Most of the small businesses in Edmonton operate with small profit margins, limited vehicles, and compact schedules. Fleet is the backbone of the operations of most of these businesses, no matter whether you are dealing in a contracting company, a delivery service, or a transportation-based business. One out-of-service vehicle can damage the goodwill of your business and cause you revenue loss.
Therefore, keeping the fleet health intact has to be one of your goals while running any business. You can keep your vehicles road-ready simply by using regular fleet oil change services. This helps prevent major breakdowns and keeps your vehicles ready to run the show.
In this article, we will discuss how small businesses can cut costs and minimize downtime with regular oil changes in Edmonton.
How Fleet Downtime Affects Businesses?
Fleet downtime leaves an immediate and lasting impact on businesses. When one of your vehicles goes out of service, you have to bear with the ripple effect that spreads across your entire business operation. There will be delays in product or service deliveries, an increase in operational costs, and a loss of trust from your customers.
An unfunctional vehicle can cause huge losses in revenues for small businesses. Especially, the businesses that heavily rely on transportation must look into the functionality of their fleet to ensure customer satisfaction. Without doing so, the deliveries can be delayed beyond the said time or altogether missed, to worsen the scenario. Every time your vehicle is off the road, it will cause you to lose an opportunity to make income.
In addition to that, you will have increased sunk costs when your staff, drivers, and technicians are waiting for the vehicle to get fixed. Paying for unproductive hours will cause an increase in your operational cost. As a result, your profit margins will surely come down.
Moreover, one disabled vehicle can throw off the entire logistics schedule of your company. Especially the businesses with limited backup options will have to compromise on daily business operations. As a result, you will need to deal with unhappy customers and logistical headaches. That’s why consistent, preventive maintenance like regular oil changes is essential for businesses.
How Regular Fleet Oil Changes Reduce Downtime?
Prevention is always affordable than repair. Regular fleet oil change helps reduce downtime as you can spot any technical issues well before the time and fix them before they get worse. Regular oil changes keep your vehicles in optimal condition due to which you can avoid surprise malfunctioning and sudden breakdowns. It is always cost-effective to change oil regularly – before it gets too dirty and damages other components of the vehicle. In Edmonton winters, the cold oil gets way thicker and makes it harder for the vehicle to start. Regular oil change helps maintain the consistency of engine oil in winter and help with cold starts.
Fresh oil makes it easier for the engine to operate and also reduces fuel consumption. It also improves fuel efficiency by up to 4%. It helps the engine run smoother and so reduces vehicle downtime —a major cost saver for businesses managing multiple vehicles.
How Regular Fleet Oil Changes Save You Money?
When you are running a small business, you get to save money for reinvestment. Regular fleet oil changes help you save money by maintaining the engine quality of your vehicle. You can avoid the bills of costly breakdowns and extend the life of your vehicles, along with improving fuel efficiency. When you are regularly changing fleet oil, you don’t need to worry about spending thousands of dollars on major engine overhauling or engine replacements. Moreover, your vehicle stays on the road when you are changing fleet oil at regular intervals, which means you are generating and saving revenue.
You can directly avoid the average cost of $3,000–$10,000 that you may need to spend on engine repair or replacement. When your vehicles get fresh engine oil, you may also save you the cost of labor and emergency towing, around $200–$1,000.
You can also save the money that a functional vehicle saves by
By changing the fleet oil, you can avoid the cost of rescheduling, lost contracts, and customer dissatisfaction. You may ditch the downtime that may cause you huge revenue loss.
How Can Regular Fleet Oil Changes Help Reduce Breakdowns?
Frequent change of fleet oil is essential to maintain the functionality of your vehicle in a number of ways. You must consider regular lubrication to prevent friction when your vehicle is on the road for longer hours. It helps in taking the heat away from the engine, along with saving the internal components from wear and tear. Oil works as a barrier and serves well in keeping your vehicle functional. However, over time, it degrades and thickens with dirt. The same oil now causes friction, overheating, and increased wear and tear. This is when you need preventive maintenance — an oil change service to keep your vehicle functional.
Fresh and clean engine oil keeps the internal parts of the engine moving smoothly with the least resistance. It protects the key components from damage. It also helps spot issues earlier and prevent your vehicle from expensive emergency fixes. You can easily avoid blown head gaskets, turbocharger damage, and engine seizure. Ultimately, frequent fleet oil change helps you avoid breakdowns and contribute to the smooth running of your small and large businesses.
The Edmonton Factor: Why Local Conditions Demand Frequent Oil Changes?
Edmonton’s unique climate conditions make regular oil changes necessary for fleet vehicles. This region has an extreme seasonal shift, and urban driving patterns also put extra stress on engines. Due to this, the engine oil degrades faster than usual. There are several reasons why Edmonton’s weather requires more frequent oil changes.
Extreme and Extended Cold Weather Conditions
You will need a regular fleet oil change in Edmonton during winter. This is so because the temperature goes well below the point of freezing. As a result, the engine oil thickens, and it becomes harder to circulate during startup. Due to this, the oil stops greasing properly, causing more friction between the engine components. When lubrication is not properly done, it puts more pressure on the engines when they start, and so may cause damage in the long run.
Summer Heat
The fleet oil change is also necessary on a regular basis, as these vehicles are on the roads for longer hours during summer. During the summer season, when the temperature is high, it increases the oxidation of oil. Then the engine oil loses its protective qualities. As a result, the engine overheats and its fuel efficiency also comes down.
Dust and Road Salt
The roads of Edmonton are often coated with dust, salt, and debris — especially the construction routes. The engine oil gets thicker and needs to be changed sooner. These contaminants can easily enter the engine system to clog the filters. If not addressed through regular oil and filter changes, this can lead to abrasive wear inside the engine.
Excessive Urban Traffic
Many small businesses in Edmonton are located primarily within the city. This is somewhere where stoplights, short trips, and frequent idling are the norm. This traffic pattern of start-stop causes engines to generate more heat and use more oil. Short trips also prevent the engine from reaching optimal operating temperatures, which means contaminants stay in the oil longer.
Due to these Edmonton-specific reasons, the fleet owners and operators cannot ignore or postpone oil changes. Make sure that your oil change schedule matches the city’s demanding conditions. Partnering with a reliable local service provider like Lube FX helps protect your fleet, minimize repairs, and keep your business running.
Concluding Thoughts
Regular fleet oil changes are crucial for the durability of the moving assets. You can avoid the risk of costly engine replacements and repairs while reducing the downtime of your fleet through this. It is one of the best investments you can ever make to save your time and money while boosting the fuel efficiency of your vehicles. It surely helps you in reducing the depreciation cost of your assets that are moving on the roads. Trust Lube FX to keep your fleet moving and your business growing. Book your fleet service today. Call (780) 457-7587 or visit lubefx.com.