Lube job
The lubrication system inside your car's engine is highly complex and essential to the smooth running of the internal workings. Low oil levels or bad oil will severely impact the engine's ability to run at optimum efficiency.
Related: Maintenance you can do yourself: How to change the oil
A car will naturally use oil over a period of time as the residual oil on the engines' cylinder walls burns off, and it is always a good idea to timeously check your car's oil. Most cars will have an oil dipstick in the engine bay that you can use to check the oil level and top up if need be. Some newer luxury models have an electronic dipstick that is accessible through the car's onboard computer and the system does the check for you every so many 100 km's and gives you a warning when the oil needs to be topped off.
Top it off
When a manual or automatic check reveals a low oil level it is best to top it off with a quart or two depending on the indicated level or the lack of lubrication will result in premature engine wear or catastrophic failure. If your car is due for a service then it is advisable to have the oil changed as a matter of course.
Jiffy Lube
An oil change is, generally speaking, a simple straightforward exercise and should be done according to the service schedule regardless of oil levels. Simply adding new oil to the old oil does not work as the new oil dilutes with the old and loses its lubricating abilities. Oil should be replaced at regular intervals as it becomes contaminated with carbon and ultra-fine metal from inside the engine over time. It is also highly advised to replace the oil filter at the same time
