Spark plugs are among the busiest of parts in your entire engine. A typical plug fires off 400 times per minute using 12,000 to 25,000 electricity. Inevitably, plugs eventually wear down and start to fail. If one of your plugs falters, your drive around Bowie, MD, will rapidly become less smooth, and your car might undergo serious damage, so here are four key signs of plug trouble to look out for.
Does Your Honda Need New Spark Plugs?
Falling Fuel Efficiency 
When a single plug weakens, that cylinder will no longer generate as much power. Fuel is still being injected into the combustion chamber, but the plug is struggling to keep up. As a result, the fuel could be burned more efficiently, and you’ll find your car traveling less far between gas stops.
Misfiring Engine
When the constant combustion process inside a cylinder is interrupted by a faulty plug, it’s called misfiring. You’ll experience misfiring in various ways.
Most notably, your engine will lose power and acceleration. It might feel hesitant or start to shake when you accelerate. Misfiring can sometimes be due to a cold engine. Give it time to warm up, and if the problem persists, you might have a problematic plug.
Stalling Engine
As the failing cylinder struggles to keep up with the other cylinders, the engine will idle roughly when you pause at a traffic light. It will jolt and judder strangely. It might even stall. And then you might have trouble starting it up again.
Thickening Exhaust
When the malfunctioning plug fails to burn up all of the injected fuel, an excess of unburned fuel can build up inside the combustion chamber. This unburned fuel causes all sorts of problems. For one, it usually coats the plug in a sooty residue, further inhibiting the plug’s ability to function.
Worse than that is when the unburned fuel starts to leak out through the exhaust pipes. You’ll see it emerge from behind your car as thick black smoke. On its way out, this fuel can cause much damage to your catalytic converter, which is an expensive part to repair.
Have Your Plugs Inspected in Bowie, MD
As soon as you suspect a failing plug, have it examined by a qualified technician at your nearest dealership. The technician will clean the area near the plug to avoid contamination. They’ll then take the plug out and check it for soot deposits, burned electrodes, cracks, or other damage.
They’ll also clean the socket and try to diagnose any underlying problem which might have caused the plug to fail. Sometimes plug trouble can be due to a faulty ignition coil, improper torque, bad gapping, improper heat ranges, chemical contamination, poor installation, or another issue altogether. The plug will finally be cleaned or replaced, and any underlying problems will also be repaired.
Have your plugs inspected today at DARCARS Honda of Bowie. We’re a trusted local dealership with a large inventory of reliable, affordable Honda vehicles.
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