The check engine light coming on can be a scary prospect for most drivers, but what does it mean? It could be a tiny glitch or something serious like a failing part that might lead to a replacement engine. Either way, don’t ignore it. The best advice is to get it checked as soon as possible.
Your car’s engine mounts (motor mounts) are crucial in maintaining your engine’s stability. They hold the engine in place within your vehicle and prevent wear and tear from excessive movement and vibrations. They also ensure a smooth and comfortable ride by absorbing vibrations from the engine’s operation.
The cylinder head is a crucial component in any internal combustion engine. It’s responsible for optimising your vehicle’s performance, efficiency, and power output.
Housing the intake and exhaust valves, along with other critical components which control the intake and exhaust processes, the cylinder head maximises airflow to create the ideal air-fuel mixture for combustion.
Oxygen sensors are a crucial part of your vehicle’s engine. Each one checks and monitors the flow of air through the system, measuring the amount of oxygen coming into the engine and then leaving the engine by the exhaust. This data then goes on to regulate important fuel monitoring and delivery systems, MPG and timing functions and emissions release.
The intake manifold is one of the hardest working parts in the car. Whilst the part itself is quite sturdy and robust, one of the weaker points in the engine is the gasket seal that sits between the manifold and the cylinder head – which can often fail over time.
The charcoal canister is responsible for controlling the emission of fumes and vapour leaks from your vehicle’s fuel system. Many people don’t realise that the boiling point of petrol is comparatively low, and it is in a semi-gaseous state at room temperatures, which makes its fumes quite explosive.
You’re driving down the road, doing a good pace. Suddenly you change gear or put your foot down on the accelerator and the car doesn’t respond quite as expected. It’s now stuck in second gear. You can’t get any more than around 2,500 rpm out of the engine, and you’re crawling along the road. What just happened?
There are many potential causes of a misfiring engine. Some of the most well-known include issues with worn out spark plugs, a weak pressure through the fuel injectors, a vacuum leak, fatigued valve seals, or even issues with the power going to the engine coil. Whatever the reason behind a misfiring engine, you’ll want to get eyes on the problem as soon as possible, as it can rapidly get worse, causing associated systems and parts within your engine to suffer damage. What are some of the most common causes and symptoms of a misfiring engine?
Engines are the powerful centre of your car. You put your foot down, fuel surges into the cylinder heads and away you go. However, despite its importance, it’s all too easy to overlook problems with the engine, and turn a blind eye to some of the warning signs. Left unchecked, many of these can lead to a breakdown (leaving you stranded miles from home) or worse still, to a bank-balance breaking repair bill. In the most extreme cases engine problems can leave the car beyond viable repair – which then means you’ve got to go to the trouble of spending time finding and shelling out your hard-earned cash on a new vehicle.
To avoid the hassle and expense of experiencing engine failure, watch out for these minor and major warning signs to keep the costs of repair down.
Unless you are still a novice driver, you should not really be stalling your vehicle (save for the occasional moment where your motoring skills suddenly go on holiday). But if your car starts regularly stalling, then you may have an underlying problem with the air flow, fuel system or electrics.
And when stalls happen on the open road they can be downright dangerous. What’s worse is that they’re always unexpected; stalls come with no warning signs. The check engine light doesn’t illuminate on the dash board and no signs come out of the engine. You could even be motoring on quite dandily and then bang out of nowhere, the stall happens.
If you are experiencing stalls on a regular basis when you’re on the road, then you may want to get the car checked out.