Breakdown of El calor extremo desgasta las piezas más de lo que crees.
de
from / of
el calor
the heat
que
that / than
más
more
Questions & Answers about El calor extremo desgasta las piezas más de lo que crees.
Why do we use más de lo que here instead of just más que?
When making a comparison with a conjugated verb (like crees), Spanish uses de lo que instead of just que. If you were comparing two nouns, you'd use que (for example, más calor que frío). Because we are comparing the amount of wear and tear to the concept of "what you think," we need de lo que.
Is the verb desgastar related to gastar?
How would the verb change if I added probablemente to the beginning of the sentence?
It depends on your level of certainty! If you use the indicative (Probablemente el calor extremo desgasta...), it implies you are fairly confident this is what's actually happening. If you use the subjunctive (Probablemente el calor extremo desgaste...), it signals more doubt, framing it as a hypothesis rather than a near-certain fact.
Does piezas just mean "pieces"?
It can, but in mechanical, electronic, or technical contexts like this one, piezas is the standard word for "parts" (as in the moving parts of a machine, vehicle, or engine).