What Is an Oil Change?

An oil change is what it sounds like: trading out used oil for new oil. You’ve heard the term “oil change” all your life because you live in the era of the internal combustion engine.

Oil Wears Out

Why bother refreshing something toxic like motor oil? Because oil literally fatigues! 

Inside an engine, oil is heated, cooled and slapped around at a pace of thousands of beats per second. The engine is a puzzle of hundreds of closely-fitted, fast-moving metal parts. These fine-tuned connections require lubricant in order to keep from wearing each other away. 

During this process, each molecular connection in oil is challenged by this activity, and, over time, these bonds break. The result is oil’s inability to lubricate—to provide slippery surfaces on all moving parts and to encapsulate dirt and debris safely away from machined parts. 

Filtration Is Key to Robust Oil 

The engine is designed as an integrated system of constantly flowing oil. Think of it as a water park with slides and spray nozzles and hidden passages ensuring that one hundred machined parts are constantly bathed in oil.  

Key components of the oil distribution system are pumps, filters and passageways. Debris from the combustion process becomes trapped in the oil. The oil is pumped through a filter designed to remove this debris. However, over time, filters become saturated with pollutants and burned oil, causing them to lose their filtration abilities.

Premature Wear and Engine Failure

Unfiltered oil becomes both liquid sandpaper and Gorilla Glue. Old oil, at the same time, wears away engine parts and coats them with a sticky adhesive. 

With unmitigated exercise, oil behaves like taffy or heavy whipping cream. It becomes tar-like, clogging tiny passageways designed to carefully spray the engine uniformly with oil. The oil pump itself which sucks through a tiny straw can easily become blocked. 

When these become plugged, specific engine parts are not lubricated, resulting in either premature wear or catastrophic damage. 

Oil Changes in Fairbanks Are Different from Almost Anywhere

In a normal climate, engine oil should be changed every 5,000 miles. In Fairbanks, this interval is very different. Because we idle our vehicles so much in the winter, at METRO we trust time intervals over mileage intervals.

The process of idling creates deceptive wear on the engine oil. Even though the vehicle is not moving and ticking off miles on the odometer, the engine experiences thousands of untracked "miles" just sitting in a parking lot or garage. 

Oil changes should be done three times per year in Fairbanks: Fall (September, October) Winter (January), and Spring (April, May). 

What You Get in a METRO Oil Change

At METRO, we love what we do, and we especially enjoy taking the guesswork out of vehicle care for you. 

We don’t have what most auto repair shops call a “lube/oil technician.” A lube/oil tech is an entry-level mechanic whose time is devoted to changing fluids on vehicles.

At METRO, we have only Master Technicians on our staff. Our oil changes are performed by mechanics with years of experience. When they see your vehicle, they know what to look for in order to catch problems before they lead to bigger issues or breakdowns, which saves you money. This is the kind of care want. 

Our staff are dedicated researchers who enjoy paying attention to patterns of wear and failure. We look at the mileage and ages of vehicles and routinely know what to expect and look for while performing a simple oil exchange and filter renewal. 

We always conduct a basic inspection with oil changes. A full annual inspection is often added to fall or spring oil changes. 

Our inspections are recorded by technicians on iPads and sent to you digitally in a format called a “Digital Vehicle Inspection.” These are texted and emailed to you. 

We want your car running the best it can to avoid costly engine repairs. Once we are done we will log your vehicle into our system and send you reminders about when your next oil change is due. 

Book your next oil change today and let us help you care for your car and keep it on the road!

Let one of us on the METRO team become your Fairbanks mechanic. We love what we do. We love seeing cars three times per year for scheduled maintenance because it allows us to track and predict failure and to create a tailored maintenance strategy. Repairs are a part of vehicle ownership, but if you keep a careful maintenance schedule, your car or truck will need minimal repairs down the road. Drive your car, don't fix it! Become a part of the METRO family and let us take care of you! Please call or fill out a contact form to schedule an appointment and get started!