The Top Major Distinctions Between Regular And Synthetic Oil
One of the main questions you may face when getting your oil changed is if you want to use regular oil or upgrade to synthetic oil. Here are the top three major distinctions between regular oil and synthetic oil; this information should help you determine which answer is right for your budget and your vehicle.
#1 Cleanness Levels
The first major distinction between regular and synthetic oil is the cleanness level of each type of oil.
Regular oil is created by filtering down crude oil to remove as many contaminants as possible from the oil before it is bottled. This process is not perfect though, and many smaller contaminants are able to make their way through the filtering process, into the bottle, and thus into your vehicle.
Synthetic oils, on the other hand, is created inside of a lab environment. Creating this oil inside of a lab environment allows a great level of control over what ends up in the oil. Synthetic oils are filtered and tested to a great degree than regular oils, which results in a cleaner oil with far less contaminants than regular oil.
The number of contaminants matters because as your vehicle uses oil, it can leave behind these contaminants which can then get into your engine and cause additional wear to your engine. Regular oil, due to being created straight from crude oil, is more likely to leave these types of contaminant's in your vehicle's engine than synthetic oil.
#2 Break Down Time
The second major different between regular and synthetic oils is how quickly they break down. Regular oil breaks down at a faster rate than synthetic oil, which is why, if you use regular oil, you are probably very familiar with the idea that you need to change your oil every three months or 3,000 miles. This is the rule of thumb when it comes to changing out oil because that is how long it takes for regular oil to break down and start leaving contaminants behind in your engine. When your oil starts to break down, it also no longer provides your engine with the lubrication it needs to run effectively.
Synthetic oil, on the other hand, take much longer to break down. When you use synthetic oils, you can generally get double the mileage out of your oil. Synthetic oils take longer to break down and don't leave behind the same level of contaminants, which allows you to drive at least double the miles than you can with synthetic oils before you change the oil out in your vehicle.
#3 Overall Cost
Generally, synthetic oils will cost more wherever you get your oil changed at. This is due to the fact that synthetic oils go through a more involved and time consuming process to come to the market than regular oils.
However, as stated in the point above, synthetic oils generally last at least twice as long as regular oils, which means when you use synthetic oils, you can cut at least one whole oil change, if not more, out of your budget. When you get a synthetic oil change, you will save money on the overall amount of oil that you use in a year.
Moreover, since synthetic oil does not contain the same level of contaminants as regular oil, it doesn't wear down your engine as much. Using synthetic oil should help improve and extend the life of your engine. For more information, contact shops like Southside Auto Repair.