Oil changes are among the most crucial maintenance tasks for every vehicle owner. It is one of the few things you can do without the help of a mechanic.

After all, it just involves draining the old oil, changing out the filter, and pouring in new oil. But it isn’t that simple. Chances are you’re probably missing something or doing something wrong.

With that said, let’s go through a few mistakes most car owners make and how changing to quality automotive lubricants helps the engine.

Avoid These Common Oil Change Mistakes

• Not Keeping Record Of Oil Change

Generally, your oil needs to be changed out in one of two conditions; either a certain amount of miles or a certain amount of months. Therefore, you must pay attention to your last oil change.

Otherwise, you could either be changing out your oil too soon or too late, both of which could be damaging.

• Using The Wrong Oil

One of the typical oil-change mistakes is using the wrong oil. The viscosity needs to be suitable for your vehicle’s engine to flow through the engine properly.

For instance, if you use low viscosity motor oil, your engine parts may not be adequately lubricated and may leak through exhaust seals; if it’s too thick, it will cause friction, leading to decreased engine performance.

Always use the engine oil suggested by your manufacturer – if you’re unsure, consult with a mechanic.

• You Over Or Under Fill Engine Oil

After getting the oil drained out, you need to put in new oil. But often, people either overfill or underfill the oil, which causes problems in the engine.

For instance, if you under-fill the oil, it will mess with the lubrication of the parts inside the vehicle. This can cause the engine’s internal components to experience way too much friction and potentially damage themselves.

Conversely, overfilling can cause the engine oil to foam up. Foamy oil cannot lubricate your car well, and in many cases, it will stop the oil flow altogether.

• Not Replacing The Oil Filter

The oil filter serves as a screening agent for the engine oil; it reduces dust and debris mixing with the oil. Many people ignore the significance of the oil filter and make the mistake of not replacing it during the time of changing oil.

When you purchase an oil filter, it has an O-ring that acts as a seal. But, when you’re changing the oil filter, there are some things you need to be careful about:

• When removing the filter, ensure the O-ring comes off with it. You don’t want to put the new filter on with two O-rings.
• Before replacing the filter, moisten the O-ring with oil so you can easily remove it at your following oil change.
• Don’t over-tighten the filter.

Conclusion

As you can see, it’s easy to make one of these mistakes, even if you are a seasoned DIYer. After all, with cars, it’s the simple mistakes that can create the biggest of problems.

Want to keep your vehicle fully maintained? Avoid the above-given mistakes and use high-quality automotive lubricants such as Castrol from reliable distributors like Central Trading Company. Order today!