Contenu
As the basis for all life on Earth, carbon is great stuff -- in your engine, not so much. Ironically, the carbon deposits in your engine actually come from previous life on Earth, in the form of the dinosaurs youre burning the keep the vehicle running. Perhaps its fitting that bits of them decide to hang on in your intake for one last moment, before getting sucked into the maelstrom of combustion. But, sympathy aside, they do have an awful way of gumming up air passages and costing horsepower. And thats the part that counts.
Step 1
Locate the vacuum hose leading directly from your intake manifold to the brake master cylinder booster. You can trace the vacuum hose from the booster to the engine to make sure theres no junctions or sensors in the line. Unplug the vacuum hose from the brake booster or the intake side of the hose.
Step 2
Plug one end of your vacuum line adapter into the vacuum hose you just pulled off; plug an 18-inch length of 1/4-inch vacuum line onto the other end of the adapter. Pour about 8 ounces of engine cleaner -- about half the standard can -- into your plastic bottle or glass jar. Drop the other end of the 1/4-inch vacuum hose into the bottle. Carefully hold the end of the hose just above the top of the liquid.
Step 3
Have your assistant start the vehicle. Expect it to start and idle rough, since youve opened up a sizable vacuum leak. Have your assistant hold the throttle at about 2,000 rpm -- no higher.
Step 4
Start lightly dipping the end of the tube down into the engine cleaner so the engine is just taking little "sips" -- just one little sip every two seconds or so. Youll hear the engine bog down, and youll see it start to spew black or white smoke out the exhaust. Dont be alarmed, this is completely normal, and its not hurting the engine. This is just a result of the engine running very rich, and not completely burning the cleaner.
Step 5
These premium gasolines contain high-grade detergents that will work well with the engine cleaner to rid your engine of existing deposits. Continue to run at least one tank a month of Top Tier gasoline to keep your engine clean and free of carbon. In between, add a couple ounces of your remaining engine cleaner to each tank, until you run out.
Tip
- Call your manufacturers service department to make sure this kind of top-end cleaning is safe for your engine. It is for most, but it cant hurt to be sure.
Items you will need
- 1/4-inch rubber vacuum hose
- Male-to-male hose adapter
- Two cans of top-end engine cleaner like Seafoam, AMSOIL Power Foam, Mopar Top End Cleaner or BG44K
- Plastic bottle or glass jar
- Assistant
