With people facing financial pressures, a new car has become an unaffordable luxury for many. But just because your car’s three- or five-year warranty has expired, you don’t need to replace it immediately with a new car and incur additional expenses, especially if your existing car has been well maintained and is still in acceptable working condition. Instead, using the right engine oil will help to keep your car fighting fit.
In June 2022, according to the latest available figures from Lightstone, the average age of a vehicle on South African roads was 10.5 years, from a low of 9.3 years in 2015. Keeping your car on the road comes at a cost. Once the warranty expires, you will have to pay for mechanical breakdowns and maintenance. Today’s cars are built better than they were 30 years ago, but unfortunately their complex electronics means that when they do break down, they can be very expensive to repair.
To assist in prolonging the life of your engine, it is critical to use the right oil. Not all engine oils are the same.
What difference can engine oil make?
The primary function of an engine oil or lubricant is to reduce friction and wear in the engine. They also perform a number of other functions including preventing the formation of sludge and varnish on metal surfaces; reducing metal to metal contact (e.g. on the cam shaft and bearings); improving fuel economy; keeping the engine running at optimum conditions; preventing seals from leaking or cracking; and reducing foaming as the oil moves through the engine.
Lubricants consist of base oil plus additional materials such as additives, detergents and viscosity modifiers to enhance the lubricants performance. The selection of and quantity of materials in the oil must be balanced to achieve the desired performance attributes for your vehicle.
The type of base oil; mineral vs synthetic and the viscosity of the oil is very dependent on the requirements of the vehicle and the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) specifications the oil carries. The manufacturers of modern cars will specify what you should use.
Choose the right oil
Castrol offers some of the world’s leading engine oil brands, such as EDGE, MAGNATEC and GTX. Each one addresses different aspects of car care.
Castrol EDGE: As global emissions standards tighten, engines provide better fuel economy and lower emissions, but at the same time turbo-charging increases the amount of pressure in the engine. Castrol EDGE delivers more power from the same amount of fuel.
Relative to a 5W-40 baseline, demonstrated by engine testing for more than 80% of the Castrol portfolio in volume in 2021.
Tested vs the Sequence IVA API SN & CEC OM646LA ACEA wear limits
Castrol MAGNATEC: A normal urban car can stop and start up to 18,000 times a year, causing microscopic engine wear. Castrol MAGNATEC with DUALOCK technology can reduce stop-start wear by up to 50%[2] compared with an industry reference 15W40 oil. It latches onto critical engine components, forming a strong layer of protection for your engine and unlocking non-stop protection from the moment you start.
Castrol GTX: Castrol GTX is made using a 3X Clean formula to fight the three causes of harmful engine sludge – heat, contaminants and short trips – keeping engines cleaner for longer. It catches harmful sludge particles by surrounding and trapping them, controls sludge by containing it, which prevents particles from sticking together or to surfaces, and cleans the engine, as the sludge is removed with the next oil change.
Use Castrol’s handy oil finder this will assist you in discovering what oil you should be using for your particular car make and model. Castrol’s range of high-quality oils are tailored to meet the needs of most cars, ensuring optimal performance and protection. It makes more rands and cents to use the right oil than to pay the steep costs of mechanical breakdown. Click here for more information: https://bit.ly/CastrolProductFinder.