A leaking vacuum hose can wreak more havoc than you might expect. Your automobile transports vacuum pressure through the vacuum hoses to power components in the engine. One of these components is the power steering pump. If your engine springs a vacuum leak, a faulty power steering pump isn’t the only problem you will have. RI Automotive lists the other issues that are caused by a leaking vacuum hose. These are signs that you need to replace the vacuum hose as soon as possible.
1. Acceleration Lag
One thing that happens when a vacuum hose starts to leak is your engine fills with air. Unfortunately, this excess air can make its way into the combustion chamber and create a lean fuel mixture. This mixture starves the engine of fuel, and, as a consequence, you will end up with lagging vehicle acceleration. You will need to fix the vacuum leak to restore the acceleration’s performance.
2. Sluggish Engine
The same is true with your engine. Aside from it hesitating when you want to accelerate, it will also sputter and hiccup while it is running. Again, this is because there is too much air in the combustion chamber and the engine is fuel-starved. To restore your engine’s performance, you must fix the leaking vacuum hose to prevent the excess air from being introduced to the engine.
3. Hissing/Suction Sounds
There is a possibility that you will be able to see which vacuum hose is leaking if you follow the sounds. Engine vacuum leaks make hissing or suction sounds depending on how severe they are. A minor leak will hiss and a major leak will sound like your vacuum cleaner’s hose.
4. Sporadic RPMs
Another sign that your engine has a vacuum leak is the erratic movement of the tachometer needle. As the vacuum pressure escapes from the leaking hose, it enters the engine in spurts, and this temporarily increases the RPMs. You will be able to see the needle moving up and down as the vacuum pressure escapes the hose.
5. Check Engine Warning
Finally, a vacuum leak will cause your check engine light to come on. This is because the main computer chip, the engine control unit, has detected a problem due to the excess air in the engine. System sensors will also report error codes to the engine control unit.
Call RI Automotive in Tampa, FL, today to schedule an appointment for your vehicle if it is behaving as if it has a vacuum leak.
