[TheOtherLeft]

Hi guys,

Do products that say they clean the upper cylinder head, air intake track etc really do anything? I'm thinking products like Subaru's Sea Foam etc?

Are they worth it? FWIW this is for a 2002 J20A engine.

[Scrawny]

Yes, they work well! I've had carbies come spotlessly clean in the throat also

[droverdave]

Ive put it the subaru one through a number of engines, its basically a hardcore carby cleaner. it dissolves the carbon deposits everywhere and then they get sucked into your engine when you start it up.

You know how much they do by how much crap comes out the exhaust when you first start it up. we did my mates old beat up mazda, and man burnt carbon just poured out the exhaust, second time we did it we drove away from his house as it annoyed his neighbours..

I put it through my old S15 silvia and WRX and not alot of junk came out the back. All engines were noticeably smoother after the clean though.

[TheOtherLeft]

Has anyone tried this stuff?

http://www.bgprod.com/catalog/gasoline-fuel-system/bg-air-intake-system-cleaner/#bg-product-3

[banga]

just get the Subaru one its made by bars. I swear by it I have used carby clean on my old subie still left build up and then used the upper engine cleaner come up spotless. I have had 3 subies over the years and used it In all of them also used it in my old td courier and use it in the zook also. tried and tested.

[JrZook]

x100 for the subi upper engine cleaner!

[matth27]

Where can you get the subaru upper engine cleaner from here?
and where is a suitable vacuum port on a sierra intake to put It in?

Anyone heard of running it in your oil for 100kms to clean the bottom end down?

[mnemonix]

+1 for Subaru upper engine cleaner.
I've tried a few other products. When you pull a donk down you can notice the difference.
After the last engine I got rebuilt the engine builder reckon's it looked like a freshly built engine because it was in "as new" nick, despite having 100,000kms+

[schmiffee]

+1 for the Subaru gear, but last time I sourced it, the dealership that used to use it (Ford) had switched to the ThreeBond stuff....seems pretty good stuff so far...

[shandy92]

Could all that stuff that gets released (carbon buildup) possibly get stuck in the valve seat or between the piston and block scoring the block?

[henno]

That was my exact thought. Much like oil "cleaners" moving the sludge around into far worse spots.

[offroadjack]

never been a big fan of additives, just another thing on the shelf they can sell and amazingly, to a lot of people.
apparently spraying water down your carby does the same thing...
I just put my trust in the 98 octane v-power fuel shell and Caltex are selling that do just that.(claiming to clean your engine).
what happened to the good old blowing out the cobwebs every now and then, does wonders you know.

[droverdave]

The upper engine cleaner was specified on my old WRX for every service, though i think thats because the heads being on their side are more susceptible to the carbon build up.

[Gwagensteve]

Correct. Apparently hard starting is the symptom in Subarus.

[henno]

Not to mention the (assumed) increase in blow-by from the turbo gunking things up once it starts to get a little tired.

[charged88]

Gwagensteve wrote:

Correct. Apparently hard starting is the symptom in Subarus.

Same with a lot of Volkswagens, worked at a specialist for a while and alot of Boras and Passats would come in running terrible, use a can of subi clean and take it for a enthusiastic test drive and would be like a new car.

but like offroadjack said, ring its neck occasionally and there will be far less deposits

[pete_79]

Sounds like this might be just what I need for my piece of crap 3.0L Bombadore.
I can't get more then 500ks from 65L (this is the car they advertised as getting 800k to a tank). I've just got it back from the 60K service and it was the 3rd service in a row that they said the top end was full of carbon.

I questioned the cause and couldn't believe the official word from the Holden dealer:
"These 3L engines are terrible, we get some that are so full of crap we have to strip them down and soak them overnight to free them up"
I asked what can I do to stop the build up, again I couldn't believe the reply:
"Just flog the guts out of it....."


Might add a bit of this subi clean stuff then follow the advise from the dealer.....

[bohuler]

offroadjack wrote:

I just put my trust in the 95 and 98 octane fuel shell and Caltex are selling that do just that..

I lol'd.
If you want to buy a good quality fuel you buy Australia refined plain and simple. You ask where you buy your fuel where does their fuel come from and if its not Australian it will be shit. Yes it meets Australian Standards but does that mean the fuel is good? No it means the standards are low.
Fuel is very much like food, it has a shelf life. It will go off. If it is imported it is near its best before date when it arrives in the country. Then it needs to be handled, transported, stored onsite then sold ect ect.
For the Victorian's do some research into Yarraville. Then Hastings.
Just something to think about.
Dave

[Marko_SJ]

pete_79 wrote:

Sounds like this might be just what I need for my piece of crap 3.0L Bombadore.
I can't get more then 500ks from 65L (this is the car they advertised as getting 800k to a tank). I've just got it back from the 60K service and it was the 3rd service in a row that they said the top end was full of carbon.

I questioned the cause and couldn't believe the official word from the Holden dealer:
"These 3L engines are terrible, we get some that are so full of crap we have to strip them down and soak them overnight to free them up"
I asked what can I do to stop the build up, again I couldn't believe the reply:
"Just flog the guts out of it....."


Might add a bit of this subi clean stuff then follow the advise from the dealer.....

You should easily be getting 500 km from a tank, unless its city only driving.

The v6 has sludging issues that arise from the high milage between service intervals.

The v6 also has a separate issue stemming from the fact its direct injection. The PCV does its job and crud builds up on the valves with no fuel to wash it off.

I highly doubt dealers are regularly stripping these things overnight... ever looked at the disassembly/assembly of the v6?

[pete_79]

^^
Not wanting to highjack this thread, but it has never got 800ks to a tank, not even close. Best I've ever got was 680k from 60L that was all highway, cruse control on and only me in the car.
Can't confirm the stripping down engines, just repeating what the guy at Holden said to me.

Edit;
To clarify, that 'best' figure was with about 20k on the clock and it's been all down hill from there. The last 4 tanks (always over 60L) have got less then 450km.
Apparently it's the carbon in the head giving such bad figures, nothing to do with an under powered engine in an over weight car.....

[Marko_SJ]

pete_79 wrote:

^^
Not wanting to highjack this thread, but it has never got 800ks to a tank, not even close. Best I've ever got was 680k from 60L that was all highway, cruse control on and only me in the car.
Can't confirm the stripping down engines, just repeating what the guy at Holden said to me.

Edit;
To clarify, that 'best' figure was with about 20k on the clock and it's been all down hill from there. The last 4 tanks (always over 60L) have got less then 450km.
Apparently it's the carbon in the head giving such bad figures, nothing to do with an under powered engine in an over weight car.....

Thats doing awful. I get more than that driving around town, and I've got the 3.6 manual. To be honest, not many people like the 3.0s.

I'd run the cleaner through it, to get rid of the build up, it is what a lot of owners do with the v6s.

I never expected it to be good on fuel, and I certainly didn't believe Holden's claims. To be honest it sounds like you bought the wrong car... Maybe the best option is to sell?

Look for a Skoda Octavia diesel, its a cut price VW Golf. They drive nicely and are well built. Honestly you'll use 6L/100 km maybe less.

[offroadjack]

bohuler wrote:

offroadjack wrote:

I just put my trust in the 95 and 98 octane fuel shell and Caltex are selling that do just that..

I lol'd.
If you want to buy a good quality fuel you buy Australia refined plain and simple. You ask where you buy your fuel where does their fuel come from and if its not Australian it will be shit. Yes it meets Australian Standards but does that mean the fuel is good? No it means the standards are low.
Fuel is very much like food, it has a shelf life. It will go off. If it is imported it is near its best before date when it arrives in the country. Then it needs to be handled, transported, stored onsite then sold ect ect.
For the Victorian's do some research into Yarraville. Then Hastings.
Just something to think about.
Dave

Where it comes from I don't really care much about that, v-power claims to clean your engine, true or not we as simple people will never find out now do we?
When the time comes to replace my H20 with the H25 I will strip the thing and see for myself if there is any carbon on my cylinder heads. I just use the v-power or 95 as I believe it runs better on it. On 91 it pings like crazy and a noticeable difference power wise compared to the 95 and 98
I just don't believe in additives and like I said ringin it's neck every now and then gets rid of any crap that's been building up.

[TheOtherLeft]

What do you guys think of Liqui Moly Intake Decarb?

http://www.supercheapauto.com.au/online-store/products/Liqui-Moly-Petrol-Engine-Intake-Decarb.aspx?pid=348781#Cross

Is it worth it?

[atari4x4]

id get the subi stuff, everyone on the whole net raves about it... don't think i've ever heard of a bad review.

[TheOtherLeft]

Some some suggest changing the engine oil/filter after running the upper engine cleaner? I think possibly due to the cleaner getting into the oil and thinning it out.

Is this a real risk and hence needed?

[droverdave]

Nope.

who is "some"?

You're over thinking it. Spray it in, watch it clean, enjoy beverage knowing your engine is clean.

[TheOtherLeft]

droverdave wrote:

Nope.

who is "some"?

You're over thinking it. Spray it in, watch it clean, enjoy beverage knowing your engine is clean.

I've seen a few references to it on various car forums and pootube.

[redbaby]

Products like Subaru's Sea Foam claim to clean the upper cylinder head, air intake track, and other engine components.