So what does the auto air vent do? Would you recommend replacing it, I'm tempted to just leave it and see what happens.
don't just leave it. it is simple to sort out, just depressurise the boiler remove the whole piece, you can then seperate the top and bottom halfs with 2 pair of grips to really clean it out, wash it out under a tap (black gritty bits usually come out) then refit. the dust cap should be left loose when you put it back. then refill system to 1 bar.