Oil Filter ¦ Fuel Filter ¦ Air Filter – All Cause NCT Failure

Why changing filters in your car could save you time and money

It may be worth replacing your oilf filter, your fuel filter and your air filter before you take the test. They are not expensive parts and may save you a good deal of hassle. Here’s a brief explanation of why these components are important:

Fuel Filter

Your fuel filter is a key component in your car. It filters out dirt particles and other unwanted substances from your petrol or diesel, easing the flow of fuel your engine. If your fuel filter gets blocked or clogged, impurities in the fuel would find their way into the engine and potentially block the fuel pump and injectors. This will impact your cars performance and it is one of the main reasons for vehicle breakdown.

Here’s how you can tell if you have a blocked fuel filter:

• Engine not starting immediately from ignition
• Engine starting only after repeated attempts – could be partially blocked
• Car will not accelerate when required
• Car losing power while driving uphill
• Car stops suddenly
• Decreased fuel efficiency
• Strange Odours from emissions

Oil Filter

The Oil Filter in your car performs a very important role. Your engine requires oil for lubrication of parts. Without this lubrication, your engine and component parts would tend to overheat. As oil passes through your engine, it tends to pick up impurities, dirt and debris from the engine. If the oil filter does its job correctly, it will collect all these impurities and prevent them from returning to the engine, causing damage and excessive wear and tear.

So it is normal to expect to replace your oil filter at very regular intervals. In fact, this inexpensive car part replacement, if replaced frequently can save you hundreds of euro in expensive repairs.

Your car manual will advise of the frequency that you should change your oil filter. The quality of oil you use will affect the frequency of change.

The best option is to change your oil filter every time you change your oil. Your garage will perform this for you as part of a standard service

Air Filters

Air Filters in your car perform 2 functions – They clean the air that you breathe in the car and they also clean their air intake into the engine of your car. Both important.

The air filter catches any dirt particles. These particles can cause damage to engine walls, pistons and cylinders. By changing them regularly, you can have a big impact on the life of your engine. Again, change them every time you service your vehicle for optimum performance.

Replacing Air Filters delivers an improvement in fuel efficiency and reduces your running costs.

The air that you breathe in the car is often filtered using nanotechnology based filters. These charcoal based layers have the capacity to remove odours

Shock Absorbers causing NCT Failure…

Shock absorbers are often the reason give for NCT Failure in Ireland. How well your shocks are working can be difficult to determine for the untrained eye. The Shock Absorbers do have an important role in your car’s suspension system. Not replacing them can impact the comfort of the drive, the safety of the vehicle and the wear and tear on your tyres.

The shock absorber  damps or cushions the compression and extension of the cars suspension springs to prevent ongoing bouncing as you drive over the roads around Galway, Clare and Mayo.

The shocks work to reduce road impact, eliminate too much rebound, allow little sway, and give you better overall road handling. When your cars’ shocks are performing properly your car will hold the road when you are braking, managing a turn in the road, travelling on bumpy roads or even when driving in strong side winds. When your shocks are worn out, they can contribute to loss of  control of your car, increasing the risk of an accident for you.

Car Parts Warehouse, based on the Liosban Business Park in Galway supply a wide range of shocks for all vehicle makes and models and from a number of different manufacturers

The best known name in the business is Monroe. Founded in 1916 when cars still rode on carriage springs, Monroe invented the first shock absorber and the company has been innovating ever since.

We recommend that shocks are replaced every 50,000 miles or sooner depending on the roads that you drive on.

With the strictness of NCT, they often give Shock Absorbers as the reason for failure, even though there may be no visible signs. One way to check whether your car needs its shocks replaced is to do this test.

1. Catch hold of the corner of your car’s bumper.                       

2. Push down on it as hard as you can and let go

3. Watch for this: the bumper should have dropped down, came back up and dropped down again once. If it continually goes up and down, then that particular shock is no longer working properly. Repeat the test on the remaining three wheels of your vehicle.

another telltale sign of wear can be seen through leakage  and by keeping an eye on tyre wear patterns.

If your NCT Report fails you on your shock absorbers, call in to Car Parts Warehouse in Galway or call us on 091 76 77 99 and we will help get you back on the road.

NCT Failure – Why Brake Pads often feature….

NCT Failure on Brake Pads

If your NCT failure report mentions brake pads or brake parts then you need to consider the following…

Your car’s braking system is is a key component in any car. If you have failed your NCT because of your brakes, you may have to replace your brake pads, your brake discs or both. The brake pads are the most likely parts that need to be replaced but your NCT

Brake Pads

Most people in Ireland do not know how the brakes work in their car. Whenever the brake pedal is pressed, the brake pads press the rotating disk rotors which are contained in the braking system of the car. This then slows  the car and finally brings it to a complete stop. Because the pads are pressed against the brake disc, we get wear and tear and depending on the driving being done, will determine the life of the brake pads.

Generally, you can expect up to 30,000 miles from a set of brake pads but this can vary hugely depending on the style of the driver. In Galway, the traffic is generally fairly free flowing and not so stop-start. This can help. If you drive aggressively around some of the country roads in Galway, Mayo and Clare then there is a high probability that your pads will wear quicker. If you generally carry more than one passenger, you will get less wear because the car is heavier and harder to stop because of the momentum.

The Correct Brake Pads

Different cars take different brake pads so when you contact Car Parts Warehouse in Galway it is important to know your car make and model and the year of purchase. The team at Car parts warehouse are trained to identify the correct brake pads for your car. In fact they can determine the correct pads or parts for your brakes from your Vehicle Registration number.

If you are unsure about how to interprest the NCT Failure report, just bring it in to Car Parts Warehouse in Liosban and they will help you.

Fitting brake pads can be a tricky task and we recommend that you take them to your local mechanic who will fit them for you.