WHAT ARE LUBRICANTS?

This video explains what lubricants are used for, the effect they have on your engine and the benefits they offer.

The metal parts of your engine suffer the effects of friction as they rub together. This generates heat and leads to premature wear. It's a bit like water-skiing. The buoyancy of the water helps you glide across the waves more easily. The same principle applies to a lubricant inside your engine. The lubricant helps reduce the effects of friction between the moving parts. As a result, they wear out more slowly and do not heat up. The oil reduces the amount of friction, which improves the performance of the engine and also reduces its fuel consumption. But that's not all. Your lubricant protects your engine against corrosion and acid attacks. It also helps reduce the temperature of your engine.

Finally, it removes any impurities that may accumulate over time (soot, dust and wear debris), which maintains the performance level of your engine.

Your lubricant is generally composed of 70% base oil and 30% additives.

The additives provide essential properties:

The antioxidant additives increase the oil's ability to resist high temperatures, which results in less frequent oil changes.

Other additives maintain the lubricity of the oil.

The detergent additives prevent the formation of deposits, which keeps the engine clean and maintains its performance level throughout its lifetime.

The anti-foaming additives prevent the oil from frothing and stop the oil pump from running dry.

The cold temperature additives help the lubricant remain fluid at low temperatures, allowing the engine to start more rapidly.

The anti-wear additives increase the longevity of your engine by creating a protective barrier on the surface of the parts.

The extreme-pressure additives increase resistance to wear and reduce friction.

Finally, the anti-corrosion additives prevent acid, water and air from attacking the different metal parts. This means that your engine remains younger for longer.

Now you know everything there is to know about the role of lubricants and their additives.