One of the maintenance services that may be recommended on your vehicle is a fuel injection cleaning service. Many people question whether this is really a valid service, that is beneficial for your vehicle, or is it just fluff.
Just to give you some background, back in the day, our vehicle’s used to have carburetors as the primary fuel mixing and delivery system. It was very common as regular maintenance to have it cleaned and adjusted regularly, really as a part of the tune up of the vehicle, so that it would keep operating properly. Conditions that occur with gasoline, are varnish and carbon deposits that form in the presence of heat associated with engine operation. These carbon deposits act like a sponge inhibiting fuel entering the cylinders of the engine. Varnish can clog passages and gum up moving parts. This can effect the emissions, fuel economy and performance of your vehicle. This is what they used to clean out of the carburetors.
In the 1980’s manufacturer’s phased out most carburetors, and switched over to fuel injection systems for the fuel mixing and delivery system of the vehicle. Even though the primary function is the same, the differences are that a carburetor used low pressure and the intake of air rushing thru to add fuel. Fuel injection uses fuel injectors with a very small nozzle and higher pressure to atomize the fuel. The fuel injectors have a fan spray pattern that is crucial to their effectiveness. Fuel injectors that are clogged and/or have varnish in them, can distort the spray pattern. This affects fuel atomization and can decrease combustion efficiency.
Even though fuel delivery and mixing systems have changed in vehicles over the years. Byproducts of gasoline remain the same. In fuel injection systems these small nozzles that are used to atomize the fuel DO need to be kept clean. There are various types of fuel injection cleaning services and products on the market. Some of them are “fluff” and are not really effective. Many of these are the over the counter products such as fuel tank additives. Professional, effective fuel injection services will include:
- An overall inspection of the fuel system including the ability of the fuel pump to produce the pressure specified to operate the injectors.
- Cleaning of the throttle body and a method of “flushing or washing out” small particles and varnish that build up or lodge in the injector.
- This carbon clean service should clean the air intake, and fuel system clear thru the exhaust.
Industrial equipment and cleaning products are critical for effective results of:
- Repairing driveability problems such as hesitations, hard starts, rough idling or lack of power.
- Reduce harmful emissions and smoke opacity.
- Restore fuel economy.
- Restore “New Car” performance.
- Extend fuel system component life.
A professional fuel cleaning service is highly recommended at least every 20,000 to 30,000 miles on your vehicle. This will help to optimize the longevity and performance of your vehicle’s fuel system. If you have any questions or comments feel free to call us at 503-465-2926 or email [email protected].
