We’re heading into the coldest time of the year in Plainfield, IL, with average temperatures getting as low as the teens on January nights. What is the best way to protect your European automobile in freezing weather? You can start by switching out your motor oil from conventional to synthetic. Many European automobile manufacturers recommend synthetic, but if you have conventional oil in the engine right now, bring your vehicle in to PKW Motorwerks for an oil change. Here’s why.
Additives
The base of synthetic and conventional motor oils is the same, crude, but synthetic motor oil is processed under sterile laboratory conditions to keep it pure and give it an edge over its conventional counterpart. The pureness of synthetic motor oil is the first advantage. Simply put, this oil has fewer contaminants and this means fewer chances of a contaminant harming your automobile’s engine.
Manufacturers also put additives in synthetic oil to help it retain its viscosity longer and stand up better to extreme internal and external conditions. What these additives are is anyone’s guess. Each manufacturer has its own recipe, if you will, and they guard these formulas fiercely. At the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter; this oil is safe for your engine and does an excellent job protecting it.
Benefits of Synthetic Oil
Once the oil has left the lab and is shipped to auto service shops and auto parts stores, it is ready to impress you and your automobile. One reason why this motor oil type is becoming more and more popular is that it offers superior engine protection, something that is so important in high-performance European vehicles. The oil lasts longer because it, as mentioned above, it stays viscous longer.
This is particularly important in cold weather. As the mercury drops below freezing, conventional oil thickens. If you are parked outside, start your car, and drive off right away, the oil has not had a chance to thin and start circulating throughout the engine. This can damage the engine. Synthetic oil doesn’t thicken as much as conventional oil does, meaning it starts protecting the engine faster in cold weather.
It also protects high-performance engines better as well as older engines. Although we don’t need to worry about it here in Plainfield, synthetic oil can also protect an engine better in extreme heat. If you’d like to switch your oil to synthetic to protect your car better in the winter, call PKW Motorwerks in Plainfield, IL, today to schedule an appointment or stop by our shop.