What is “Engine stall prevention” inspection?
Have you ever gone through or heard the situation a vehicle stalled out while driving ended up having to get the vehicle towed away for repair? It must be not only uncomfortable but also disastrous if happens on a highway in the middle of winter. Statistics on my own experience shows that there are two main components causing the engine to stall and not start again, and these account for 90% of all those vehicles that are older than 8 years or more than 150,000 km with the symptoms. Although there are numerous causes that can affect the same issue for modern vehicles, one of the two main culprits is the fuel pump motor which supplies fuel to engine located in the fuel tank, the other one is the alternator(generator in other words) which supplies electric power to vehicle electrical components including engine control module and battery, and it runs by the engine drive belt.
Unfortunately, it’s generally not easy to tell whether these parts are going bad until they reach the threshold(minimum limit) because their performance tends to drop abruptly near the threshold area, and once reached, it’s already done, which means you are not likely to notice the sign of malfunction of those parts before a bad situation happens using ordinary inspection methods. Reason being is those conventional ways of inspection just measure the output values such as voltage, amperage and/or pressure with numbers, which makes the inspector believe that they perform well as the measurements are within the specification, while the way the Trusty Auto Service tests is different so that a potential problem be checked.
If your vehicle is older than 8 years or more than 150,000 km mileage, then I strongly recommend you getting the “Engine Stall Prevention Inspection” once a year or before going on a long distance driving, especially for those who drive on highways frequently. It’s not different you from getting health checkup using an endoscope or MRI to see if you have a sign of a fatal disease like cancer before reaching the stage 3 or 4 so that your life be prolonged.
The Trusty Auto Service is capable of inspecting and telling if those parts are in good shape or not by using sophisticated methods/devices and other tools. The shop also can instruct you on how to maintain those parts in order to prevent a premature failure. This costs you as low as $50 and you can be sure of free from fuel pump/alternator related engine stall while driving for the next 6-12 months.
In terms of alternator failure, if you are lucky, you’ll see the battery warning light coming on before the engine stall so you bring it in a repair shop if it’s accessible within about an hour. But the chance doesn’t come always like this because a lot of times the light wouldn’t come on with a malfunctioning alternator either. That’s why it’s important to make yourself confident before going on a long distance driving.
A fuel pump that has a potential problem, in most cases, doesn’t get you a symptom before it stops working accompanying engine stall. But don’t you worry, we’ve got ways to check to tell you its state of health. Please make an appointment if you’re planning to go on a long journey.