can you put olive oil in your car

[DelLogan]

No, you should never put olive oil in your car's engine, transmission, or any other fluid system. It is not a substitute for proper automotive lubricants and can cause severe and costly damage. While it might seem like a slippery, readily available oil, its chemical properties are completely wrong for the harsh environment inside an engine. Using it, even in an emergency, is a significant risk.

The primary reason is viscosity. Engine oil is engineered to maintain a specific thickness, or viscosity, across a wide temperature range. It must flow easily when your engine is cold at startup and remain stable when the engine is extremely hot. Olive oil, however, is not thermally stable. It will break down and thin out excessively at high temperatures, leading to a loss of lubrication. This results in increased friction, overheating, and accelerated wear on critical components like pistons, camshafts, and bearings.

Furthermore, olive oil lacks the essential additive package found in modern engine oil. These additives prevent foaming, neutralize acidic byproducts of combustion, and keep sludge and varnish from forming. Olive oil will oxidize quickly, turning into a thick, gummy substance that can clog oil passages and cause the engine to seize.

Characteristic	Modern Engine Oil	Olive Oil	Why the Difference Matters
Viscosity Index	High (e.g., 150-200)	Low	Engine oil maintains consistent thickness; olive oil thins out drastically when hot.
Flash Point	~400°F (204°C)	~410°F (210°C)	While similar, olive oil's low viscosity at high heat makes this point moot.
Additive Package	Detergents, dispersants, anti-wear agents	None	Engine oil cleans and protects; olive oil creates sludge and deposits.
Oxidation Stability	High (specially formulated)	Low (polymerizes easily)	Olive oil will turn into a tar-like substance under engine heat and pressure.
API/SAE Certification	Meets strict industry standards (e.g., API SP)	None	Certifications guarantee performance; olive oil has no such testing.

If you are in a genuine emergency with no access to proper oil, adding a tiny amount of olive oil might be a last-ditch effort to get you a few miles to a service station, but it's a major gamble. The only safe and correct course of action is to use the grade of engine oil specified in your vehicle’s owner’s manual.

[DelGrace]

I get why someone might think of it—it's oil, right? But trust me, it's a terrible idea. Your car's engine is a precision instrument that gets incredibly hot. Olive oil isn't built for that heat. It would basically cook inside your engine, turning into a sticky mess that clogs everything up. You'd be looking at a huge repair bill for a new engine. Stick with the real stuff from the auto parts store.

[Rhett]

From a chemical standpoint, olive oil is a triglyceride, which is fundamentally unstable under the high-shear, high-temperature, and oxidative conditions of an internal combustion engine. It undergoes rapid thermal degradation and oxidation, leading to polymerization. This process forms lacquers and sludge that impede oil flow, leading to catastrophic lubrication failure. The absence of anti-wear additives like ZDDP further guarantees accelerated mechanical wear.

[DiLola]

Think of it like this: you wouldn't put vegetable oil in the hydraulic system of a bulldozer. Your car's engine is just as specialized. The oil has to lubricate, clean, and cool thousands of parts moving at high speed. Olive oil can't do any of those jobs correctly. It'll break down, leave gunk everywhere, and your engine will starve for lubrication. It's a shortcut that leads straight to the repair shop.

[GriffinMarie]

I remember an old-timer at the garage telling me about a car they towed in that was filled with cooking oil as a prank. The engine was completely seized—totaled. The oil passages were clogged with what looked like black tar. It's not just about being slippery; motor oil has detergents to keep the engine clean and special formulas to handle pressure. Olive oil just turns into varnish. It's one of the worst things you could put in your car.