Checking and maintaining engine oil
It is important to check the engine oil in your vehicle frequently to monitor its level. This will prevent the engine from being damaged as the oil acts as a lubricant which also cleans and cools the engine. Doing this little exercise is a good way to maintain your car and will make the engine lasts longer and run smoothly and save you from having to pay the expensive price of repairing or buying a new engine.
How to check the engine oil level?
You can easily check the oil level in your car’s engine by following these little steps below:
- Lift up your bonnet and look for the engine oil dipstick (If in doubt, check your car manual to locate the dipstick).
- Pull the dipstick out and wipe it with a clean cloth so that any possible oil residue previously on the dipstick is cleared.
- Now locate the oil level marks at the bottom of the dipstick (This will help you in checking your current oil level in a minute)
- Put the dipstick back where you took if from, making sure it goes all the way down.
- Take the dipstick out again and check the engine oil level by observing the oil residue now left on the dipstick.
If the engine oil is below the required level (below the low mark), you will need to add some oil to your engine and do the same steps above again until you are satisfied that you have sufficient engine oil.
What type of engine oil do I need for my car?
All car manufacturers recommend a particular type of oil for their cars. It is good practice to get that same engine oil but generally it may be more expensive than ordinary engine oil. If you do not know what type of engine oil to buy, then you can go into any local car shop and ask for a general engine oil for your particular car make and if the staff there don’t know, you can always take any decent engine oil (Always go for a branded one like Castrol if you can afford it).
In an emergency only, for example if you see the red light coming up on your dashboard to indicate you are running out of engine oil and you are far from any car shops, you can use any type of oil, be it cooking oil or hair oil to prevent your engine from overheating but you should change it as soon as possible – and that should be on the same day!
If you had your engine oil for some time, like more than 3 years, it is best to buy new ones because after some time, unused engine oils are not as efficient and worthy of engine requirements because of age. If you need more information on engine oils, please visit the Car Bible website.
