How Does Hot Weather Affect Your Engine Oil?

The hot weather of California summers takes a toll on your vehicle just as it does with many other things. One of the components of your vehicle most affected by the heat is its fluids – in particular, your engine oil. That’s why it’s important to keep up on your car’s maintenance with a Subaru oil change. Learn more about how high temperatures can degrade your oil with Dalton Subaru National City.

How Does Heat Affect Your Car’s Oil?

The oil your Subaru vehicle uses in the engine helps prevent all the moving components, such as the pistons and crankshaft, from causing excessive friction. The oil needs a certain viscosity or thickness to perform its function.

When your engine heats up, the oil gets thinner, leading to increased friction between your engine parts. This can cause severe engine damage and can cost you a lot of money in repairs down the road.

How You Can Prevent Your Oil Overheating

Alongside keeping up on your regular oil changes, there are a few other things you can do to keep your oil healthy on hot days:

• Only use the oil that the manufacturer says to use in your owner’s manual. If you’re using the wrong type of oil, it won’t be able to lubricate your parts as well.
• Check your temperature gauge on hot days; if your car is running too hot, you can cause damage to the engine, so you may want to pull over somewhere and let it cool down.
• Make sure your coolant and oil levels are correct. If they are both low, it can lead to your engine overheating.

Schedule a Subaru Oil Change in National City, CA

If you’ve been letting your engine run a bit too hot lately or are behind on your scheduled service, get in touch with Dalton Subaru National City. Our service team is standing by to help you keep your engine running as smoothly as the day you first drove your Subaru vehicle home.

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