A vehicle’s engine has two key parts, that is the engine block which is also known as the lower section and is the heaviest, and the detachable cylinder head which contains the valve-controlled passages through which the air-to-fuel mixture comes through the cylinder. This vehicle component can sometimes be blown up and exhibit the signs of a blown engine. Your vehicle can’t probably do without this single most important part of the machinery, the engine. The engine is the heartbeat …
The OBD-II – aka ‘onboard diagnostics’ – function in your car is a godsend for diagnosing, tracking down, and troubleshooting car problems. However, what if the OBD port isn’t working, how do you test it? Testing whether or not the OBD port in your car is working or otherwise can be a bit challenging, but it’s certainly not impossible. A visual inspection of the connector is a good first step, before going deeper. If you can’t spot any problems visually, …
Your car’s MAF (mass airflow) sensor is an important part of any vehicle, as it determines both the volume and the density of air entering the engine. However, what should the MAF sensor read when it’s idle? In practice, there’s no one-size-fits-all reading, as your MAF sensor readings at idle can vary depending on the make and model of the car. Moreover, there are other factors to consider, like the size of your engine. For example, a 3.0-liter engine might …
When performing an oil change, one of the things that most people seem to forget is properly tightening the oil drain plug or bolt. So then, what is the right and ideal torque spec for your car’s oil drain plug? Unfortunately, there’s no one-size-fits-all answer when it comes to torque specs for your oil drain plug or bolt. In practice, the precise torque specs can vary significantly from one car to another, so it’ll differ. On average, most regular passenger …
Winter can be tough on a lot of cars, and especially if you’ve been through as much snow as I have. One of the most pressing issues that I’ve faced is ice in my car’s intake, so how to de-ice the air intake system? Given that the air intake feeds much-needed air for your engine to combust, any sort of ice (as well as any blockage in general) could lead to reduced engine performance and even potential long-term damage. Thankfully, …
Even after spending years working on cars and automotive electrics, it continues to confound me just how fragile fuse prongs are. So, if your fuse prong has broken off, how can you remove it from your car? Bear in mind that if left unchecked, a broken fuse prong could lead to electrical malfunctions or even short circuits. Thankfully, needle-nose pliers can easily grip the broken prong, enabling careful extraction. All you need to do is gently grip the broken fuse …
The exhaust manifold is the first part of any vehicle’s exhaust system. Tasked with the important duty of collecting gases from numerous cylinders into a single pipe, an exhaust manifold is usually a stainless steel or cast unit. It primarily delivers the exhaust gases to the exhaust pipe. Since the job it does is so important, a cracked exhaust manifold repair is somewhat pricey. It’s not only the price of repairing the cracked bit but there’s also the high labor …
Have you ever driven your car and then suddenly you’re not getting any power? And then your check engine light suddenly turns on? That means your car is in limp mode. A check engine light denotes that there’s something wrong with your car’s powertrain. It could be the engine, the gearbox, or the exhaust system. If this happened to you recently, don’t worry. We’ll discuss the limp mode in this post, from what it is, why it happens, and how …
Your car has a lot of sensors that feed information to the computer to keep it running smoothly. One such sensor you might not know of is the O2 or oxygen sensor. This is a sensor that sits in your exhaust system and monitors the level of oxygen inside your car’s exhaust gases. For such an important component, it’s not a surprise then that the O2 sensor cost isn’t inexpensive. As with any other car part, the O2 sensor can …
What Is A MAF Sensor? The Benefits Of Installing Common Problems And How To Fix Them Understanding The Different Types Diagnosing Issues How To Clean And Test What is a MAF Sensor and How Does it Work? A Mass Air Flow (MAF) sensor is an important component of a vehicle’s engine management system. It measures the amount of air entering the engine and sends this information to the Engine Control Unit (ECU). The ECU then uses this data to adjust …