staff@slashgear.com (Jack Picone)
2024-04-21 07:15:49
www.slashgear.com
Spark plugs are relatively affordable and simple components of your vehicle, but they’re important nonetheless, as are the ignition coils that give them the electricity they need to ignite the fuel/air mixture in your engine. Issues with your spark plugs, coils, or spark plug wires can activate your check engine light, so you may want to inspect them when the pesky warning shows up on your dashboard.
Many modern cars contain multiple coils for each cylinder in your engine, which means there are more places for something to go wrong. Spark plugs can wear down or become fouled by oil, carbon, or fuel. They can also blister if they’re running too hot for too long. If you know how to tell if you have a bad spark, you can identify whether or not they’re the issue pretty quickly after popping your hood. Replacing them yourself isn’t that hard, and spark plugs typically cost less than $20, while coils are around $50 — so you can save a lot of money by fixing this issue in your garage rather than having a mechanic do so at a body shop.
Older vehicles also use wires to connect spark plugs and coils, and if damaged, these wires can set off your check engine light. If your engine sounds shaky while idling, has a significant drop in performance, or does not get as many miles to the gallon as it usually does, it could be a sign that your spark plug wires are causing your Check Engine Light to illuminate. Fortunately, these are also cheap and easy to swap out yourself.