While it can be a pretty straightforward process to diagnose an engine that’s running rich, accurately diagnosing an engine that’s running lean can be a little trickier. But just because it’s harder to spot the culprit doesn’t make it any less severe. Failure to address a lean running engine can lead to unrepairable engine damage … Read more
You’re thrumming along a long country road, of course, and you can’t really tell what’s going on in your engine bay. That’s because everything is so quiet nowadays. But you do see a check engine light that wasn’t there before or maybe you feel a strange bumping sound upon acceleration. Maybe your mileage has gone … Read more
Gasoline and diesel automobile engines are dependent on a moderately complex fuel delivery system. This system brings fuel to the engine at the precise flow and pressure to enable proper operation. For most modern cars, one or more fuel pumps are the heart of this arrangement. When one of these pumps fails to perform properly, … Read more
Your vehicle’s hydraulic valve lifters, or hydraulic tappets, are small cylinders right beside each of your engine’s valves. It ensures your vehicle runs efficiently and silently. Over time, the lifter mechanism will wear out (especially with dirty oil or not enough of it), leading to a lifter tick or tapping sound. If you ignore this … Read more
Every car engine has a combustion chamber, and this chamber requires air to generate adequate power to run your car engine. However, the air flowing through the engine must be clean and uncontaminated. Here is where an air filter becomes critical as it keeps your engine free from contaminated air. Due to its central function, … Read more
In our previous article, we went over what an engine misfire is and the common symptoms of an engine misfire. So how do you determine what is causing the engine to misfire in the first place? The combustion engine is relatively complicated as it has a lot of parts that need to work in the … Read more
Since the fuel tank constantly attracts dust, dirt, and debris over time, the collected particles can cause harm to the fuel filter and even risk the fuel pump as well. Eventually, all these contaminants will begin to clog the fuel filter and it will not work effectively to allow enough fuel to pass through to … Read more
It can be difficult to diagnose the reason for an engine misfire, but context gives major clues. Misfires are often intermittent and will sometimes only manifest with a specific type of fuel, environment, or engine load (how deep you’re into the gas pedal). Usually the vehicle can continue running with a misfire in one cylinder, … Read more
The components of an engine have gaskets that are placed between them before they’re assembled. These gaskets act as a seal between the components so they can do their jobs properly. You’ll find gaskets are usually made out of metal, rubber, paper, or all three combined together. Out of all the gaskets in the engine, … Read more
Your car is made up of several moving parts, such as the alternator, water pump, power steering pump, and AC compressor. For your vehicle to function correctly, these parts all need to work in unison. The serpentine or accessory drive belt connects to your power steering pump, alternator, air conditioning, and sometimes, the water pump. … Read more