Air Cleaner Replacement

By-----David Trujillo

The Air Cleaner is a very important part of the emission system. Why? Because your engine needs clean air, to make the fuel systems function correctly. The Engine would not even operate. Oxygen is what makes the fuel burn. We must have air or there would not be any combustion. The prices of air cleaners vary from about $6.50 to around $10.00.

In the owners manual it will tell the location of the air cleaner. The specifications should even tell you the brand and type of air cleaner. Today most air cleaners are square. Before fuel injection the air cleaner was round. Lets look for a square box connected to the top of the engine. There is also a round black tube about five inches in diameter. In the middle of that black line is an electrical device.

This device tells the computer if it has the correct airflow or a problem. Anything to do with air flowing inside the engine is now controlled by the car computer. The onboard computer makes these decisions at thousand times per second. Let’s get down to the business of replacing the air cleaner. There are usually to retaining clips that hold the cover along with four Phillips screws.

Snap the clips open and remove the screws. Pull the cover off and inspect the air cleaner. You might find dust, bugs or just about anything. It is very dirty remove it and put in the new one that we purchased. Do just the reverse by replacing the cover and putting in the screws and tighten them. This is one of the simplest repairs. But it is also one of the most important.