If you have a high-mileage car, you need a high-mileage oil to match it in order to prolong its life despite its mileage. In particular, you should search for oils that have high-temperature resistance and has a lower chance of causing leakages.
Unbeknownst to many a motorist, certain cheaper oils have a higher leakage risk compared to other pricier oil types. Most engines prevent oil leakage through rubber seals.
These seals, like anything else in your car, will shrink and break off after much usage. Certain oils can quicken the pace of breakage and shorten the lifespan of such seals, leading to oil spills in your garage.
Top Properties of High-Mileage Oil
- Seal Conditioner Solution: High-mileage oil like Mobile 1 or Pennzoil High-Mileage Vehicle Oil has what's known as a seal conditioner solution. It actually protects and strengthens the rubber seals of your engine so that they won't break apart so easily after extended usage. They seal in the rubber instead of sabotage it with cheap formulations that have questionable pH and form sludge too easily. Pennzoil is particularly affordable, with it being available as a 6-quart pack for roughly $60.
- Extra Lubrication for Tougher Driving Conditions: Tougher driving conditions like driving through hard terrain, rocky roads, and steep hills tend to take a toll on even heavy-duty vehicles. This calls for super oil that's formulated to be extra lubricated to ensure smoother flow and movement of your engine parts. More lube means smoother operation and reduced friction as well as defense against the natural wear-and-tear of extended engine operation from high-mileage engines.
- Protecting the Parts As Well As Getting Rid of Sludge: Certain high-mileage oil formulas reduces wear-and-tear not only be being extra lubricated but also by having certain ingredients that protect the parts from sludge buildup. Sludge, by the way, is the mixture of oil and the natural dirt that accumulates in it from internal combustion waste products. When oil is full of sludge, that's when you should change it ASAP.
- Long-Lasting Oil That Lengthen Oil Change Periods: There are certain synthetic motor oils like Amsoil Extended Life that are perfect for high-mileage vehicles because it doesn't only protect against the buildup of sludge but because of the lack of sludge you can go longer in between oil changes compared to standard or generic oils. They're so good they can make your engine perform better and for far longer too.
- Blend of Traditional Oil and Special Additives: If going full synthetic is too much for your budget, you can also opt for oils like Castrol GTX 20W-5. This product is a special blend of a series of specialized additives unto traditional motor oil that make the oil more suitable for engines that have high mileage in them. This type of oil also makes your engine last longer, get fewer leaks, and reduce the occurrence of oil sludge.