Common Car Engine Problems

14 Common Car Engine Problems And Solution

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It is not wrong to call the engine of the car as The Heart of the machine. Producing the required energy by compressing and igniting the fuel and the air.

If the working of the engine gets disturbed, it affects the overall functioning of the car.

Crankshaft connects the accessories to the engine where the vacuum is created which helps in the running of those accessories.

So any problem related to the engine or those accessories can prove to be fatal for your car.

You can save your time and money from these common car engine problems by making some advance efforts.

But for that you have to be observant about the signs or if your car is acting weird.

Here is the list of car engine problems you’ll generally face:

  1. Engine Just Wouldn’t Turn On

The engine not getting started is one of the most common types of issue the car owners face. Many reasons are related to this problem.

if the engine makes the clicking sound but does not crank, then there might be an issue going on with the battery.

But if the car cranks but does not get started, then your ignition might be facing some problems.

Reasons lying behind this simple term might be corroded battery cables or blocked fuel filters, faulty fuel pumps, the ignition switch might be broken, or the batteries are discharged.

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  1. Overheating of Engine

Production of a large amount of energy can heat any machine, but there lies a solution for that, Coolant system’s installed in the engine to lower the temperature.

But if you are facing heating up of engine more frequently, then there must be some trouble going on with the coolant system.

Leakage in the coolant system, clogged hoses, a broken thermostat, loose plugs or radiator burning can be reasons behind the overheating.

Try to cover this problem as soon as possible, or this will severely affect the functioning of the car.

  1. Weird Noises from different parts

Anything weird is sometimes can be very dangerous for you.

If your bonnet is making the vibration sound or some knocking sound, you should be aware because it is a clear sound of a dying engine.

Getting your car repaired from some mechanic as soon as possible is the best solution you can come up with because the car’s engine is facing problem-related to the parts, and if you ignore this type of problem, then my mate you are going to face a lot more.

  1. Low-Quality Oil Being Used

Every machine requires maintenance and repair once in a while, so does your car. It also requires oil change according to a routine, and it is an important regime to do.

If you ignore the importance, then there might be the most common engine problem waiting for you.

Replacing oil is one step but selecting the quality is also an important thing to consider.

Many car manufacturers recommend the synthetic type of oil, and they are somewhat right, synthetic oil increases the efficiency of the engine and is not so expensive than any other type of oil.

Investment of few more busks is far better than an engine failure you were going to face.

  1. Coolant isn’t flushed

The coolant system is one of the major causes of getting the engine shut.

The recommended time duration of getting the coolant flushed is after three years roughly of 30,000 miles, and it should not cost you more than 100$-150$.

The cost of getting it flushed is always less than the replacement of any spare parts of the car. Car owners feel like doing the coolant flushing until they are prescribed to do so.

But this practice makes the spare parts to degrade before their lifespan. It can be judged simply by the overheating of the engine.

  1. The engine has water in it

Though the car saves you from rain and hail, it can’t protect its engine from the external environment. The heavy rainstorm and water entering the engine can cause some serious damages to the engine.

Bending of piston rods can be one the destruction water causes after entering the engine, eventually leaves the engine in a bad situation.

Water moves towards the combustion chamber via a manifold, and the spark plug is located right there, so the engines shut off exactly there.

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  1. Any Smoke Coming Off from the Engine

Smoke is always an indicator of danger other than in BBQ. So you should never ignore any kind of smoke, does not matter which color is it, just take your car to some repair shop for such an issue.

Worn gasket, cylinder issue, damage in the ring, poor crankcase, Damaged fuel injectors, Malfunctioning sensors or using any low-quality oil can cause this issue.

And smoke can be really dangerous; it does not get treated on time, so it is recommended to look after your engines.

Cars from many known and Japanese companies come with good quality engines just to avoid smoke-related issues.

  1. Abnormally Loud Noises Heard

If you experience any problem regarding the voice of the engine, or the engine is running louder than usual, then you should know that it is crying for help.

The problem can be simple as dirt in spark plugs to a critical problem like failing mufflers.

Some kinds of problems which causes the engine to sound loud and grumpy are catalytic converter is failing, the tailpipe is broken, leakage in the exhaust manifold, gaskets or seals are worn off, malfunction in oxygen sensor or failed mufflers.

  1. Oil Pump Indicator turned on

The oil pumps of engines suck the oil from the oil pan and pass it to the filter and then the bearing.

The problem in oil pumps can be a problem for the engine as well as the parts to which oil pump supplies oil.

This does not occur generally, but you should look for the symptoms if you feel any weird changes in the functioning of the car.

The first sign will be an indicator on your dashboard, but this is not an accurate sign because the indicator can be turned on because of any other types of a problem going on with the car.

So there are some other signs as well to consider if there is any leakage in the oil pump, which is low oil pressure, engine operating temperature is raised and noise.

  1. Oxygen Sensor is faulty

The oxygen sensor is placed inside the exhaust pipe works as a monitor. It measures the amount of oxygen in the exhaust.

Too much or too little oxygen can be destructive for car, so the sensor placed in the car because it sends a signal to adjust the amount of fuel which is entering the engine.

Some of the signs which show that there is a problem going on with the sensor are an indication on the dashboard or bad mileage, emission test failure.

  1. Knocking in the Engine

The engine knocking is the phenomenon in which an unwanted wave s produced due to excess pressure caused by the self-ignition of the unburned charged. It can damage the engine walls.

It happens when two flames of self-ignition engines collide. This causes an immense increase in temperature and pressure of the unburned parts.

The knocking sound causes annoy more than any destruction. There might be some reasons as well as low-octane fuel or carbon deposits.

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  1. Air Fuel Ratio is failing

The air-fuel ratio sensor is a part of modern-day vehicles and is located in the exhaust system before and after the catalytic converter. Some cars might have two or more air-fuel sensors.

They monitor the air to fuel ratio in the vehicle exhaust and sends the engine computer to adjust the fuel passage to improve the efficiency of the engine.

The presence of the air-fuel sensor will make the engine works properly but if it faces any trouble in working, the car starts showing the early signs such as decrease in fuel efficiency, engine power output drops, trouble in the idle of the engine, as sending the wrong signal to the engine will cause problem in the idle.

  1. Massive Crack on the Engine Block

Engine block made of a solid piece of metal which is mostly aluminum or high-quality iron.

The crack occurs when the engine overheats frequently or mostly in the areas where the temperature remains high.

The overheating will cause head gasket leakage or wrap over the cylinder head.

When the problem remains untreated the continuous expansion in the metal causes cracks.

Sometimes the crack can occur because of excessively cold weather or freezing.

  1. Issues in the Pistons, Rings, & Cylinders

Every machine runs on some parts. Every single part has similar importance whether it is a single pipeline.

The engine has some of these most important types of spare parts which we know as pistons, rings, and cylinders.

Pistons have the function of producing the power requires to move your car. The pistons move between the cylinder where the rings help it to make the gap closed between the wall and piston.

Some signs which you should not ignore is the messy sound or the smoke coming out of the engine, or the engine fails the emission test.

Being vigilant and observant about your vehicle will save a lot of your time and effort. So if you feel any of these signs in your car, make sure to get it checked before its too late.

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