Having trouble with your fuel system? Bring your minivan into Dr J’s Auto Clinic for a check up.

4201San Mateo N E
Albuquerque, NM 87110
505.341.4747

In today’s Dr J’s Auto Clinic auto post, we’re talking about fuel system cleaning. The first thing to know is how critical it is to have a clean fuel system. Albuquerque auto owners need fuel to go, and the cleaner the fuel system, the more efficiently the fuel will burn. That means more power and better fuel economy.

A clean fuel system saves money for Albuquerque auto owners at NM gas stations. We guess you could say, it all starts and ends at the pump. One of the most important things Albuquerque auto owners can do to keep their minivan fuel system clean is to buy good quality gas. Major brands have detergents that keep gum and varnish from rapidly building up in the fuel system.

So buying cheaper gas in NM can actually be more pricey for Albuquerque motorists in the long run. Now, most cars on NM freeways are more than five or six years old. That means they’ve had time for some dirt and rust to start accumulating in the fuel tank. This junk needs to be filtered out of the fuel before it hits your minivan engine. That’s the fuel filter’s job.

When the fuel filter is clogged, the dirty fuel will bypass the filter and go on up to the engine where it can clog fuel injectors and get into the cylinders. That could be harmful. So Albuquerque drivers should have their fuel filter changed when recommended. Check your owner’s manual or ask your knowledgeable Dr J’s Auto Clinic service advisor if your fuel filter is due for replacement.

The fuel then goes up into the throttle body. This is another area where varnish and gum can accumulate. A professional fuel system cleaning at Dr J’s Auto Clinic in Albuquerque will use a combination of special cleaning chemicals and old fashioned swabbing to clean out the throttle body. Now, the fuel injectors are the last stop in the fuel delivery system.

It’s essential for Albuquerque car owners to keep those fuel injectors clean. The fuel injectors need to deliver a precise amount of fuel, at exactly the right time, in a particular spray pattern. They just can’t do that if they’re dirty. Dirty fuel injectors really rob power and hurt fuel economy.

It is important for the fuel system proper, but there are a couple other things that will help keep your minivan engine clean as well. Of course, air is mixed with the fuel before it’s burned. Dirty air means dirt gets into your engine, so you need to replace your engine air filter when it’s dirty.

The PCV value routes unburned fuel that escapes into the lower engine back up into the intake system to be burned. A sticky PCV valve needs to be replaced at Dr J’s Auto Clinic to make sure that system is working properly for Albuquerque drivers and the breather filter needs to be replaced if it’s dirty as well.

Do all these things and your minivan engine’s air and fuel will be as clean as possible. You’ll get much better fuel efficiency and better power.