The type of oil you should put in your car depends on the manufacturers recommendation, which can be found in the owners manual or maintenance guide. The manual will provide the necessary details on the proper oil viscosity grade (e.g. SAE 0W-20, SAE 5W-20, SAE 5W-30 or other) as well as the performance specification. The minimum type of engine oil your car requires is specified in the maintenance guide, which you should always follow. For naturally aspirated cars, it’s often conventional engine oil that’s the minimum standard. However, if you’d like extra protection for your engine, you can upgrade to semi-synthetic or full synthetic engine oil.

When selecting an engine oil, the most important thing to consider is the oil’s viscosity (usually written in a format like 5W-30) . Viscosity is an oil’s ability to flow at different temperatures. The two most common viscosities are SAE 5W-30 and SAE 10W-30. The lower the number, the thinner the oil.

Its best to avoid mixing car oil types to maintain the maximum benefits of the better oil formulation. If you cant find the exact engine oil you need, choose an oil from the same manufacturer as your current car’s oil. If thats not possible, then pick one with the same API Donut certification. Secondly, select a product with similar chemical and performance characteristics to what’s in your vehicle’s engine.

In summary, to determine the type of oil to put in your car, you should check the owners manual or maintenance guide for the manufacturers recommendation, which will specify the proper oil viscosity grade and performance specification.