OIL IS JUST OIL, RIGHT?

Did you know making a decision as simple as choosing a different motor oil for your vehicle can increase your fuel economy by over 2%?

To illustrate the magnitude of this change, understand that if just one-third of U.S. drivers reduced their gasoline consumption by 2%, we would save almost one billion gallons of gasoline and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by eight million tons every year. That's the equivalent of removing about 1.5 million cars off the road.

In fact, the quality of oil changed in your vehicle can significantly impact the life of your engine. It can literally be the difference between your car making it 250K miles and 500K miles.

• At freezing temperatures such as 0 F, the quality of the oil can be the difference in getting all the way around the engine in 10 seconds versus 3 minutes. Most people are already on the highway 3 minutes after starting their car.
• The lower the quality of engine oil, the greater tendency it has to thicken over time (e.g. picture pasta sauce that thickens up if you re-heat it numerous times)! Low quality 5w-20 oil could actually turn into 5w-40 by the time you change it.
• Engine cleanliness is significantly impacted by the quality of engine oil. The highest quality oils are so clean that their detergents can actually clean deposits that result from maintenance in the past, like that nagging stain on your favorite shirt you never thought you would remove!

Equipment manufacturers are starting to require higher quality oils in your vehicles in order to improve fuel economy, protect newer fuel efficient engines that run hotter, and to ultimately provide protection that will help increase the life of your engine. Some of your vehicles don't require "synthetic," so quality conventional oils will do the job in protecting your engine at the manufacturers prescribed interval. But, just because your vehicles don't require "synthetics," it doesn't mean you will not receive the same fuel economy benefits and increased engine longevity by using the better products.

Toyota is starting to require vehicles to use Synthetic oil instead of regullar oil. It's all about making your car run better for longer. Click here to see what cars fall into that category.