Car Care

About Engine Oil Consumption of Your Car

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Cars consume engine oil, but oil consumption is minimal.

Note that the amount of engine oil your car consumes will depend on viscosity, quality of the oil and the way you drive your car.

Your car consumes engine oil when you drive at high speeds and also frequent acceleration and deceleration.

A new engine consumes engine oil.

Normally your car should consume about one liter of engine oil every 1000km (600 miles).

If your car consumes much more then have it checked by a qualified personnel.

You should also note that engine oil drops on the floor under the car and oil stains on the engine body need to checked by qualified personnel.

The Donts when driving a vehicle with automatic transmission

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Do not under any circumstances shift the shift lever to P, R or N while the vehicle is moving

Doing so can cause significant damage to the transmission system.

Also do not shift the  lever to N while the vehicle is moving. Doing so may make the engine brake operate improperly.

When you start your car and press the accelerator pedal, be careful not to change the gear lever to D or R as the rapid sudden acceleration can lead to an accident

Roads; an Explanation

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Road may be divided into four types

A Road is a smooth path carved out on land for easy movement of people, goods and vehicles from one place to another. These days a road would usually mean an established pathway for the easy movement of vehicles or other form of locomotives from one place to another.

Private road

  1. Private road
  2. 2 lane road
  3. Dual carriage ways
  4. Express way

Private road

2 lane Road

This means for example, the drive way to your house. Road managed by local community or estate. A private road can be individually or organizationally owned and maintained.

2 lane road

Dual carriageway

Dual carriageways

Two lane roads are single carriageways. Traffic flows in opposite direction on each lane. Two lane roads are common in rural and urban areas. Speed limit on this type of road is low because it has too many access points.

Expressway

Dual carriage way is a type of roadway in traffic in opposite directions is separated by a central reservation or barrier. In each traffic direction, the road may consist of multiple lanes. Dual carriage  ways are designed to very high standards so it can double as a free or motorway.

Expressway

Express ways are roads built for speed. To encourage this, there is controlled and limited access into these types of roads. They are built to the highest of standards. Expressways are dual carriage ways clearly separated by central reservation or barrier.

Expressways have the highest acceptable speed limits.

Difference Between Manual and Automatic Transmission

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Cars with automatic transmission is now the choice among drivers. It is easier to drive a car with an automatic gear system. It saves the driver the hassles of pressing down and releasing the clutch when the car has to be moved or stopped. If you have experienced driving a manual transmission car uphill or in a hold up, you will realize how easy it is with a car equipped with automatic transmission

However, manual transmission still has some advantages over its automatic counterpart. 

Advantages of manual transmission

  1. Simple design: the modelling and design of a manual transmission is easier when compared to that of an automatic transmission.
  2. Easy to repair: there is always a higher probability that a faulty manual transmission system can be repaired 
  3. Cheaper: it’s simple design makes it cheaper to buy ,install and maintain.
  4. Better braking efficiency: manual transmission cars are said to have more braking efficiency than its automatic counterpart
  5. Durability: manual transmission is more durable, this is why it is the most preferred for heavy duty vehicles.

Disadvantage of manual transmission

  1. Less smooth driving experience: driving a car with manual transmission is ok, but situations which make pressing down and releasing the clutch frequently such as during a holdup or driving uphill can be stressful.

Advantages of automatic transmission

  1. Smoother driving experience: This is achieved with  computer controlled transmission. The gears are shifted automatically when due and efficiently. It is easier to drive car equipped with automatic transmission uphill and during hold ups. 
  2. Makes Learning driving easier: one of the difficult aspects of driving is learning how to change gears efficiently even in difficult situations. Learners find it much easier to drive a car with automatic transmission as they will be spared the hassles of manually changing gears 

Disadvantages of Automatic transmission

  1. Complex design; compared to manual transmission, automatic transmission has a complex design architecture.
  2.   Harder to repair:  the complex modelling of the automatic transmission make it harder to repair when faulty. 
  3. Costlier; it is more expensive to acquire and maintain a car with automatic transmission
  4. Less durable:  Compared to its manual counterpart, Automatic transmission is said to be less durable

Signs That Your Clutch System is Going Bad

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The Clutch is that part of your car that connects the engine to the transmission. It helps to start  to move and regulate the speed of your Vehicle. A failing clutch will give you a not so pleasant driving experience. 

The Clutch is an assembly of different parts, so having a clutch problem doesn’t really mean that the whole clutch system needs to be changed.

Here are some common signs that your clutch system is going bad;

Smell like burning rubber.

This is usually a common sign of a clutch problem. It can occur when the revolutions of the engine and the speed don’t match. For instance,  you may notice this smell when you press the accelerator (throttle) to speed up the car, the engine revolves at higher revolutions per minute and  the car speed doesn’t match up, or takes more than usual to match up. This phenomenon is more apparent when you are climbing a hilly road.

Notice that you may also perceive a burning smell if you are fond of pressing the clutch while the car is in motion.

Grinding noise when changing to gear one

If you hear a grinding noise when changing gears, particularly lower gears such as gear one; then the clutch needs repair. In a worst case scenario you won’t be able to change gears.

Engine running without corresponding speed.

This is a situation in which the RPM is high but your car speed doesn’t match up. A failing clutch may be the problem.

Car vibrates

When you start moving the car on gear one and it vibrates before moving smoothly, the clutch may be the culprit. The car could also vibrate if some parts of the engine mount is loose or broken. The engine mount is what holds the car engine in place.

The clutch pedal is not like before.

If the clutch pedal feels too soft, too hard, or spongy when pressed this is a sign your clutch system needs to be serviced.

How to calculate how much fuel your car consumes per kilometer

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To know how much fuel your car consumes per kilometer, follow these steps.

1. Keep driving your car until the fuel level reaches reserve or fuel warning light starts blinking.

2 . Immediately get to the nearest filling station and fill up your car fuel tank. Note the amount of fuel (in liters) that was required to fill your tank from the fuel dispensing machine.

3. On your car dashboard set trip distance to zero from the trip meter, or write down the distance (in Km) covered by your car up to the point when you filled your fuel tank, from the odometer

4. Drive your car until fuel reaches reserve again.

5. At that point read the amount of distance covered by your car from the trip meter on your dashboard. Alternatively, read distance covered by car up to that point from the odometer and deduct from distance covered when you filled up tank at filling station.

6. Next divide the number of liters consumed (what was recorded at the filling station) by amount of distance covered.

For example, let’s say the amount of liters that filled up your car tank at the filling station was 35 liters, and at the time fuel depleted to reserve, you had covered a distance of 250Km driving, then amount of fuel consumed per kilometer can be calculated as follows;

35liters/250Km = 0.14liters/ Km

Or ,the distance covered per liter is 250km/35liters = 7.142Km per liter