You probably know the importance of engine oil in your car’s gasoline engine. Since the engine contains several moving components, they must stay actively lubricated at all times, or else they’ll generate a lot of friction. Anytime there is too much friction amongst metal components in motion, it will create a lot of heat. If the heat is not cooled down, it will damage the components and the engine overall.
The engine oil in your car must be changed every 3,000 to 5,000 miles. However, you should not just replace the oil with any oil type. Several different kinds of oils are suitable for specific engines, cars, and environmental temperatures. If you can manage to choose the right oil for your car engine, then you can enjoy enhanced performance and a longer lifespan for your engine.
Never put diesel oil into a gasoline engine or gasoline oil into a diesel engine. That is rule number one right away. If you were to do either of these actions, it could cause significant damage to the engine. It could also weaken the engine’s performance too. But that is not the case with all oil that is “wrong.”
The “wrong” engine oil could refer to the brand, oil, weight, or viscosity of the oil. Even if the bad engine oil does not destroy your engine right away, it will still diminish its lifespan as time goes on. Fortunately, it is easy to recognize the symptoms as they occur. Then you can quickly replace the wrong engine oil with the right engine oil.
Wrong Engine Oil Symptoms
Below are the top 5 symptoms of putting the wrong engine oil in your car.
1) Smelly Oil
If the engine oil viscosity is too low, it might cause the oil to burn if it is too thin for the hot environment around it. You must have thicker engine oil in hotter climates and thinner engine oil in colder climates. Then you can reduce the chance of friction happening inside of the engine. Friction, of course, is what generates more heat.
You’ll know if there is friction because the burnt oil will smell from the hood area profusely. Investigate your vehicle whenever you smell burnt oil. It usually means something bad is on the horizon.
2) Unforeseen Oil Leaks
Sometimes oil leaks can occur if you use the wrong oil in your engine. Many people experience this when they try to put modern synthetic motor oil into their classic engine from an older vehicle.
You must understand that synthetic oils are specifically formulated in a certain way. You cannot use them for every type of vehicle, especially older vehicles. If you do, then you will likely see oil leaks coming from the engine.
3) Trouble Starting Engine
You could have trouble starting your engine if you use the wrong oil in it. For instance, if you choose a high viscosity engine oil and live in a colder region of the country, you will experience car trouble quickly.
The reason is that high viscosity engine oil is thicker, so a colder environment will cause oil flow problems in the engine. Thicker engine oils must exist within areas that have a warmer temperature. Otherwise, you will have trouble starting your vehicle every type you turn the key in the ignition.
4) Engine Ticking
Engine ticking is another thing that can happen in colder weather when you have the wrong engine oil in it. You will suddenly hear a ticking noise, and you’ll wonder where it is coming from.
The ticking will be extremely loud right after you start up the vehicle. The noise should dissolve a little bit as time progresses. But we don’t recommend you continue to use your car until a professional mechanic has checked it over.
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5) Bad Fuel Economy
The wrong engine oil could reduce the car engine’s lifespan and fuel economy significantly. You’ll pay more for gasoline while making the same trips you normally make throughout the week.
If you experience a bad fuel economy after changing your engine oil, you can attribute it to putting the wrong oil into your engine.
