When you accelerate to pass a car or go up a hill, does it sound like there are marbles rolling around under your hood? Or do y u hear a knocking sound? Knocking and pinging due to auto-ignition could be a result of combustion chamber deposits.

Wondering why your car isn’t getting the gas mileage it used to? There may be deposits clogging your fuel intake system. These deposits will make your engine “work harder” to get fuel, which will in turn hurt performance and gas mileage.

Is your car’s get-up-and-go a distant memory? Is it hard to start, hesitating and/or stalling? One of the most common issues are deposits that accumulate in your fuel system and restrict fuel flow. There is roughly 109a ethanol in most of the gas we use today, and ethanol-blended fuels can create deposits that clog the fuel system.

When you turn your steering wheel sharply, do you hear a groaning sound? That’s a sure sign of low power steering fluid, so check for leaks. Also, power steering fluids contain oils that can oxidize. When that happens, its ability to flow and protect internal parts is compromised. Check your manufacturer’s guide to see when to change your power steering fluid.

Is your car getting up there in years/mileage? If so, you may begin to see fluid spots on the ground underneath where you park it. You may also notice an oil-like smell when the engine gets hat. Over time, engine gaskets and seals dry out, and can cause fluid loss.

Have you noticed a drop in performance lately? The moving parts in your engine operate under very tight tolerances. As mileage increases, excessive wear and friction can occur. This metal-to-metal condition could hurt your engine’s reliability and overall performance.

Are you seeing a cloud of greyish/bluish smoke behind your car when you start it up in the morning, or when you accelerate or decelerate? You could be burning too much oil, particularly if your engine has over 75,000 miles on it.

Has there been more smoke than usual coming out of your exhaust system? The combustion chamber in your engine is designed to burn a mixture of air and fuel. That’s it. As your mileage increases, oil can contaminate the combustion chamber. This condition, known as oil blow-by, often results when friction and metal-to-metal contact have worn parts and created gaps between the cylinder walls, piston rings and valve guide seals.