Has the price of gasoline hurt your pocket? Is this not due to the price increase but to the fact that your car burns more than it used to?
As a car gets older, it tends to make everything worse. Of course, a poorly maintained car is more likely to break down faster. The same is true with fuel consumption. In fact, drivers who follow the service schedule to the letter are likely to experience this problem later than others. But how do you make your car burn like it used to?
It started by dealing with major issues that make your car less fuel-efficient, like the following:
- Clogged or damaged injectors: This is the most common reason! Fuel injectors are the nozzles that spray fuel into each cylinder of the engine. Their spray pattern must be very precise to properly mix with the air and burn inside the engine. When an injector becomes dirty or clogged, it can spray fuel inefficiently, either by pouring more or less. This can quickly reduce engine performance and fuel economy. In most cases, the injectors can be cleaned. Other times, they will need to be replaced if internal damage is causing a poor spray pattern.
- An old air filter: If your engine’s air filter is dirty or clogged, your engine will not be able to “breathe,” causing it (especially older engines) to burn more fuel to keep up with the same speed. Conversely, newer engines may have lower performance due to a clogged air filter. This problem is especially common in older, carburetor-based cars. Engine air filters should be replaced about every 15,000 to 30,000 miles, but check your owner’s manual to be sure or check it at your next oil change.
- Damaged sensor lambda: While older cars use carburetors to ensure the engine gets the right air-fuel ratio for combustion, all newer cars (since 1996) use a so-called lambda sensor, which measures how rich or lean the exhaust gasses coming out are from your engine and sends a message to the car’s computer to adjust how much fuel goes into the engine. So if this sensor is dirty or not working, it can lead to incorrect readings that cause your engine to burn too much fuel, reducing performance by up to 40%.
- Clogged fuel filter: Fuel filters prevent gasoline contaminants from reaching the engine parts, where they can damage injectors and other important parts. A clogged fuel filter can also reduce fuel pressure and cause the engine to run poorly. So it should be replaced at regular intervals. Especially for older cars, the change should be done about every two years.
- Malfunctioning ignition system: The ignition system includes coils, spark plugs, and wires that are responsible for burning the air-fuel mixture. If any of these parts malfunction, it will affect the operation of the engine.
- Poor quality or old oil: The right engine oil is essential to maintain and lubricate the engine. Regular oil changes, which the manufacturer naturally advises, are the best course of action.
- Incorrect tire pressure: Driving with tires that have the wrong pressure is not only dangerous but also unprofitable for the pocket and the environment since the car consumes extra fuel and consequently significantly burdens the atmosphere with CO2 emissions. You will have to pay for new tires much sooner if the tire is 20% underinflated, which reduces its mileage by about 30%. That’s why you shouldn’t be complacent if you put the right pressure on the tires once. It is necessary to constantly check the tire pressure at a rate of at least once every 15 days and definitely before every trip.
- Worn brakes: First of all, it is dangerous to drive with worn brakes! Secondly, they contribute to the increase in consumption! How: A worn caliper or worn pads create resistance to your vehicle’s forward motion. This results in your engine constantly fighting the brakes just to get moving, making it work harder.
- Poor wheel alignment
If your car “goes away” when you let go of the steering wheel, it definitely needs an alignment. The most typical “symptom” is when your car “leaves” in one direction or the other as soon as you let go of the steering wheel. In addition to the damage it causes to the tires, bad alignment also causes an increase in fuel consumption since your car will need to burn more than it should in order to move properly.
Here is the reason why your engine “burns” more.
- You have blocked or damaged injectors
- The lambda sensor is damaged
- Your tires have the wrong pressure
- The wheels are misaligned
Once you resolve the issues above, your car will not consume more fuel.