Filters are an important part of any vehicle and serve a number of extremely important purposes. Your vehicle uses a number of filters to keep everything running smoothly and ensure a long life for major components. Whether the filters are acting on air or liquids they function in the same way: removing unwanted impurities and particles that would otherwise find their way into your engine and/or lungs. In this article we’ll examine each of your vehicle’s filters, explain what they do and take a look at what can happen if they aren’t swapped out for new ones after long periods of time.

Cabin Air Filters

Your vehicle’s cabin air filter is an essential part of its heating, ventilation and air conditioning system. Air drawn in from outside the vehicle passed through the filter where it is stripped of contaminants and irritants like dust, pollen and exhaust gases. A properly functioning filtration system helps you breathe easier inside your vehicle and keeps it clean by filtrating out dirt that would otherwise be deposited inside the cabin.

Leaving it left unchanged for too long can put unnecessary strain on the ventilation system by forcing it to work harder. This also reduces your vehicle’s horsepower as more of its energy must be diverted to operating the motor. The motor itself can burn out after a long period of time causing hazards from extreme summer heat and condensation build-up during cooler months.

Engine Air Filter

Much like the cabin air-filter cleans the air you breathe, a vehicle’s engine air filter removes unwanted particles from the air used in combustion. Internal combustion engines are powered by a precisely measured ratio of air and fuel vapour. Engine filtration systems keep harmful particles like dust and other airborne debris from entering your engine’s combustion chambers.

If they are dirty or clogged it causes your engine to have to work harder and can alter the air/fuel ratio in the combustion chamber. An imbalanced air/fuel ratio can cause problems for spark plugs and cause rough running and stalling. Smoke coming from the exhaust pipe can also be a sign of a faulty engine air filter. Replacing a dirty engine air filter allows your engine to breathe freely again, increase horsepower and improve acceleration.

Fuel Filter

Your vehicle’s fuel filter ensures that no foreign particles make their way through the engine’s fuel system. This is especially important in modern vehicles which are equipped with fuel injectors. These injector nozzles precisely vaporise fuel and are designed with miniscule clearances meaning that any dirt or debris that makes its way into them can cause serious problems. Keeping fuel filters clean improves both power output and fuel economy.

Clogged injectors prevent fuel from being vaporised and can cause the engine to run rich with more fuel delivered to the cylinders than can be burned. This increases fuel consumption and can lead to poor running, trouble starting and stalling. Some newer vehicles feature a built-in filter of sorts located within the fuel tank.

Engine Oil Filter

Your engine relies on its oil system to keep its many moving parts lubricated and cool enough to operate within their designed tolerances. Small metal particles can become dislodged from the engine’s surfaces over hundreds of thousands of kilometres of running and can cause damage if they aren’t removed. The engine’s oil carries this debris safely away and delivers it to the oil filter where it’s captured.

Going without changing your vehicle’s engine oil and oil filter for too long can cause premature engine wear leading to expensive and time-consuming repairs where it is sometimes necessary to disassemble major parts of the engine to replace scored and damaged rotating and moving parts.

Your vehicle’s filters perform very simple tasks in concept but can really help to maintain the health of your ride. Regularly replacing filters is an inexpensive way to keep your vehicle happy and healthy. Crompton Brothers Automotive has all the filters and expertise your vehicle requires. Give us a call at (604) 540-0304 and set up an appointment today.

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