Is your car using too much motor oil?

 Motor oil - as you've heard us tell you many, many times before - is the literal lifeblood of your car. It keeps your engine cool and lubricated, which means it keeps you out on the road. If your motor oil gets too dirty or runs too low, things heat up quickly inside the engine. This can lead to serious (and expensive) and even irreparable damage to your car, which means you're going nowhere fast. 

However, if you stick to your routine oil change schedule and let our Orlando Toyota service techs keep an eye on things in between appointments for you, you should be in good shape. On rare occasions, though, you might find that your car is using too much motor oil, which means it's going to run out of oil sooner than anticipated and need an oil change as well as a repair to remedy the overconsumption. Our Toyota of Orlando service techs are here to fill you in on signs your car is using too much oil and what you can do about it. 

Three signs your car is using too much motor oil 

Sign #1: Your oil light comes on. Your oil light coming on signifies that you need an oil change; you know this by now and can pretty much expect it to illuminate every 5,000 - 10,000 miles, depending on what type of motor oil you use in your Orlando Toyota. However, if it comes on sooner than you expect it to, it's worth having our techs take a look to see what triggered it early. 

Sign #2: You pull the dipstick and notice that the oil level is too low. You can check the quality and level of your oil without even visiting Toyota of Orlando - just pull the dipstick out of the engine. The oil on it should be caramel or tan in color and should fall in between the two tic marks. If it's lower than the bottom tic mark but you know it's not time for an oil change, your car could be consuming too much oil and you need to bring it in for auto service or repairs. 

Sign #3: You hear odd noises coming from the engine bay. This is vague, we know - weird noises can signify a number of issues. But if you hear clanking, rattling, or grinding noises in conjunction with other signs like low oil on the dipstick or your oil light on, it's time to schedule auto service at Toyota of Orlando to get to the bottom of things. 

Don't ignore these signs - like we said, it can do major damage to your car. If you notice any of the above, make an appointment to come see us. Further, there are a few Toyotas from back in the day that sometimes get this issue; in particular, if you own a RAV4, Solara, Matrix, or Camry that was manufactured in between 2007-2011.

Visit Toyota of Orlando today for auto service and repairs 

Think your car is using too much motor oil? Come on down and see us - we're conveniently located just off I-4 near the Millenia Mall at 3575 Vineland Road. You can call ahead of time to schedule your auto service at (407) 298-0001!