Oil Change

Procrastination is an all-too-easy habit to fall into. Life moves at a fast pace, and staying on top of everything can be tricky. Unfortunately, putting off getting an oil change can have serious consequences for your engine. So, it's important that you work with a service center that not only knows what they're doing and will make sure to treat your vehicle with care and only use the right grade of motor oil but also makes it easy to schedule appointments and has competitive prices that won't scare you away from keeping up with your regular maintenance. If you're looking for a place like that, look no further.

Here at North Park Chevrolet, we make sure that our service center is not only filled with skilled technicians who know their way around an engine but also provides a smooth experience from start to finish for our valued customers. From scheduling an appointment to waiting for your vehicle to be ready to paying the bill, we do everything we can to make every step of getting an oil change as easy and painless as possible. We know that when we provide you with impeccable customer service, you'll be more likely to choose us again and again, so we can work together to make your time behind the wheel as good as it can be. Visit our service center at North Park Chevrolet if it's time for your next oil change.

Why Are Regular Oil Changes Important?

Motor oil serves an important function in your vehicle: it keeps your engine's moving parts lubricated so they don't wear down too quickly. Unfortunately, oil deteriorates over time, so it can't keep doing that job forever. Leave the same oil in your engine for too long, and you'll start to notice that you aren't going as far as you used to on a full tank of gas and that your vehicle isn't performing as well as it usually does. Those might seem like minor issues, but they're only precursors of what will happen if you run low on motor oil for an extended period of time. Eventually, important components of your engine will wear down or break, and you'll need to come in for expensive repairs rather than an affordable oil change.

This is a situation where an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Simply keep up with your recommended oil change schedule, and you'll be much less likely to experience major issues later on. Keeping up with regular oil changes is also a requirement for many warranty agreements, so you'll have the coverage you need if you do run into car troubles down the road.

How Often Should You Get an Oil Change?

This question is more complex than it might seem at first, but there are some basic rules of thumb. Generally, conventional motor oil needs to be changed every three months or every 3,000 miles (whichever comes first). But new cars generally use synthetic oil instead and only need to come in about every six months for 6,000 miles, whichever comes first. Of course, different engines in different vehicles have different recommendations. The best way to know what's right for your specific model is to check your owner's manual. If you've lost track of it, you can either find it online or give us a call, and we can help you out.

Even if you're not coming close to the mileage benchmarks, you should still get your oil changed at least every six months and should under no circumstances leave oil unchanged for more than a year. That's because oil becomes less effective as it ages, even if it isn't getting used. And if your vehicle has a system that lets you know it's time for an oil change, don't ignore it, even if it seems too soon. In the worst-case scenario, there might be a leak or another major issue that triggered the system. In the best-case scenario, the diagnostic system itself is putting out a false alarm, in which case you should still come in to get it reset or fixed so it can do its job properly going forward. Whether you have a system like that or not, you can always check your oil level the old-fashioned way with a dipstick to see when you're due for a change.

We Can Handle All Your Other Scheduled Maintenance During Your Oil Change

Hopefully, by now, we've shown you how important an oil change is in and of itself. But beyond that, you also get a lot out of coming into our service center regularly. You can think of it like going to the dentist, something that should also be done twice a year. You may be going in for a cleaning, but while you're there, your dentist will also check for cavities, plaque, and other issues. If you wait until these issues are causing you noticeable pain, they'll probably be timely and expensive to fix. But if you catch them when they're small, the solution is relatively cheap and easy.

That's how it works with your car, too. When you come in for an oil change, you can also get a multi-point inspection, where our technicians take a look at your tires, battery, brakes, windshield wipers, various fuel levels, filters, and more. That way, we can catch any issues when they're still easy and affordable to manage before they snowball into bigger problems or cause you to break down unexpectedly on the road. You'll also get a report letting you know which systems are good to go for the foreseeable future, which (if any) should be addressed right away, and which will need to be addressed sooner rather than later. This gives you time to plan ahead so you don't end up with unfortunate surprises ruining your monthly budget.

Recommended oil change intervals also line up with how often you should get your tires rotated. Tires have to withstand a lot of friction, so it's no surprise that they wear down over time. Rotating your tires regularly helps them last as long as possible by keeping that wear even across each tire's surface so that you can get the most out of your tires.
A close up of the oil light on a vehicle.

Make Sure Your Car Has the Fresh Oil It Needs

Taking proper care of your car, truck, van, or SUV doesn't have to be a hassle. When you partner with us here at North Park Chevrolet, it can be a walk in the park. We make it easy to schedule service online, so you can get in and out ASAP with an appointment that's timed to fit perfectly into your busy schedule. During your brief wait, you can sit back and relax in our comfortable lounge, which has complimentary Wi-Fi, a TV, and a children's play area for your convenience.

We make sure to offer competitive prices so that all of our customers can afford to keep their vehicles in good working order. You can look at our current slate of special offers and coupons here on our website to get even more savings on your next visit. And you can rest assured that you'll be getting your money's worth here thanks to our dedication to excellence. Our factory-trained technicians are experts in their field and they use factory-approved replacement parts and advanced diagnostic technologies that will keep your vehicle running as well as possible for as long as possible. Of course, we'll also make sure that the oil we put into your engine is high quality and exactly the right grade for your model. Reach out today and find out why we're proud to call ourselves the number one Chevy dealer in the San Antonio area.