Do you know how to check your engine oil? Checking your car engine oil is one of the most important, potential money saving points you can do regularly as a driver and best of all it takes less than a minute to do once you get the hang of it.

Our Guide To Check Your Car Engine Oil

  1. Ensure the engine is cool and the car has been stationary for a while
  2. Open the bonnet - if you are unsure on how to do this consult your cars handbook for further instruction
  3. Remove the dipstick and wipe until clean with tissue
  4. Slowly insert the dipstick back in
  5. Check the level is between the 2 marks - if low top up with the correct engine oil
A word of warning. When filling up the oil do not overfill. This can cause numerous problems itself. Fill using a jug or a funnel and do so a little at a time, give the oil time to settle before adding more. 
 
Engine oil should be checked at least once a month and definitely before taking any long journeys. 

What Oil For My Car? 

Unfortunately as cars have become more sophisticated and engines more complex a huge variety of engine oil types have appeared on the market. However fear not! Our good friends over at Halfords have developed an Engine Oil Checker Tool where all you need to do is insert you number plate and it will instantly give you the best recommended engine oil for your car, completely hassle free!

Why Should I Check My Engine Oil?

Back in 2009 oil supplier Comma carried out a random check test to see the oil levels that every day road users are running their cars at. For us, as a consumer with the potential cost of not checking engine oil levels being thousands of pounds, some shocking figures were revealed. 

Did you know:
  •  47% of drivers do not check their oil regularly
  • 27% of drivers do not check their oil at all
  • 45% of cars have oil levels that read as low - that's around 13.9 million cars!
  • 17% of cars have oil levels that read as dangerously low - nearly 1 in 5 cars!
Suggestions for why people are not doing this routine procedure range from simply not knowing how to check engine oil or quite simply people just forget. The most concerning part of this is that if these cars do suffer from an engine fail related to lack of oil, prices for a rebuild vary vastly dependant upon make and model. If you own a Peugeot 207 for example a rebuild would cost in the region of £850. An average family car such as a Ford Mondeo would set you back about £2000 and if your fortunate enough to own a Porsche Boxter you are looking at £8000! All for the sake of checking oil levels at least once a month and topping up where necessary. 

Figures courtesy of www.checkyouroil.co.uk