As you learned in a previous blog post, there are many things that can turn on the check engine light. One of those things is a vacuum leak in the engine. The vacuum that is produced in the combustion chamber is routed throughout the engine via hoses to power components. Peerless Automotive advises that a vacuum leak will cause many problems with your car, truck, or utility vehicle’s engine. Let’s talk about these problems below and why they turn on the check engine light.
Engine Performance Problems
If you have a leaking vacuum hose in your engine, you will experience engine performance problems such as hesitation or sputtering. The reason why your engine is struggling to run is that the vacuum leak is filling the engine with air. This excess air can make its way into the combustion chamber and create a lean fuel mixture that has very little fuel in it. With minimal fuel, your engine will have a hard time producing combustion. In severe cases, your engine may even stall.
High or Sporadic Engine Idle
You may also notice that your engine is idling too high or sporadically. This is an indication that the vacuum leak is causing erratic increases in the engine’s RPMs. You will be able to hear the RPMs increase as well as see the increases on your tachometer. The needle will register high continuously, or it will bounce up and down depending on the severity of the vacuum leak. Repairing the leaking vacuum hose will restore your engine’s performance and even idling.
Loud Squealing or Suction
If you hear loud squealing noises coming from your engine, what you are listening to is the vacuum leak. Many times, the vacuum hose will hiss or squeal as the vacuum pressure escapes. You might also hear a suction noise coming from your engine. This noise can sound like a vacuum cleaner hose. These are the audible symptoms of your engine’s vacuum leak.
Malfunctioning Components
Finally, as we mentioned in the introduction, the vacuum pressure is used to power some of the engine’s components. An example of a component that can be affected by an engine vacuum leak is the power steering pump. Along with the problems already discussed, you may find it difficult to turn your automobile if the power steering pump is not receiving any power.
Peerless Automotive in Olathe, KS, would be happy to inspect your engine to find the vacuum leak so we can fix it. Give us a call today.