Oil in your car is one of the most important liquids to have in your vehicle. Oil is meant to lubricate the moving pieces in your engine. This allows the moving parts to move past each other without grinding.

Now what happens if you don’t have any oil in your car? Needless to say it will have some negative effects, but what exactly can happen?

No Oil in Car Symptoms

There are many different things that could show that there is low oil. These symptoms include:

• Your oil pressure warning light will turn on
• Burning Oil Smell
• Weaker performance
• Strange Noises

A very common question that we get is “Can no oil cause a car to overheat?”, and the answer to this is yes. This is caused by a massive increase in friction due to loss of lubrication. 

What Happens When You Have No Oil in Your Car?

One of the main things that will happen is that your engine will fail. Your engine lives off of oil in order to run properly. If it doesn’t have that, there is no way that your engine will be able to run. 

If your engine does run while it is low, or even has no oil, you have the possibility of damaging, and possibly ruining your vehicle’s engine. 

How to Check Oil in My Car

It is wise to check the oil in your car at least once a month. Even if you go to a mechanic to professionally change the oil, the date they give you for more is a suggestion. The oil in your car is very easy to check, and takes less than 5 minutes.

Under your hood, there should be a section on your engine where you can find your engine oil “dipstick”. This is a long metal stick that is in your oil tank,which helps you to see how much oil is in your tank. 

It is important that your vehicle is parked on a level surface when you check your levels. This way you get as accurate of a reading as possible.  It is also best to do this after the car engine has cooled down, so that you don’t have a burning hazard.

Grasp the dipstick and pull it from the engine. Wipe it down and place it back into the hole. Pull it out one more time and check where exactly the oil line begins. The dipstick will have a measure system located on it. 

How Much Oil Does My Car Need?

Each car is drastically different from the last, which is why this question is super tricky to answer. It is highly recommended that you go by what your owners manual states, but there is one other way to see how much oil your car takes.

By counting how many cylinders your vehicle has, you can determine the amount of oil that your vehicle needs. While this only gives you an estimated amount, it is important to at least know this.

• A 4 cylinder engine typically needs 4-5 quarts
• A 6 Cylinder engine needs 5-6 quarts
• An 8 cylinder engine takes 5-8 quarts

By at least knowing this trick, it is easy to see the range of how much oil you need in your vehicle. However, remember that this is only a recommendation, it is best to refer to your owner’s manual for this kind of information.  

How Often to Change Oil in My Car

It is recommended that you change your oil every 5,000 – 7,500 miles. This makes sure that your engine never runs out of oil. It also makes sure that your engine never runs on dirty or low oil. 

Blog By Brooke Lazar