Tips to make your diesel engine last longer

The vehicles with diesel engines have been gaining ground for the gasoline in recent years because of their many advantages: they are less polluting because expel less carbon dioxide and also are more efficient because they use less fuel than gasoline engines.

Diesel engines: the price of technology

The fact that a diesel engine consumes less than a gasoline engine, does not mean that the car will be cheaper to the driver throughout its life, far from it.

The most modern diesel engines, such as particle filter or direct injection, can become a real headache if they break down.

When including so many technological solutions in their operation, the adjustment of the faults of this type of motors usually entail a quite high cost.

7 tips for proper engine maintenance

To prevent damage to your diesel engine and save you unnecessary frights in the future, we recommend that you follow the following tips for diesel engine maintenance carefully:

1- Do not exhaust the diesel fuel tank

Go to a service station when your car’s tank is at 25% capacity. If you drive with less fuel, the dirt of it will remain accumulated in the bottom and there is a risk that the impurities go to the power system.

If the pump of the tank is damaged the repair can cost more than 120 euros, and if the injection system is affected the joke can go for more than 600 euros.

2- Monitor the speed of the diesel engine.

Do not accelerate without slowing down or circulate below 2,000 revolutions per minute, as the engine will suffer more wear and also the EGR valve will last less as more carbon is generated in the combustion.

3- Check the filter

It is necessary to clean the filter so often so that the humidity of the fuel does not pass to the injection system, damaging it.

Likewise, it is important to be aware of changing the filter every 60,000 kilometers maximum. In this way you will prevent oil impurities from damaging the injectors or the injection pump.

4- Measure oil levels periodically

Measures once a month the level of oil with the car cold and on a surface without slopes; if it is below the minimum you must fill it with the same type of oil that you threw last time, and if it is above the maximum try to go as soon as possible to a gas station to solve the problem.

If there are not enough levels of oil is more than likely that the engine and the turbo suffer very expensive breakdowns, above 1,000 euros. However, bringing a level of oil higher than recommended can also damage the turbo by exerting too much pressure on it.

5- Eye with the deposits of the service stations

If you observe that they have just refilled the fuel tank of the gas station, avoid refueling it. It should be at least an hour after they have been filled in, otherwise impurities will get into your vehicle that can reach the injection system, leaving it seriously damaged.

6- Avoid stopping the car immediately after climbing a port or driving on the highway

Wait at least 1 minute before stopping after having traveled on the highway or a port, since the hot oil from the turbine can burn and generate a fault in the turbo of more than 800 euros.

7- Meets what is indicated in the maintenance plan

You must respect the periods of the revisions that are indicated by the manufacturer in the maintenance book of your vehicle, as well as the spare parts and the type of oil that you must use.