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One of the most unsung heroes in your vehicle is your spark plugs, which help keep your engine in top shape and keep your car out of the auto repair garage when they’re doing their job. However, over time, even the best spark plugs will start to wear down, and if they wear out completely, you’re going to have some serious problems with your car.

Luckily, before it becomes necessary for you to find the best repair shop in Grapevine, TX and put them to work on repairing your car, your spark plugs will give you several signals that they’re about to fail and need to be replaced at the first opportunity. Here are some of the signs that you need to look for!

SLOW TO ACCELERATE

You’re waiting for a light to turn green, and you’ve got your foot on the gas ready to go so that you can stay ahead of the car next to you. Then the light changes, and your vehicle doesn’t cooperate with your attempt to accelerate. Instead, you slowly pick up speed, and it takes several seconds to get back up to the speed limit.

What’s going on here? The answer might be as simple as a faulty spark plug. Modern vehicles have several parts that work in conjunction to help your car accelerate, so the answer to this problem isn’t always a spark plug, but it’s often the first place that you should look. A worn-out spark plug simply doesn’t fire as well as a new one, and when your spark plugs aren’t firing, your vehicle simply isn’t going to go as fast. If you start having problems with your accelerator, it’s time to take the car to a trusted auto repair garage and have your spark plugs examined.

CHECK ENGINE LIGHT

Obviously, the second that you see the check engine light illuminate, it’s time for you to take your car to an auto repair shop before things get any worse. That said, when your check engine light does come on, sometimes the problem is as simple as an issue with your spark plugs.

That’s because your spark plugs are also part of your car’s ignition system, and when they’re damaged or getting worn out, there’s a serious chance that your engine can misfire and trigger the light. The longer this happens, the greater the risk is that you could do serious damage to your engine. It’s a much better idea to get your vehicle to an auto repair garage at the first sign of trouble.

LOWER FUEL ECONOMY

After the price of gas cratered during the coronavirus scare, this might not seem like the big deal that it once did. But demand for gas will return, and when it does, a lesser fuel economy will leave your wallet hurting if you let it go on for too long.

Unfortunately, a change in your fuel economy can be as simple as a misplacement of your spark plugs. If your spark plugs are either too close together or too far apart, there’s a serious risk of decreased fuel economy because your engine won’t be burning fuel as efficiently as possible.

That’s why a reputable auto repair garage will always check your spark plugs every time you come in for an oil change; it’s unfortunately very easy for spark plugs to find themselves outside of the optimal setting for your vehicle. Of course, given that plug position is that important, if the plugs are worn out or damaged, it almost goes without saying that your fuel economy will suffer as a result.

TROUBLE STARTING THE CAR

As with most things related to your spark plugs, this problem can be caused by one of several different factors. A car that won’t start is one of the most common issues that drivers face, and usually, it’s related to some kind of issue with the engine or the starter. Your spark plugs play a huge part of the engine’s ability to function, and if they’re worn out, your vehicle isn’t going to be anywhere near as reliable as it should be.

Even if you’re eventually able to get your car started, you’re going to be driving a vehicle that’s operating below its ideal efficiency. Whether you’re taking a short trip or a long one, that’s not the way that you want to drive your automobile. As soon as your car refuses to start, it’s a good idea to contact an auto repair garage and schedule an appointment.

WHEN SHOULD I REPLACE SPARK PLUGS?

That depends on what kind of spark plugs you have for your vehicle and how much you’re willing to spend. If you’ve got copper spark plugs in your vehicle, you can expect to replace them at around every 10,000 to 20,000 miles. To make it easier to remember, if you’ve got copper spark plugs, you’ll probably replace them with every other oil change you get from your local auto repair experts.

If you’ve opened the wallet for iridium spark plugs, which can cost as much as seven times the price of copper spark plugs, then you’re likely going to look at replacing them every 60,000 miles. That’s because iridium is made to last for long distances, and drivers pay that premium for iridium spark plugs when they make that purchase. In either case, you should look at replacing your spark plugs as soon as there’s a problem with them, and an auto repair garage will be your best bet at finding one.

At Import Car Center, we know exactly what to look for when our customers come to us with engine problems or other issues with their vehicle. Whether it’s your spark plugs or another part of your car that’s brought you to our Grapevine, TX location for an auto repair, you can expect honest, friendly first-rate service that gets you back on the road as soon as possible. Call us today for an appointment!

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