If you are a car owner, it’s no news that car oil is extremely important for the proper working of your car. In short, engine oil is the lifeblood of your car engine. Therefore, you must change it always, if you want to enjoy your car. We wrote the most common reasons for an oil leak and excessive oil consumption.
Car oil lubricates your car parts and cools it, such that the engine does not undergo energy loss. Also, oil is essential in that it prevents your car parts from making those cranking sounds due to friction. It also keeps your car running smoothly.
Consequently, you should have a culture of always changing your car oil. A perfect rule of thumb of a car oil change for newly purchased vehicles is once every six months.
But if you notice your car has begun to age, then, you need to change the engine oil at least every three months.
Moreso, if you drive a lot over a far distance, you should change your oil after journeying for 5000 miles. Unless otherwise stated by the vehicle manufacturer.
Moreover, sometimes you may find that after all is said and done, your vehicle still consumes much more oil than you expect.
It is therefore vital that you understand the main reasons for excessive engine oil consumption of your car.
Leaking seals and gaskets
The vehicle is made of several components with seals and gaskets attached for proper fitting. Consequently, these components undergo several wears and tear. And these, however, may ultimately lead to leaky seals and gaskets. They begin to tear and have perforations. The engine oil then starts to leak through these perforations. Moreso, as time goes on these holes start to increase in size. And as more oil leaks through them, the rate of oil consumption also heightens.
Of all the gaskets, the valve cover gasket has a high chance of leaking oil. Though yet, other gaskets and seals for example crankshaft, might also leak oil.
Use of Poor Quality Oil
The vehicle manufacturer always recommends in the instruction manual which oil is fit for your engine. Most times, car owners don’t need the manufacturer’s instructions.
Hence, they go ahead and get another oil brand, which they like, because it’s probably cheaper or more readily available. This oil brand may however not provide good lubrication for the vehicle. As it is cheap and of below par quality, hence more oil than necessary will be needed to keep the car lubricated.
On the other hand, a bad culture of changing oil may lead to this situation. This is because the oil that has been used for a long time accumulates debris and dirt, and if not changed, it will yield little or no lubrication.
Damaged Piston Rings
If you have used your vehicle for a protracted period, you will find that some of the critical parts of your vehicle will begin to undergo wear and tear. One of the parts, which may undergo tear is the Piston rings. If the Piston ring of your car ruptures, oil starts to leak through it and also, through the oil seal belts. The oil then gets in the internal combustion chamber. There it starts to combust and carbon deposits begin to appear on the Piston rings and cylinders. This, however, impedes the normal working of the vehicle.
Also, it increases the quantity of engine oil need of the vehicle. For the oil that leaks through the Piston rings gets burned up and is lost. Hence, the car will want more oil in order to recover the lost oil.
The Engine’s Age
Most gadgets we use to function optimally only for the first few years of purchase. After which it begins to undergo depreciation. Vehicles too are not left out, as car engines will function optimally some years after you buy them because all of the components are new. As time passes, the components begin to undergo depreciation due to wear and tear and this causes them to get leaky.
The frictional force also tends to increase in these parts and they begin to go out of alignment.
Therefore, as aforestated, if you have a new vehicle, you will need less engine oil. Conversely, if your vehicle is old, you will require more engine oil as most of the components are worn out, misaligned and starting to leak.
High Oil Pressure
Recently manufactured vehicles come with a sophisticated system. This system controls several parts and workings of the vehicle, amongst which is the engine oil.
Sometimes the configuration of the system may not be accurate, and this may lead to the pressure of the oil being too high.
Therefore excess oil floods the engine that is needed.
This excess oil then flows to the cylinders of the engine, where it gets burned off. Thus the higher the oil pressure, the more quantity of engine oil is consumed. Moreso, If the youer car engine is operating at a low speed, the torque will increase, and these heighten the strain on the Piston and increases the oil consumption.
How You Can Fix Car Oil Leak
Most of these troubles that lead to excessive engine oil consumption are avoidable. To avoid them, you just need to pay mind to the engine oil you use and also, the components it lubricates, and that also make it work.
Moreso, if your vehicle is aging and the engine is starting to wear out, then you should think about buying a brand new one, which has a new engine.
It’s not a wise choice to shell out a large bulk of the money, just to replace the engine of an old vehicle. An old car is an old car and aside from the engine, a lot of other components may still get spoilt and will need replacing. Hence your best bet is getting a new ride. For the other reasons, make sure to apply high-quality oil- the one your car manufacturer prescribes is your surest bet. You can also rectify other causes by changing the Pistons, valves, and seals associated with the leak when required.
Finally, it is important for you to constantly check on your engine oil consumption rate. Moreso, take urgent and rapid actions when you notice an increase in oil consumption. Note, that if you ignore this problem, it could be detrimental to your car engine. This is because the oil which burns in the engine cylinder will turn to a build-up of carbon deposits in your engine. Thus reducing the engine power.
If you adhere to the ideas revealed in this article, you will find that you won’t have any problems with your car’s engine oil consumption.
