How to Perform an Engine Tune Up

Performing and engine tune up is one of the simplest things you can do to help save money.  Besides an engine oil change, an engine tune up will most likely be one of the least expensive maintenance items you’ll need to get done for your car, but it can also help save you the most money.  Keeping your engine running at peak efficiency by getting regular tune ups is one of the best ways to increase your fuel mileage saving you money every day!  Getting an engine tune up can also reduce stress on your engine and other components allowing them to last longer again saving you money in maintenance costs.

Getting a tune up used to be a more complicated ordeal when cars had carburetors, mechanical ignitions and other systems that required constant adjustments.  Today’s cars have systems that can adjust themselves automatically saving lots of time and money when it comes to a normal engine tune up.

A tune up on today’s cars usually simply consists of changing filters, spark plugs, making sure your vehicle doesn’t have any engine codes stored, and make sure things are kept clean.  Many local auto parts stores, like many of our partners below, will check your computer for engine codes for free during any visit.  When it comes to changing your spark plugs, you can check your vehicle’s owner’s manual for instructions on how often to change those.  Since spark plugs are something that get changed on a regular basis, most automobile manufacturers make them relatively easy to change so it may even be something you could consider doing yourself.

Similarly, it’s important to regularly change any of the filters in your car to keep things operating a maximum efficiency.  The filters on your car are designed to catch dust dirt and debris to help keep things clean and to keep things from being damaged.  For example, your engine oil filter keeps your oil clean to help protect the bearing surfaces and cylinder walls which are very smooth and susceptible to scratching from outside particles.  Your cabin air filter similarly keeps contamination out of your vehicle’s cabin while you’re driving to keep you safe and the interior of your car clean.  If you’re like most drivers, you get your oil filter changed every oil change which will help keep your engine running properly for a long time.  When you get an engine tune up you should consider changing the other filters like your cabin air filter, engine air filter, and fuel filter to make sure your cabin stays clean and your engine isn’t working harder than it needs to be to draw in air or fuel adding additional stress to your engine.

Keeping your engine clean is an important part of an engine tune up as well.  Over time the inside and outside of your engine can get built up with grime and gunk.  Outside your engine, this can make leak detection difficult and could possibly cause problems with wiring and electrical connections.  Inside your engine, this can reduce fuel mileage, efficiency, and power.  For external cleaning, we recommend using an engine degreaser you can find at your local auto parts store.  For internal cleaning, we recommend using BlueDevil Fuel System Cleaner to clean your engine’s fuel system including your fuel injectors as well as the combustion chamber.  BlueDevil Fuel System Cleaner can restore your vehicle’s fuel mileage by removing deposits and keeping your engine clean!

You can pick up a bottle of BlueDevil Complete Fuel System Cleanerat AutoZone® Today!

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engine_tune_up.jpg – By JoeBelanger – Licensed by Getty Images – Original Link