Spark plugs provide the spark that ignites the fuel-air mixture in the cylinders. One of these plugs is screwed into the top of each cylinder. Like all other engine components, they will eventually wear out and need replacement. As your Toyota dealer, we’d like you to know a few signs that you may need to visit us for new plugs.
3 Signs You Need New Spark Plugs from Your Toyota Dealer
Decreased Fuel Economy
Every driver knows how frequently they usually need to visit the gas station. If you find that you have to head to the pump more frequently than you used to, you could have worn plugs. Let’s take a brief look at how combustion works to understand why this happens.
The fuel-air mixture in a cylinder is pushed into the combustion chamber at the top of the cylinder and then ignited by the plug at the high point of compression. A healthy plug ignites the mixture in a carefully timed series of explosions, which consume most of the mixture. A worn plug, in comparison, produces an irregular series of explosions, and most of the fuel won’t burn. This fuel is wasted and dumped into the exhaust pipe, increasing fuel consumption.
Misfiring
Misfiring is a poor ignition of the fuel-air mixture in the combustion chamber. If it happens, you’ll usually feel a shudder pass through your Toyota. You may also feel a temporary drop in engine power and a slight decrease in speed. Other potential signs of a misfire are banging or popping sounds from the exhaust.
As we saw above, a worn plug causes an irregular series of explosions in its cylinder. These irregular explosions produce poor combustion, and this disrupts your engine performance. If your engine continues to misfire, it can cause damage to the cylinder and the piston. We’ll check your plugs and replace any worn or damaged ones.
Check Engine Light
The check engine light illuminates in response to any issue that affects engine performance. Your engine contains a vast number of sensors, and these sensors are connected to every important component. If a sensor detects a problem, it will inform your computer. The computer logs the problem with an error code and then illuminates the check engine light as a warning that something is wrong.
Decreased engine performance and increased fuel usage caused by worn plugs will cause the engine light to switch on. Our technicians will connect your computer to our diagnostic computer to read the error codes to determine the fault. We’ll then check each plug and replace them as necessary.
Installing new plugs will immediately improve your engine performance and prevent potential engine damage. Contact our service department today at Priority Toyota Chesapeake in Chesapeake, VA.
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