The real reasons you need to change your engine oil…
February 1, 2021
Vegemite doesn’t lubricate engines. (Well, duh? I hear you saying). Okay, wait – let us share the whole story.
Torque Toyota’s Senior Service Advisor, Shane Donaldson, is our resident expert on quite a few things – including educating our guests on the importance of changing their engine oil.
When Shane first started talking about Vegemite a little while back, it made us all a little hungry! Then he elaborated, and we realised he’s actually one smart cookie when it comes to cars.
Shane explains: “Engine oil has three jobs in your engine.
- Lubricate the internal metal parts by keeping a thin film of oil between them.
- Help cool the engine and disperse heat.
- Keep by-products of combustion in suspension – and this is why the engine oil needs to be changed. Every time the piston goes up, a small amount of carbon and other by-products will pass the rings and go into the crankcase. Once the oil has absorbed most of the carbon, it will start to thicken and leave deposits in the engine. Eventually, it will turn the oil into a substance not dissimilar to Vegemite, And Vegemite doesn’t lubricate engines.”
Put simply, if you allow your engine oil to get to Vegemite-state – you’re putting your engine at risk of failing. Taking care of your engine oil and filters is cheap insurance against engine failure.
“The wear that happens inside the engine may not be seen straight away,” continues Shane, “It usually surfaces later on when the vehicle starts to use oil, is down on power, and just isn’t running smoothly anymore.
“One of the biggest misconceptions I see is ‘I only do low kilometres so I don’t need to service as often’ – but this is the opposite to what is actually true! Warm-up for an engine is hell on earth.
“A rich mixture for warm-up puts even more carbon into the oil, and moisture as well. And only doing short trips will not allow the engine to heat up enough to burn any of the moisture off which then dilutes the oil, making it even less effective.”
So, what’s Shane’s advice? “Change your oil regularly, according to your vehicle’s specs.”
The rest of the Torque Toyota team couldn’t agree more!
Call in to our dealerships or phone us today if we can book you in for your next service and oil change, or assist with any of your vehicle needs.
