INFINITI of South Bay knows it’s difficult to remember all of the important parts of your vehicle that need occasional checking up on. Your engine air filter is a little something that makes a huge difference. You might not even realize it’s there until it’s clogged, but an engine filter check is a worthwhile investment to avoid bigger problems down the road, like costly engine replacement.

How it Works

Your filter is made out of material, like paper, foam, or cotton, that contains large sponge-like pores designed to let air in and keep abrasive particles out. To allow airflow with minimal resistance while also trapping the maximum amount of dirt and dust particles, filter designers use the largest surface area of material as possible and fold it into a series of corrugations to make the filter fit into its “housing” in your vehicle.

Healthy Engine Filter

Every car, driver, road, and combination of the three is different, so it’s hard to diagnose whether or not your engine filter is healthy based on day-to-day driving experience. The best way to check its health is to visually check it yourself. If you can get to your engine filter, take a look at it. If it is clean, and you aren’t experiencing any engine performance issues, you likely have a healthy filter on your hands.

Unhealthy Engine Filter

If your filter is exhibiting any of these symptoms, take it in for a check-up.
Black areas on the section of the filter where outside air enters could mean there’s some build-up that needs to be addressed. Without an expert’s eye, it’s hard to tell whether or not your filter’s level of build-up is safe. Take your car in for a filter-check ASAP.

Age plays a major role in filter efficiency. The range for filter use varies significantly, roughly 15,000 to 30,000 miles between replacements, depending on the manufacturer. However, this number is largely affected by the type of roads you normally take. If you spend a significant amount of time on dirty, dusty roads with ever-present debris, a frequent engine filter check is in your best interest.

Leaving a faulty filter in place for too long can lead to expensive engine damage down the road. If you have any doubts, or if you are unsure of the last time your engine filter was replaced, it’s worth some attention. A stop by our service department for a filter check will help both you and your car breathe easier.

Oil changes are the most common type of regular maintenance. Almost everyone who owns a vehicle knows that they need to have their oil changed regularly, but not everyone knows why the service is so important. The team here at INFINITI of South Bay wants you to understand the importance of this vital service, and why neglecting to change your oil could be catastrophic for your engine.

Motor oil lubricates the moving components inside your engine, from the crankshaft to the camshafts, and everything in between. It reduces wear and friction on the metal components that have very specific tolerances. It also cleans your engine, removing the debris, carbon, and sludge that build up over time, by trapping the contaminants in the oil. However, as the oil cleans and lubricates your engine it becomes less effective because it’s dirty. The dirtier the oil, the more difficult it is for your car to perform the way you expect it to.

It seems easy to let an oil change slide. Is it really that urgent? The truth is, it is that urgent. Dirty oil can burn off, meaning you won’t have enough oil in your engine to properly lubricate the internals, which will lead to major engine failure. It can also damage the seals inside of your engine, leading to costly repairs. As your engine heats up and cools down the oil goes through thermal breakdown, which decreases the viscosity of the oil. The result is that instead of the moving joints operating smoothly, they’ll rub against each other, causing wear and tear.


A quick look at your engine oil’s dipstick can tell you a lot about the health of your engine:

• Honey-colored oil: this oil is fresh and free of debris
• Dark Brown oil: it may be time for an oil change
• Gritty texture: oil may contain dirt or small pieces of metal
• Foamy, grey, or mixed with coolant: possible head gasket failure

If your oil looks dirty, it may be time to schedule an oil change. Don’t wait until it’s too late. The service team here at INFINITI of South Bay can choose the oil weight that works best for your car and climate, as well as make sure there are no signs of trouble.

When you’re shopping for a car, fuel economy is probably a hot topic of discussion. It directly affects your bottom line, whether you’re looking for a personal or business vehicle, and that makes it worth your time to consider. What you might not realize is that the focus on fuel economy shouldn’t stop when you’ve made your purchase decision; maintenance ensures you continue to achieve great fuel economy. Tire pressure plays a big part.

Did you know that you can improve your gas mileage simply by keeping your tires inflated to the recommended pressure? Tires naturally lose 1 pound per square inch (PSI) of pressure per month. For every 1 PSI drop in your average tire pressure, you’re losing about half of a percentage point of efficiency in your fuel economy.

Luckily, low tire pressure is a simple problem to avoid. Regularly checking the air pressure in your tires is easy to do, and you’ll typically find the proper tire pressure for your vehicle on a sticker in the driver’s side door or the glove box, as well as in your owner’s manual. The PSI that is stamped on the wall of the tire itself is the maximum air pressure for the tire, and not the optimum pressure you should shoot for.

Temperature also has a major impact on tires. Within any given day, temperatures can swing 20°F or more, affecting tire pressure and consequently fuel economy. Potentially, your vehicle’s tire pressure will decrease as much as two pounds for every ten-degree temperature drop. Imagine then, as you transition from summer to winter, a drop of 50°F daily average translates to about 5-10 PSI under-inflation. Each season change is a great time to check your tire pressure and make adjustments.

While low tire pressure can negatively impact fuel economy, the inverse is not true. Over-inflating your tires does not increase gas mileage; in fact, it can potentially do some damage to your tires if they are inflated to the maximum pressure. Your best bet is to stay with the PSI recommended by your vehicle’s manufacturer.

Conclusion

Get the maximum return on investment for everything related to your automobile. Maintaining the proper tire pressure will allow you to get the best performance, longest durability, and optimum fuel economy from your purchase. And a very simple routine of inspecting your tires and keeping the proper PSI could save you hundreds of dollars over the life of the tires.

The INFINITI of South Bay Service Department is always happy to help you check your tires to ensure they are in tip-top shape. Contact us online to schedule any service or give us a call to ask any questions!

Andy is very knowledgeable about the car business and has specialized in it for over 30 years.
As a member of the Infiniti of South Bay team, Andy brings his love of cars and helping people
to work every day. When he’s not on the floor assisting customers, Andy loves to travel and has
toured Europe extensively. He has planned a trip to Korea this Fall to visit family and can’t wait
to resume seeing the World. Golf and Fishing are his other favorite hobbies when he has time
to relax.

Andy’s family has resided in the area since 2000 and his children grew up experiencing
all that the South Bay has to offer. The Los Angeles Rams and Chargers are his favorite teams to
root for and he looks forward to the chance to see a game at SoFi Stadium this Fall. As Father’s
Day is just around the corner, Andy wants to give a shout out to his son who was deployed in
Afghanistan for over a year, returned home and recently graduated from college. Andy says
that it’s very fitting that he studied Architecture in school and ended up working with the
Infiniti brand, which prides itself on clean, crisp designs that are so aesthetically pleasing to his
eye.

Meet our Finance Manager, Anita Ruiz. She has been working at INFINITI of South Bay for 2.5 years as our Finance Manager. Anita is a real team player and a contributor who makes things happen and makes a difference. She is always positive and professional, as her online reviews would show, and we all enjoy having her smiling face at our dealership.

Anita has been in the car business for 13 years, starting her journey off as a file clerk at a corporate office for a large automotive group in Virginia Beach. From there, she was promoted to a Honda store and worked her way up the ladder. Anita moved to San Diego and worked as a payroll manager at another dealership. And then she moved to Vancouver, Canada and was an Internet Sales Manager at a Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram dealership before finally making her way back to San Diego where she joined the INFINITI of South Bay team as our Finance Manager. Having held many different roles in car dealerships, Anita brings a unique level of expertise that only someone with such a depth of experience could bring. We appreciate how Anita can fill-in and help-out wherever she is needed. She is very committed to her role, co-workers and the INFINITI of South Bay brand.

It’s safe to say Anita has traveled throughout her life! She was born and raised in Puerto Rico, and with her father in the Navy, she moved around to a number of different military bases across the country. Outside of work, Anita loves exploring LA, the beaches, shopping and hanging with friends. She has a huge family (4 siblings, 5 Nieces/Nephews and 4 Great-Nieces/Nephews) and only wishes her family lived close by! Anita came from a Spanish speaking household, and now in her freetime, she is taking private tutoring courses to improve her Spanish. Way to go! Speaking of Spanish households, her favorite dish is made by her mom. It’s called Arroz con Habichuelas. Nothing beats mom's homemade cooking!

Anita is a pleasure to work with every day and we feel so lucky to have her on our team!

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