Carbon cleaning - any views or experience?

Scania_Man

Slightly different but fuel efficiency based again has anyone had a carbon clean carried out?

Research indicates the usual wide spectrum from being accused of 'snake oil' to restoring power and better mpg and smoother quieter running.

Most seem to be based on a technology of hydrogen bring substituted into the fuel line so the engine seems to run on a gas which burns at a higher temp to break down carbon. I'm no scientist so don't know if this sounds reasonable or not.

But I have heard of one company who say that hydrogen is too hot and can damage the engine metal and their process- of which I'm not sure how it works - is safer.

I've noticed more companies popping up offering carbon cleaning doing quite a few vehicles so I'm not sure if it's the miracle some make it out to be but certainly the 'worst' reviews are generally along the lines of no difference rather than its wrecked my engine.

Any thoughts or experiences mse's?

Richard53

My thoughts on most of these inventions: if they worked, the manufacturers would have adopted them long ago.

EdGasket

I've used the water in air intake method and the ATF in spark plug hole method. Can't honestly say if either made any difference but they did no harm and car is up to 170K miles. I wouldn't pay someone though when there are free methods you can use which are probably just as effective as any method is going to be.

Why do you think you need it?

Scania_Man

EdGasket wrote: »

I've used the water in air intake method and the ATF in spark plug hole method. Can't honestly say if either made any difference but they did no harm and car is up to 170K miles. I wouldn't pay someone though when there are free methods you can use which are probably just as effective as any method is going to be.

Why do you think you need it?

Cars now 8 years of age and in the three I've had it it's now over 150k with over half that done in my time. Usually run on supermarket diesels. Mechanically all ok and serviced but slow and sluggish when cold and could stall very easily in 1st when moving off from stopped (eg road end) more like a petrol despite bring diesel. Once warm no problem. Cold weather exacerbates it.

Due to work I do enough miles to warrant diesel but some of those miles are stop start 3 or 4 mile journeys from job to job and one day might do 7 miles over and above commute and next day it could be 80. So thinking of all those short journeys maybe causing build ups?

My car is of an age where there is no dpf so no worries about it needing a clean out in 3rd!

So getting back some of that get up and go and mpg would be my reason - if indeed that would be achievable

jimjames

If it's a faulty part causing those issues (glow plug?) then no amount of fiddling with cleaning will fix that underlying fault.

EdGasket

Some people swear by a little two-stroke oil in the diesel. I don't know enough about diesels to say whether your symtoms might be carbon or not. If you want to try it, google 'water injection to clean carbon' or something like that, but be careful to do it slowly so as not to hydrolock the engine which must be hot.
ATF in spark plug hole won't help you much with a diesel; you don't want to be taking the glow plugs out if you dont have to.