When your car is leaking oil, it can be very serious. An oil leak is something that should be looked at immediately. Without seeing where the oil leak is coming from, you can’t really assume or guess it. Some of you may know nothing about cars while others know cars in and out. Since oil leaks are a major concern to car owners, here is a very valuable tip regarding automobile oil leaks. This information should assist you the next time you go to get your car looked at by a professional.
One thing that is very important, is to know how quickly and how much oil your car is leaking. Basically the only thing you have to do is to check your oil dipstick. The oil is measured by the full and fill/low marks on the dipstick. The measurement of oil between these marks are one full quart. The standard amount of oil that your car or truck should hold it is about 4 to 6 quarts. So the main concern is the amount of oil it’s leaking and how quickly it is leaking out.
The amount of oil leaking that should alarm you for repair is about one quart or more every 3,000 miles or so. If you’re engine is giving off a strong odor, or if your exhaust happens to get oil on it, you definitely want to consider taking it in to a professional. If oil leaks on your exhaust, it can be dangerous. The buildup of oil on your exhaust can potentially cause a fire. A car fire is something that nobody wants.
If your oil leak isn’t this frequent or isn’t as much as a quart or more every 3,000 miles, the need for repair isn’t as drastic. Always remember that when you do not treat an oil leak it can only get worse. The only problem for you is that there is no way of determining the amount of time before repair is actually needed. The best thing to do is to monitor how much oil your car has in it. It’s always good to know how much oil your car has in it because sometimes you will go to a professional, and they will advise you that your car has an oil leak, but you may not believe them because you haven’t seen any oil leaking. Some oil leaks don’t get a chance to leak to the ground, and that is because the particles and dirt on the road can cause oil to stick. So if you’re not monitoring the oil levels yourself, you will never be able to know if the repair shop is trying to stiff you or not.
Fixing an oil leak can be expensive. If you are not able to pay for repairs, you may want to consider learning how to repair it yourself. All it takes is some research and studying. Even if you do have the money to pay for repairs, you may want to consider researching what could possibly be wrong anyway, so that when you take it to a professional they cannot rip you off.
