What is an engine air filter?

The engine air filter cleans and filters the outside air before it gets to your engine and burned along with fuel in order to produce combustion. It prevents dirt, contaminants or harmful debris from entering your engine. Indeed, an air filter is preventing your engine from damaging particulates. Dirty air can reduce your engine efficiency, and with time, cause bigger damage.

Why is my engine air filter important?

Thousands of litres of air, mixed with fuel, power the internal combustion engine of a vehicle. Impurities such as dust, pollution, and other dirt must be removed from both the air and the fuel. Though gasoline is filtered several times before reaching your vehicle’s engine, the air is simply found around the vehicle, which is why an extremely efficient air filter is necessary.

A vehicle is most energy efficient when the engine air filter is clean, since the air/fuel blend is ideal. When the filter is dirty, some fuel doesn’t burn, the engine becomes less efficient, and the engine and exhaust system get clogged up.

How dirty the air is will affect how quickly the filter gets filled. If you drive where there is a lot of dust, pollution or pollen, your engine air filter will get dirty more quickly and need to be changed sooner.

Depending on your needs, we have the right engine air filter for your vehicle.

How often do you need to maintain an engine air filter?

The simple answer is, when it is dirty. That’s a function of how much air is passed through the filter, so the manufacturer will recommend a kilometres interval for replacing the air filter.

Changing the engine air filter is easy and inexpensive. A certified NAPA AUTOPRO technician can check or replace the filter during an oil change or scheduled maintenance. A new air filter will restore your engine and help you get more bang for your buck at the pump.

Learn more about the engine air filter from our NAPA AUTOPRO experts in the video below: