The engine oil is a variation of well developed lubricants comprising oil enhanced additives that are used for internal lubrication of combustion engine, the major function of the engine oil is to reduce wear on moving parts and cool the engine by carrying heat away from moving parts. Every car manufactured carries an owner’s manual which clearly states the type of engine oil recommended for use, to ensure proper functioning of the engine. The most important element to look out for while shopping for engine oil is the viscosity, most oils sold nowadays are “Multigrades “, which means that the oil falls into two viscosity grade i.e 5w-30 etc. using the 5w30 viscosity grade as an example the “W” stands for winter, while the number in front of the “W” refers to the maximum rate at which the oil must flow at a low temperature. The 30 in 5w-30 simply means the oil must fall at certain viscosity/flow limits at 100°C, this is a fixed limit and all oil that ends at 30 must achieve this limits. And the lower the number, the thinner the oil. Below is a list of recommended engine oil for different cars:
- Toyota camry- 5W-30 or 5W-20
- Toyota corolla-5W-30 0r 5-W-20
- Honda accord- 5W-30 or 5W-20
Failure to comply with the manufacturers recommended engine oil viscosity may lead to a shorter engine life and lack of optimum car performance which leads to more daring financial implications while trying to repair the engine or even changing the whole car engine in worst cases scenario.