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mot testing and car servicing

Air Filters-How they Work-Chevy High Performance Magazine

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Air Filters

How Air Filters Work

Chevy High Performance Magazine

For performance air filter manufacturers like Air aid, determining the ideal filter design for each vehicle application is a balancing act between optimal flow and packaging constraints.

Eric Roberts‘s insight:

What do CAR AIR FILTERS DO?

So, as we all know, All filters are very important parts of your cars performance system. They help your engine breathe easily by filtering out the dirt and dust that enters your car engine. The car engine sucks in tremendous amounts of air. Importantly, this air must be perfectly clean.

It is amazing what the engine will suck in. Especially, in summer time! Of course, it sucks in millions of insects and dust particles. Including, in autumn and winter! So, apart from dirt and grime, the engine sucks in leaves. Even water from the winter rains. All these things can end up in the engine compartment and eventually would be sucked into the inlet ports. But your air filter stops all this happening.

The cabin filter is most often encased in a plastic holder, or older cars could be made of metal. This casing is a secondary filter safeguard and is sometimes they are shaped like kitchen pans, with the air intake looking like the pan handle, but the more modern cars have them shaped to fit in with the engine compartment. The plastic box has its own filter slits which helps trap larger objects such as leaves.

Dirty filter ready for changing

Air Filters

It is therefore very important to have your car serviced at regular intervals and to make sure that the garage changes the oil and other filters by asking them to see the old ones when you pick the car up. If you do not change the air filter it will slowly clog up with dirt and starve your engine from oxygen.

This will hamper the performance of your car. The biggest problem is in Fuel-injected cars, because a dirty oil filter will hamper the performance of your car. It is great when a customer has just had his car serviced and notices the difference in the cars performance, this is usually because of the new air and oil filters.

Of course all  filters are manufactured by many different companies, but here in Halifax UK we use quality replacement filters on all models.

car exhaust system

Exhausts Changed-to meet new European Union Emission Laws

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Exhausts Changed

 Exhausts systems also cost much more than 10 years ago

I can honestly say that I have lived during the most radical changes ever made to cars, due to the new rules about “global warming” and emissions from cars. Back in time when we had Vauxhall Vivas Cavaliers, Chrysler Horizons old type Minis and Ford Cortinas life in the garage was much easier and certainly more stable.

The exhaust systems on those cars would stay the same year after year. So much so that we could order hundreds of systems at a time and keep a large stock that we always sold. In fact, we could order exhaust systems by the container load, and they would all be sold, (happy days).

Then the computer came along and car manufacturers could very quickly change car models, they became very flexible changing parts on different models at will.

This included systems. We were finding that Exhausts.  Like other parts would be left on the shelf unsold. Hence, we were becoming very reluctant at keeping exhaust systems on the shelves. Without, getting stuck with them. Consequently, at this time exhaust wholesalers began to spring up. As a result, and in a short period of time. We decided not to keep an exhaust stock at all. So, and leave it to the wholesalers. In fact. The last stock that we kept in was from Bosal Exhausts. Probably, (the best Exhausts in the World) and that was in the late nineties.

Exhausts Changed

The next thing to affect exhausts were vehicle emissions controls. These were introduced by the British government. Thus, cars had to be fitted with “catalytic converters,” as we know them. Therefore, they are fitted between the car’s engine and the exhaust pipe system. The gas from the engine is filtered through the catalytic converter. into a very fine filter system. made from ceramics to withstand the high temperature. The cat also has some precious metals to help filter out the particulates. (This is why cats are so expensive.)

Some car models have a direct engine fit. Thus, the engine sends out waste gases. that are filtered by the cat. As a result, the cleaner gases pass through the rest of the system. The Exhausts Changed boxes are made of a fibreglass material. Naturally, that has an extra filter effect but will also muffle the sound that the gases make when leaving the engine. We all know how noisy a car is when the exhaust breaks.

Exhausts systems are better made these days

Some cars have two or even three boxes, depending on the size of the engine and car. Here in the UK, we do not change the exhaust until it actually breaks, and then we have it replaced, and in my opinion, this is the best thing to do. Even the worst-looking rusty old car exhausts can last for years, and it is no use changing your exhaust just because it looks rusty and old; replace it when it breaks, unless it fails the MOT test. The main part to fail on the test will be the cat; if it fails the test, the cat will need replacing.

Foreword now to 2023.

catalytic converter thefts on the increase

Catalytic converter thefts have been on the rise in recent years, particularly in urban areas. These thefts are often motivated by the value of the precious metals contained in catalytic converters, such as platinum, palladium, and rhodium. The thefts have caused problems for car owners, as the cost to replace a stolen catalytic converter can be quite high. Some police departments and insurance companies have started to track catalytic converter thefts and are working to find ways to prevent them.