
Getting an oil change can be painstaking, especially when you work long hours in a city like Toronto. In Toronto, the best place will be an oil change near you, many of which will be chain quick lube shops. These can be a saviour when needing an oil change, but there can be some issues of when does the shop close or do you need an appointment. In a study, people were more likely to have their oil changed on time when there was a lube shop within one kilometer and even more likely when the lube shop was open late. This leads to the idea that if there is going to be an oil change nearest to you then you will change your oil more often and on a proper schedule.
When you get an oil change near you there are some things to remember before going. When you check the price online or through the phone confirm that the oil filter is included in the oil change and that the price includes up to six liters of motor oil. This is just so that the shop does not add on extra dollars for a filter (as much as $20) or extra oil (as much as $15 per liter). Secondly we highly recommend that you check your owner’s manual before hitting the shop. This is to check the maintenance schedule on your vehicle, and therefore you can know if you need anything more than an oil change. Some shops will try to add on certain services that aren’t needed on your vehicle, and if you know the maintenance schedule of the vehicle you can see right through that. This can change if there is a check engine light going off, but that can be solved by asking the shop to show you the reading on their diagnostics tool. If the shop doesn’t want to show you this, we recommend you do not accept their added services. The third thing we recommend when going to get an oil change is to request synthetic oil because it is a better product for your car and your wallet.
What is the Best Oil Change Place?
The best place to get an oil change would be one of the more common name brand lube shops. This is if you are following the thoughts we shared in the previous section on how to save money at the lube shop. As said above we recommend a synthetic oil change to keep your vehicle in best shape.
Due for an Oil Change?
Rather than sitting in traffic on your way to the garage or oil change shop, download The Oil Change App on the App Store or Google Play and send out a live request for service anytime, anywhere. All oil changes are synthetic and include a OEM spec filter to keep your engine running smooth.
