Useful Tips For Maintaining Your Fuel Injectors
Are you burning through tanks of gas faster than you used to? Finding it harder to speed up to get around the nice old lady going 35mph on the highway? Having issues with your engine sputtering when you slow down? When was the last time you had your fuel injectors looked at? Keeping your fuel injection system well-maintained is one of the keys to better fuel performance for your car and a longer life for your engine.
Why Do Fuel Injectors Matter?
Your car’s fuel injection system consists of two primary parts: the fuel injectors and the fuel pump. The fuel pump sends pressurized fuel from the gas tank to the car’s engine bay. The injectors then distribute the fuel to different cylinders within the engine as a fine spray. Your spark plugs ignite the spray from the injectors, powering your car.
Computers control modern fuel injection systems, replacing the manual carburetors found in most cars built before 1990. Carburetors required time to warm-up before the car was ready to drive. Modern systems improve upon this performance by allowing cars to start up right away without needing this warm-up period, even in cold weather.
Fuel injection systems also improve the fuel efficiency of your car. A well-maintained system limits the amount of gas needed to power the car, giving you better mileage for every tank of gas. They also make less noise than old carburetor-powered engines and lead to less engine maintenance as your car parts last longer in this type of system.
Fuel Injection Maintenance
There are two primary ways to clean and maintain fuel injection systems:
On-Car Cleaning
These are a less-intensive way of cleaning injection systems. Nothing is taken apart or removed; instead, cleaners are introduced to remove contaminants from the system.
Method 1: Additives get poured directly into the fuel tank. They flow through the fuel system, eventually reaching the injectors and working to remove impurities.
Method 2: A pressurized canister of injector cleaner gets attached to the car’s fuel rail. The engine runs off of the cleaner instead of the fuel, giving the injectors a more thorough cleaning.
Off-Car Cleaning
The injectors get removed from your car entirely and cleaned with special ultrasonic tools. They’re then tested to ensure that the flow rate and spray pattern are within acceptable limits. Technicians also check for possible leaks before putting the injectors back into your car.
Fuel Injector Wear And Tear
You suck in dirt and other contaminants every time you drive your car. Over time, those contaminants get into your engine. When too much of it gets pulled into your injector and fuel pump, your car begins experiencing problems including:
A lack of acceleration when you step on your gas pedal
You start burning through gas faster every time you fill up
There’s a noticeable unevenness when you let your engine idle
Continued failure to maintain your car’s fuel injection system often leads to major damage to your engine, costing you a lot of money in repairs.
Check Your Fuel Injectors Today at Ace Auto in West Jordan, Utah
Think you might have an issue with your car’s fuel injection system? Contact Ace Auto in West Jordan, Utah today and schedule a review of your injection system. We’ll make sure your engine runs as efficiently as possible. Give our master mechanics a call today at 801-447-1693 for a free quote on your next service!