Many a time you could have come to see a situation where your fuel efficient, high performance, a new car is not that great anymore. You might have loved your car and would have given it all kinds of praises and endorsements on its mileage, but all of a sudden it seems to be unable to keep up the mileage and might seem to lack in things that matter. In such a situation all that comes to your

mind is, “what did I do wrong?” To all those who are worrying over this, this is a common scenario and this is what you have got to do.

You might not have heard of it much, but the Mass Airflow Sensor is one of the most important parts of your car to provide fuel efficiency. Placed between the air cleaner and throttle plate, or inside the air cleaner assembly, it measures the flow of air entering the engine. The fuel injection, the ignition system, and transmission shifting are all regulated by parameters that constitute the amount of air flowing past this sensor. The MAF has hotwired in it. As the air flows through, the hotwire cools down.

This is how the MAF measures the airflow. If the MAF is dirty,  it can read the airflow measure wrong leading to excessive fuel emissions leading to poor fuel efficiency. Though the Mass Airflow Sensors

lasts long and don't fail often, it is quite expensive to get it fixed in the repair shop when it gets dirty.

But it is something that can be bought online and can be easily fixed at home. You might even be able to save some money on it. Another way to clean the Mass Airflow Sensor is using an electrical cleaner.

This is another part, when gets faulty, can play with your car’s mileage. When your car has increased fuel consumption and takes a toll on you, there is a high chance that the Oxygen Sensor might be the

culprit there. The oxygen sensor functions by signaling the amount of oxygen in the combusted air-

fuel mixture to engine’s computer according to which the fuel mixture is constantly readjusted while the engine is running. Thus it ensures the fuel efficiency and emission. If the O2 sensor is faulty and reads the amount of oxygen to be high, it would end up in a high emission of fuel. It is advisable to replace the Oxygen sensor if the car has run over 80,000 miles (128,000 km approx). All vehicles manufactured after 1995 has these sensors. While some cars have four Oxygen sensors, most of them have two oxygen sensors.

Another part that can help improve the performance of your car is the Spark Plugs. This part is responsible for igniting the air-fuel mixture in the engine combustion chambers of your car.  A wear

can cause the gap in the plug electrodes to increase, which could lead to fuel inefficiency and even misfiring.When the space between the electrodes of a spark plug increase, it takes up more voltage than necessary jump between the electrodes to create the spark. Thus the spark plugs play an

important role in powering your car and helps in its smooth handling. It is ideal to replace your spark

plugs after every 60,000 miles (96,000 km approx.).

A dirty air filter is no friend of your car’s. It can deteriorate your car’s ability to use fuel at the

optimum rate and hamper its performance. The engine requires air along with the fuel to drive the

car. The air filter supplies clean air which is essential for the car performance. As it gets old, it clogs

and disrupts the air supply. To compensate this, the engine would then have to work harder taking

up more fuel for the purpose; reducing the fuel efficiency.  It is further a problem maker if your car is

old – that is an average of 11 years according to today’s standards – and is an important thing to take

care of.  As compared to other parts discussed above, it is easier to replace the air filter at home,

taking up to about only 15 minutes with the help of simple tools.

Tires are one of those most important but most neglected parts of the car. Many a time, it might take

us a while to even realize that they are worn out. But, if they are worn out, out of alignment, or

underinflated, it could cause fuel inefficiency along with difficulty in handling the vehicle. There are

a few tire manufacturers who even provide formulas that improve mileage and extend tire life. Being

one of the integral parts, it is essential to be sure that the tires are properly inflated and is rightly checked for its air pressure every month.

While changing these parts will surely make a difference, there are a few things that are to be

avoided while driving to improve/ maintain the performance and mileage of your car. Excessive

idling, driving at higher speeds, cold weather and frequent trips, quick acceleration and heavy

braking, or carrying excessive weight, excess use of accessories such as an air conditioner, driving on hilly or mountainous terrain, and using 4-wheel drive can be avoided to improve the fuel efficiency of your car. take care of your car’s mileage and it will take you places.