Fuel Delivery System - Maintenance Tips

Fuel delivery system (FDS) is an important unit of your car's engine. The main components of FDS are the fuel tank, the injection pump assembly and injectors, the fuel transfer pump, and the fuel system filtration products. The function of FDS includes supplying, transferring, cleaning and delivering the fuel properly to facilitate combustion and generate power.

The fuel delivery system is prone to different levels of load; different weather conditions such as cold, summer, rainy, road conditions, external atmosphere, etc. This is likely to affect engine's performance. Regular maintenance is, therefore, essential for optimal functioning. This article discusses tips that help you maintain your vehicle's FDS.

• Use high quality fuel

Using high quality fuel helps engine perform at a higher efficiency. Follow manufacturer's guidelines in this regard. Ensure that the fuel does not contain contaminants, because even if the contaminants are fairly low, they lead to suboptimal performance. Dirt and debris in fuel are likely to affect the engine's performance by 50%. This is a major cause of failure of FDS.

If in doubt, take a sample of fuel in clean glass jar and keep it still for a few minutes. If it is contaminated, you can see the dirt and contaminants coming to the bottom of the jar. Better to avoid such fuel. Further, purchase fuel from reliable, reputed and trustworthy fuel stations. This is because, often fuel sellers mix cheap additives that can bring in problems for you.

• Follow proper storage techniques

Keep the car in a garage. This ensures that your car is at stable temperature. If you do not have such facility, park your car at public storage place. In the extreme case when you need to leave the car outside, cover it a weatherproof car cover.

By doing so, you can make sure to prevent contaminants from entering the system including the nozzles, hoses, tanks getting affected by dirt because of rain, filtering at the pump.

Ensure that water doesn't enter fuel tank. You need to keep the tank as full as possible. By keeping tank full, you can prevent the formation of water vapor that is likely to be formed in the tank. At night, water can get into the fuel tank because of drop in temperature. Replace your fuel/water separator as recommended by manufacturer.

• Use fuel additives

Make sure to use good quality fuel additives. These additives help clean the fuel filters, which are often blocked by fungus (look like black/brown chocolate mousse). Fuel cleaner additives in the fuel tank are useful in removing the accumulation of dirt and debris.

Fuel stations may add additives to the fuel, but if they add cheap additives, you need to add additional amount of these. There are many additives available. Of them polyetheramine (PEA) is a commonly used additive. Though it is expensive, it is effective in making valves, injectors and combustion chamber clean.

• Replace fuel filters on time

Fuel filters prevent small particles that are likely to enter the fuel tank and damage the fuel injector or the carburetor. Replacing the fuel filter ensures higher performance of the engine. If the area you live in is prone to dusty winds, it is more probable that fuel lines and filters of your car get jammed. So, check and replace the filters regularly to ensure optimal efficiency and fuel economy.

• Service at regular intervals

Get your car serviced by authorized service stations according to the service schedule advised by manufacturer. By this, you can ensure you get the service from skilled and trained professionals.

• Use original spares

Use original spares. Purchase them at reputed, authorized auto stores. This will ensure that you buy genuine spare parts. Original spare parts ensure good performance of your car. You will also get good customer service from such businesses.

Avoid using cheap substitutes for original spare parts. Such cheap spare parts are not good, from the perspective of manufacturer, as it is unlikely that they are made according to standards of industry.

Timely fuel delivery system (FDS) maintenance is important to get good performance and durability of the engine. Following the tips just discussed, you can make sure to get better driving experience from your car.