A car’s engine is the “heart” of the vehicle and needs to be maintained with proper levels of motor oil. The purpose of motor oil is to lubricate the engine, clean engine debris, protect the engine, cool and sometimes restore engine performance.

Fundamentally, the lubrication of engine parts including the pistons allows parts to move fluidly without metal meeting metal inside the engine. Otherwise, friction would result causing overheating that could slow down performance or result in total engine failure. This works much the way, say, antifreeze and coolant keeps your car’s an internal temperature around 225 degree fahrenheit. Finally, oil collects debris as it travels throughout the engine and dispensed in oil filter.

Changing your oil filter when you change the oil is one of the most sensible and economical ways to prolong the life of your engine. Select a filter that is designed to work with the type of motor oil you choose.

We can recommend and support several filters, including Bosch DistancePlus, Fram Tough Guard, K&N Premium Wrench-Off, Mobil 1 Extended Performance or Royal Purple Extended Life Filters.

And finally, one note on using synthetic engine oil. Long gone are the days where you had to change your oil in preparation for the winter months. Today, modern oil has multiple viscosities so it flows best in the cold and thickens when temperatures increase to flow just as well in the summer. You should still perform a regular oil change as recommended by your vehicle’s manufacturer. That’s just to say that the 10w you bought in the winter months (the ‘W’ is for winter) can be used just as well during the summer. 10w40 for example, flows the same at -30 degrees Celsius as it does at 100 degrees. Save your money and avoid synthetic oils unless your vehicles engine sustains heavy and repeated abuse. We can recommend Pennzoil, Quaker State, Kendall, Valvoline, Royal Purple, Mobil, Castrol, Chevron, Havoline and Shell oils.

Should I change the oil every 3 months or every 3000 miles?
You’ve probably heard that you should change your car’s oil every three-thousand miles. However, most modern cars can go easily four-thousand miles before the next oil change. Keep in mind, however, that driving in a warm climate, commuting regularly, or doing regular, heavy towing will require you to change the oil more often. As a reminder, you might write your mileage at the last oil change on a blank Avery label. After approximately three-thousand miles you’re up for an oil change. At Oceanside Motorsports we’ll provide a quality oil change in minutes. Doing so is the most affordable and easiest way to protect the integrity of your engine.

1) PREPARE- find the proper oil and filter for your car using any of the oil filter guidebooks found in most auto shops and car part dealers.

2) DRAIN- Park on a flat surface; run the car before starting the process to ensure that the oil is warm and flows more easily; put on the emergency brake; find the oil drain plug underneath the engine block near the front of the car or as indicated in your car manual; once you’ve located the plug put a shallow pan underneath; loosen the plug with a wrench turning counterclockwise; allow the plug to drop in the pan to avoid coming in contact with lots of hot oil; let the oil drain into the pan (this can take as much as 5-10 minutes)

3) REMOVE THE FILTER- locate the plug in the oil pan; replace the bolt by hand at first, then moving onto the socket wrench; find the oil filter on the side of the engine (looking up, the bottom of the filter is usually painted black or consists of a black rubber material); reposition the oil pan to catch oil from the filter; if available, use an adjustable oil filter wrench to unscrew the old filter, if not, go ahead and muscle it; allow the existing filter to drain into the pan

4) REPLACE THE FILTER- open the new filter; wipe a coat of new oil against the seal of the new filter using a rag; screw on the new filter in place of the old using the oil wrench or your hands.

5) REPLACING THE OIL- Find the oil filler cap under the hood and set it aside;
place a funnel in the mouth of the filler; pour in 4-5 quarts of new oil according to your car’s manual; remove the funnel and replace the cap; start the car and allow to run for a few minutes; shut off the engine and check the dipstick; add additional quart as necessary

6) CLEAN-UP- Wipe away excess oil from hood or under car using rags or newspaper; properly dispose of the oil and filter in milk jugs and a trash bin, respectively; we welcome you to bring in your used oil to Oceanside Motorsports to promote proper recycling.

Need a ride? We recommend our neighborhood Enterprise Rent-a-Car for their friendly service.