Why Engine Maintenance is Important

/in /by

Proper maintenance is crucial for protecting an investment of any kind. When it comes to your vehicle, maintaining your engine is arguably the most important step to take since the engine is the heart of your vehicle; without it, nothing works. From extending the life of your vehicle to saving you time and money, regular engine maintenance is extremely important. If you’re a resident of Orange, visit Citywide Auto Care for full diagnostics and engine maintenance services today.

Extend Your Engine’s Life

Adhering to a routine maintenance schedule is essential for prolonging the life of any machine, and your car’s engine is no exception. Allowing dirt, old oil, and small incidents of damage to build up without proper care will likely cause your car’s engine to die prematurely. If you stick to a proper maintenance service schedule, however, you can extend the lifespan of your engine and avoid the high cost of engine replacement. Small steps you can take to maintain your engine include replacing your motor oil and air filter regularly. If you want to keep your fluids clean and ensure that your cooling system is working effectively, bring your car into an auto shop for full diagnostic testing.

Save Time & Money

Routine engine maintenance will save you both time and money by allowing you to catch minor issues before they become costly and extensive repairs. Allowing small problems to go unaddressed will cause them to snowball into much larger and more problematic damage that will require expensive repairs that may even leave you without use of your car for days at a time. For example, changing your engine oil as suggested will cost you less than $100 and take no more than 20 minutes. Declining to change your oil and suffering engine failure as a result, on the other hand, will cost you hundreds of dollars in repairs or replacement. Proper engine maintenance will save you valuable time and money in the long term, making it a worthwhile endeavor.

Earn Better Gas Mileage

You may not realize it, but properly maintaining your engine can actually help increase your gas mileage by as much as 15 percent. Replacing your engine air filter regularly will remove any blockages or obstructions that have built up over time, which will help your engine perform more efficiently overall. Improving its ability to draw air from the environment will allow it to exert less effort when operating, which will, in turn, lower fuel consumption and improve your gas mileage. When you bring your car in for its next service, replace the engine air filter in order to instantly improve your gas mileage by as much as 15 percent.

If you’re a resident of Orange looking for an auto shop that you can trust with high-quality maintenance services, consider Citywide Auto Care. Whether you need diagnostic tests, maintenance services, or major repairs, we can take care of all of your car engine needs so you can get back out on the road in no time. To make an appointment with one of our ASE-certified technicians today, give us a call at (714) 633-4211. We look forward to serving you! 

What Problems Can Occur if You Don’t Get Frequent Oil Changes

/in /by

We all know that we’re supposed to get our oil changed every 3,000 miles, but very few of us strictly stick to that number. Often, life gets in the way, and your oil change falls further and further down your priority list. However, if you continue to drive around Orange with unchanged oil for too long, you can cause major damage to your vehicle that will result in expensive auto repairs. Here are a few examples of what can occur if you fail to change your oil frequently enough.

#1. Overheating & Part Warping

The lubrication provided by oil is what helps maintain the engine temperature and prevent overheating. As your oil becomes sludge over time, the friction inside your engine increases and, therefore, so does the temperature. If the temperature increases enough, your vehicle could overheat and stop working. This increased friction and temperature could also begin to alter the shape of certain engine components. Warped parts will require inevitable require part replacement, an unnecessary expense that can easily be avoided with regular oil changes.

#2. Decreased Engine Power

Ensuring that your engine’s components can move with as little resistance as possible is essential to maintaining the same level of horsepower over time. If you fail to change your oil, it can thicken and become more of a sludge than a liquid. This can decrease the efficiency of your engine’s moving parts and thereby cause your engine to decrease in power. While this doesn’t necessitate immediate engine replacement, it will cause you to have noticeably more difficulty accelerating, driving at an incline, and traveling at consistently high speeds. This will cause you to have to repair or replace your engine in the long run, costing you hundreds or thousands of dollars that you could have saved by replacing your oil on schedule.

#3. Engine Clogs

The thick consistency of old engine oil can also contribute to engine blockages. The old oil can become trapped in crevices and congeal around engine components, causing your engine performance to weaken or fail. When this happens, you will have to have your engine cleaned or replaced, depending on the severity, which can potentially be a very costly endeavor. It’s always safer to visit Citywide Auto Care for an on-time oil change than be forced to come in for engine repair.

#4. Complete Engine Replacement

It can happen in a wide variety of ways, but failure to receive regular oil changes will often result in one thing: engine failure. The cost to replace an engine can easily be in the thousands of dollars, so it’s worth the little bit of extra time to come into Citywide for an oil change every 3,000 miles. Allowing dirty, unchanged oil to reduce the life expectancy of your engine is a costly mistake that too many drivers make. Be sure to replace your oil before it forces you to replace your engine entirely.

If you’re a resident of Orange and you’re overdue for your next oil change, stop by Citywide Auto Care. We offer efficient and high-quality service at an affordable price. We treat our customers like family, so we’ll never try to upsell you or convince you to accept services you don’t need. If you come to us for an oil change, well provide you with an oil change. If you’d like to make an appointment today, give us a call at (714) 633-4211. We’re here Monday to Friday!