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New vehicle owners often wonder if they should be using synthetic oil. There are many advantages synthetic oil has over regular oil: it lubricates more effectively; withstands high temperatures; is relatively pure; and usually won’t turn into sludge even with heavy abuse. These clear benefits cause many people to assume synthetic oil is the obvious best choice. However, much of it comes down to how well you take care of your vehicle.

For starters, how often do you change your oil? If you’re a disciplined car owner who replaces the oil every 3 to 5K miles, then you’ll never notice a difference between regular and synthetic oils. Oil changes are meant to prevent engine damage from oil breaking down. Synthetic’s benefit here is that it resists breakdown, even after regular use. So if you tend to forget to change your oil regularly, synthetic oil is the best option for your car. But if you’re regularly replacing your oil at the recommended mileages, then synthetic oil probably won’t add any extra protection to your engine.

Another benefit of synthetic is that it will last a long time without deteriorating. Let’s say you drive 7k miles per year. At this rate, assuming a 5k mile oil change interval, you’re only going to need an oil change every 9 months, based on mileage. Since regular oil starts to wear out after 6 months, you should either change your oil sooner than necessary or you should think about using synthetic. It may save you money to pay for one synthetic oil change a year instead of two regular oil changes, and it will definitely save you time.

One of the biggest reasons why people use synthetic oil is because of its resistance to heat. Regular oil breaks down in high temperatures, and continue to break down as the heat rises. Drivers who use their vehicles in ways that create a constantly hot engine environment should use synthetic oil. So should people who live in hot climates, such as in the desert, or at high altitudes, like in the mountains. Neither high ambient temperatures nor low air pressure are ideal conditions for keeping your engine cool, so synthetic oil would give you the best performance in these areas. Finally, if you own a high-performance vehicle or just drive like you do, consider synthetic, which is the best choice for these vehicles.

Synthetic oil is often recommended even to people who don’t especially need it. Synthetic is recommended for people driving in stop-and-go traffic, but that’s everyone at some point in time. The recommendation should only really apply to those who drive everyday in stop-and-go traffic for long enough for the car engine’s cooling fan to turn on. Drivers who only use their cars only for short trips are also advised to use synthetic oil in order to protect. However, short trips will be bad for your engine no matter what oil you decide to do, since your engine was really designed to run for at least 20 minutes at a time. Using synthetic instead of regular oil in this situation might make a difference, but it’ll be a very minor change.

If you’ve recognized yourself in one of the above situations and have decided to opt for synthetic oil, be careful when you go to make the purchase. You may be offered a synthetic “blend” instead of pure synthetic oil to save money. However, you probably won’t know exactly what’s in that blend. It could be equal amounts of synthetic and regular, or you might even be getting almost entirely regular oil with a splash of synthetic. If you’re going to go synthetic, it’s best to go all out and get the real thing, or not do it at all. Of course, if the blend is provided and produced by your vehicle’s manufacturer, then it’s probably safe to use - but that’s the exception.

Last but not least, what do auto manufacturers have to say about synthetics? Most state that “any oil that meets API standard specifications can be used in your vehicle.” That means normal oil is just fine. For most people, new cars will operate for a very long time without the benefit of synthetic oil so long as they are properly maintained and used normally.

Tags: Cars

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