A leaking vacuum hose in your car, truck, or utility vehicle’s engine is a frustrating thing. As you will learn as you keep reading, the leaking vacuum hose can cause all kinds of problems in the engine. This being said, it is relatively easy to replace the vacuum hose. Here are signs that you have a vacuum leak in your engine. Do not worry. We can repair the problem.
Performance Trouble
As we just mentioned, the leaking hose will cause engine problems. Specifically, the engine will fill with air and struggle to produce power. Consequently, you will notice a lag in your vehicle’s acceleration and engine performance. In fact, your engine may cause your vehicle to jerk because it is sputtering.
Poor Fuel Economy
The engine is going to consume more fuel if it is running poorly. The leaking vacuum hose will continue to affect the engine’s efficiency and, as such, the fuel efficiency until you have the vacuum hose replaced. This means you will need to head to the service station more often to keep your tank full.
Component Malfunction
If you have ever wondered why the vacuum pressure is routed through the hoses, it is used to power various components in the engine. For example, the power steering pump uses both the vacuum pressure and accessory belt for power. Consequently, your power steering may start to malfunction.
Hissing/Suction Noises
A leaking vacuum hose will also make strange noises in the engine. For example, the leak can sound like the hose on your household vacuum. It will make a suction noise. It may also hiss or squeal. If you hear these noises coming from your engine, head straight to our shop so we can inspect it.
Erratic/High RPMs
Unfortunately, as the air pushes out of the vacuum hose leak, it will increase the engine’s RPMs. As such, one way to tell whether you have a vacuum leak is to keep an eye on the tachometer. You will see the needle register unusually high or bounce up and down continuously.
Check Engine Warning
Finally, all of the above is going to create some system errors that will be sent to the engine control unit. The engine control unit cannot replace the vacuum hose, so it will turn on the check engine light to let you know the engine has a problem. In this case, it’s a leaking vacuum hose.
As we said above, we can help, so call us today to set up a service visit for your automobile.