With restrictions vanishing, more Mazda drivers are taking their cars out into the open air. But don’t forget that your vehicle needs air too, and a dirty car air filter deprives it of that. If you can’t remember when you last changed your filter, here are five tips to determine if it’s time to.
1. Your Owner’s Manual Calls for a Filter Replacement
A vehicle’s Owner’s Manual is one of the most valuable yet underutilized assets a vehicle owner has. Your manual contains a maintenance schedule for your Mazda that covers all the service intervals your car requires. Record your vehicle’s odometer miles in the manual’s service chart whenever you complete the respective service. Then your manual can help you keep track of when future services due.
2. Your Air Filter is Dirty
If you need to know the condition of your current filter, you can remove it and visually inspect it. Your car’s air filter is easily accessible, and in most cases, you can get to it with little or no tools.
Once you retrieve your air filter, hold it up to a bright light source. If you can see the light from the other side of the filter, your filter is still useable. However, if you see little or no light from the other side of the filter, it’s time to change it.
3. You’re Experiencing Poor Performance Issues
If your car filter gets significantly obstructed, you will feel, see, and hear it in your car’s performance. A clogged filter deprives your vehicle of the air it needs to make combustion in the engine. As a result, your vehicle will lose horsepower, acceleration and will run roughly.
The longer the filter remains in the car, the worse the symptoms will become. Eventually, the vehicle will struggle to accelerate and even start. In extreme cases, it will begin to backfire; you may see black smoke exit your tailpipe. If it gets bad enough, you may no longer be able to get your Mazda to start at all.
4. The Check Engine Light Illuminates
When your air filter gets sufficiently clogged, it will cause your check engine light to illuminate on your dashboard. There are no specific indicators for a dirty air filter, but an expert mechanic can quickly troubleshoot the problem. However, if you’re confident it’s the filter, and you know your way around the engine, you could always change it yourself.
5. You Smell Fuel Inside the Vehicle When the Engine Runs
The smell of fuel inside the vehicle results from the clogged air filter blocking air from the engine. This condition prevents all the gasoline from burning up in the combustion chamber of the motor. Instead, the unburned fuel passes through the exhaust system under the vehicle, which is what you smell.
When you want to get service done right on your Mazda, visit us at Flood Mazda. Our knowledgeable technicians will take care of all your maintenance needs, no matter how big or small.
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