Every 3,000 miles, it’s recommended to get your SUV, car, or truck’s oil and oil filter changed. This will help spare your engine the friction created by high-velocity moving parts clashing with it. Unfortunately, motor oil becomes dirty quickly, but a clogged filter can cut short your engine’s life in a hurry.
There are five signs you can use to determine that you have a clogged oil filter so you can get it taken care of ASAP.
Poor Engine Performance
This is a symptom of a number of problems that can crop up, but one of the things that can cause it is a clogged oil filter. When you press down on the accelerator, very little happens. Sometimes nothing at all happens. Your engine will lag and be slow to accelerate.
Of course, this is also an indicator of a fuel filter problem, fuel injector problem, air filter problem, carburetor problem, or a transmission problem. It’s best to diagnose a problem not based on this one symptom alone but in tandem with other symptoms.
Sputtering
The oil filter’s primary objective is to clean the oil, removing debris and other contaminants, before releasing it into the engine to do its job of lubricating it and collecting excess heat. When the filter isn’t releasing the engine oil, the parts will suffer under extreme friction and your vehicle’s engine will sputter. The faster you go, the worse the problem gets.
This is a very dangerous problem that endangers the life of your engine. It needs to be addressed the moment you notice it.
Grinding Noises
In addition to sputtering, if your vehicle’s engine’s parts aren’t being lubricated, you’ll be able to hear them grinding against one another. If you hear this, regardless of any other symptoms, you need to pull over immediately. Don’t even bother trying to drive to your mechanic or auto repair shop, as even that could cause extreme damage to your engine. Get it towed.
Dirty Exhaust
When it’s cold outside, you might see a little white smoke coming from your tailpipe, and that’s okay. Anything else, however, is a bad sign. You shouldn’t normally see any smoke at all stemming from the tailpipe.
If the smoke is black or brown, this means your vehicle is burning either fuel or oil. Oil isn’t being released and could be spilling onto the hot components of the engine, creating the smoke. You may also smell burning oil, which is a strong indicator that the dirty exhaust is being caused by a clogged oil filter.
Low Oil Pressure
If the engine oil pressure light comes on, it could mean that a clogged oil filter is causing the oil pressure to drop. While this could also be a mere sensor problem, you should never take any chances when it comes to your engine. If you’re driving when this happens, you need to pull over and check your oil.
Most Oil Filter Problems Can Be Prevented
Regular maintenance and remembering to have your oil and filter changed every 3,000 miles can eliminate a lot of problems. Most mechanics helpfully place a sticker on the windshield to remind you of when you should get your oil changed next.
Engine oil is, in many ways, the lifeblood of your vehicle. Fuel may power it like the breath in your lungs, but the oil will keep it alive.