by Garrett McKinnon
VehicleMD Staff Writer
Originally published in Winter 2009 Issue

Cold mornings. Is there anything worse? You’re warm and cozy in your bed when the alarm clock beckons, forcing you into the chill of another winter day.

Believe it or not, your car hates cold mornings, too. Like most liquids, the motor oil in your car thickens as the temperature drops. Imagine leaving a bottle of honey in your refrigerator overnight and then trying to pour it. Motor oil doesn’t get that thick, but especially on very cold mornings it does take a while to warm up and begin flowing as it should.

Unfortunately, during that brief interval your car’s engine is being assailed by friction. Without that protective layer of motor oil, the insides of your car’s engine are essentially rubbing against one another. The guys and gals who study such things tell us that as much as 80 percent of the wear your engine will experience will occur as a direct result of cold starts.

Thankfully, there is a solution that can help protect your engine on cold winter mornings (or even afternoons when your car has been sitting outside in the cold all day waiting for you to get off work). That solution? Synthetic motor oil.

Engineers create synthetic motor oil by carefully manipulating, or synthesizing, the molecules in a base oil. When blended with a precise mixture of chemical additives, this synthetic motor oil provides superior mechanical and chemical properties compared to conventional motor oil. In other words, it simply works better.

One of the biggest benefits of synthetic motor oil is its ability to flow at low temperatures. Compared with conventional motor oil, synthetic can start flowing and reach/protect critical areas of your car’s engine much quicker in cold temperatures.

“Synthetic motor oil has superior cold temperature performance,” said Timothy Miranda, a senior engineer with BP Lubricants. “It lets the engine crank easily, and the oil flows quickly to critical parts within the engine.”

This reduces wear, protecting your engine and extending its life. Plus, by allowing easier engine cranking, synthetic motor oil eases the burden on your car’s battery during the cold winter season.

Your car set you back a big chunk of change. Why wouldn’t you spend a little bit more to give it the best protection possible—especially during the winter, when cold temperatures put additional stress on your car’s engine?