Best OTC fuel injector cleaner

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I know this has been covered before but what is the latest and greatest OTC fuel injector cleaner. My 96 Century with 44K is running a bit sluggish.
 
Try driving your car! Lol. 44K? That's it?! I have had good results with B12 Chemtool. Seafoam is too expensive.
 
BG 44K
thumbsup2.gif
 
If you want something that will work then get a can of Carb cleaner and spray out the throttle body, A can of MAF cleaner and clean the MAF, and replace the fuel filter.

Don't buy into the [censored] sales pitch of "top tier" gas and other additives that are so diluted by the time they get to the injector they do not do much.
 
Gumout Regane with PEA or Techron. My GMC Sierra with 108,000 miles began to have symptoms of a clogged injector and Regane almost immediately cleared it up. Techron has also worked well for me in the past. I used Regane this time because the bottle I bought could treat my 34 gallon tank.
 
Does anybody still make the injector cleaner that comes in a can with a threaded nipple on top? It threads into a manifold and gage assy that mates to the schrader valve on the fuel rail

I just went thru my last can of Blue Streak.
 
Originally Posted By: i_hate_autofraud
Does anybody still make the injector cleaner that comes in a can with a threaded nipple on top? It threads into a manifold and gage assy that mates to the schrader valve on the fuel rail

I just went thru my last can of Blue Streak.



BWD still makes the cleaner- I use it too and nothing cleans as good and fast as a fuel rail clean. I get them at O'Riellys but they are behind the counter - ask for it and they go get it.
 
There is no clear answer, it depends on what is in the system and injectors that need to be removed.
If the injectors are really bad enough that a dealer or garage wants to do a through the fuel rail/line decline the so called service, this is the biggest profit padding scam on the market today.
Its beyond worthless. They try to sell this garbage if the injectors need it or not, its a pure money maker.

One of the most important pieces of information the mechanic needs to know when servicing injectors is the current draw of the individual injectors.
When initially assessing the injectors for service there are a few condition that must be met.
The injector cannot leak internally or internally, there cab be no internal rust or under the top cap and the injector must be electrically sound.

At that point the injectors can be cleaned, first by cleaning the outside with chemicals or bead blasting on metal ones, the body stripped down and filters removed before going in the ultrasonic tanks.
Once cleaned they are tested in drive cycles the units will see in the real world all the time monitoring not only the spray pattern and flow but the current draw.
This testing mimics the cars ECM, it is not destructive testing. The vast majority of injector failures I see are internal leaks and abnormal current draw.

Some times as they heat up an injector can show abnormal current draw, this is a bad unit. It functions but will usually spray more fuel that the others causing the ECM to subtract fuel.
Some injector models are more prone to this sort of failure than others, I know which ones to look for when I do them, one marine unit had an almost 40% failure rate.

I get them because the engine isn't running right so they get the injectors cleaned only to find out its not dirty injectors but electrically failed injectors, keep in mind these injectors all test good with an ohm meter. Checking the ohms of an injectors basically tells you if it has an open or short but that's all.

Cleaning the injectors through the rail only pushed any dirt that may be in rail deeper in the units, it may dissolve some varnish but that's all, it does not diagnose anything or uncover an issue with a single unit.
There area few things to consider when using an in the tank product for preventive maintenance.

On a older vehicle that uses a steel fuel tank like the one in the OP's car a three prong approach is probably the most beneficial.
Older steel fuel tanks may have rust particles in them, it is very important to keep the fuel filter changed on these.
If the car doesn't see much use then a product that dissolves varnish is probably more beneficial than a PEA based cleaner, this is also true of small engines like lawnmowers, snowblowers, etc.
Follow that with a PEA based cleaner to address any deposits on the intake valves and fuel injector pintel or disc.

On later models with plastic tanks that are used daily a PEA cleaner is the product to use, varnish will be minimal or non existent on these and rust particles are usually a non issue.
I have tested Redline SI-1 over 30K and it does an excellent job of maintaining the cleanliness of the injectors when used every 3K. It will not taint the oil so there is no need to wait till the next OCI. It can also be used a few ounces every tank.
This is my personal favorite, Gumout HM and Techron total fuel system cleaner are also good.
For varnish Berrymans Chemtool is hard to beat, it works very well. A couple of ounces in the lawnmower or other small engine every third or forth tank will keep it running like new indefinitely.
Sorry for the long post but I hope someone finds this information helpful.
 
Originally Posted By: Jimzz


If you want something that will work then get a can of Carb cleaner and spray out the throttle body, A can of MAF cleaner and clean the MAF, and replace the fuel filter.



This, and Shell and SI1.
 
Redline Si-1, Gumout Regane HM, BG-44k

Given your 96 only has 44k miles, you may need a more thorough approach (fuel filter, complete tune-up, new plugs, etc).
 
Originally Posted By: Olas
Originally Posted By: Jimzz


If you want something that will work then get a can of Carb cleaner and spray out the throttle body, A can of MAF cleaner and clean the MAF, and replace the fuel filter.



This, and Shell and SI1.
And how does that clean the injectors? Of course, it is possible that OP only thinks that he need to clean them rather than actually needing to clean them.
 
Originally Posted By: Trav
There is no clear answer, it depends on what is in the system and injectors that need to be removed.

:Snip:



Awesome post, Trav!
 
Originally Posted By: Vikas
Originally Posted By: Olas
Originally Posted By: Jimzz


If you want something that will work then get a can of Carb cleaner and spray out the throttle body, A can of MAF cleaner and clean the MAF, and replace the fuel filter.



This, and Shell and SI1.
And how does that clean the injectors? Of course, it is possible that OP only thinks that he need to clean them rather than actually needing to clean them.


Shell and redline will clean the injectors. Maybe not as effectivly as doung them on the bench, but it will help. Tb MAF and ff make sense while you're in there..
 
Originally Posted By: Trav
There is no clear answer, it depends on what is in the system and injectors that need to be removed.
If the injectors are really bad enough that a dealer or garage wants to do a through the fuel rail/line decline the so called service, this is the biggest profit padding scam on the market today.
Its beyond worthless. They try to sell this garbage if the injectors need it or not, its a pure money maker.

One of the most important pieces of information the mechanic needs to know when servicing injectors is the current draw of the individual injectors.
When initially assessing the injectors for service there are a few condition that must be met.
The injector cannot leak internally or internally, there cab be no internal rust or under the top cap and the injector must be electrically sound.

At that point the injectors can be cleaned, first by cleaning the outside with chemicals or bead blasting on metal ones, the body stripped down and filters removed before going in the ultrasonic tanks.
Once cleaned they are tested in drive cycles the units will see in the real world all the time monitoring not only the spray pattern and flow but the current draw.
This testing mimics the cars ECM, it is not destructive testing. The vast majority of injector failures I see are internal leaks and abnormal current draw.

Some times as they heat up an injector can show abnormal current draw, this is a bad unit. It functions but will usually spray more fuel that the others causing the ECM to subtract fuel.
Some injector models are more prone to this sort of failure than others, I know which ones to look for when I do them, one marine unit had an almost 40% failure rate.

I get them because the engine isn't running right so they get the injectors cleaned only to find out its not dirty injectors but electrically failed injectors, keep in mind these injectors all test good with an ohm meter. Checking the ohms of an injectors basically tells you if it has an open or short but that's all.

Cleaning the injectors through the rail only pushed any dirt that may be in rail deeper in the units, it may dissolve some varnish but that's all, it does not diagnose anything or uncover an issue with a single unit.
There area few things to consider when using an in the tank product for preventive maintenance.

On a older vehicle that uses a steel fuel tank like the one in the OP's car a three prong approach is probably the most beneficial.
Older steel fuel tanks may have rust particles in them, it is very important to keep the fuel filter changed on these.
If the car doesn't see much use then a product that dissolves varnish is probably more beneficial than a PEA based cleaner, this is also true of small engines like lawnmowers, snowblowers, etc.
Follow that with a PEA based cleaner to address any deposits on the intake valves and fuel injector pintel or disc.

On later models with plastic tanks that are used daily a PEA cleaner is the product to use, varnish will be minimal or non existent on these and rust particles are usually a non issue.
I have tested Redline SI-1 over 30K and it does an excellent job of maintaining the cleanliness of the injectors when used every 3K. It will not taint the oil so there is no need to wait till the next OCI. It can also be used a few ounces every tank.
This is my personal favorite, Gumout HM and Techron total fuel system cleaner are also good.
For varnish Berrymans Chemtool is hard to beat, it works very well. A couple of ounces in the lawnmower or other small engine every third or forth tank will keep it running like new indefinitely.
Sorry for the long post but I hope someone finds this information helpful.







Trav..I agree 100% with your entire post. Thanks for taking the time to write that!
 
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