Oh boy, I was stupid. (Seafoam related)

[ionbeam22]

Originally Posted By: rudolphna
Fill it with premium gas, make sure you replaced all senors and stuff. When I did this I forgot to reconnect the Air temperature sensor that threw a CEL code. Again, try filling with premium, and drive it hard. Pull spark plugs and clean or replace them. See if that helps at all.


Ok that's the plan. I'll refill with mobil 93(and no MMO!). I'll drive to an autozone by a freeway and have them check out the codes.

Hopefully it's something mild like "cylinder misfire" and not something bad like "O2 sensor ruined" or even worse "$$$".

I used the Deep Creep vs the liquid seafoam since I figured it would be more convenient and not have a risk of hydrolocking the engine. The Deep creep is nice stuff though, kind of like WD40 except more expensive, and I used some of it to clean up the engine bay.

 

[sciphi]

Your experience with Deep Creep causing a car to malfunction is similar to an experience I had with Deep Creep on another car that never ran right after using Deep Creep into a vacuum line, and puked its engine 6 months later.

No more Deep Creep into the engine for me!

It sure does free up rusty bolts, though!

 

[Challenger71]

I bet your plugs are fouled.

 

[Vizzy]

Seafoam is a marketing miracle.

I don't know WHY anyone would use this stuff in a modern car!!!!

The fact is that you can do a more effective, SAFER!!!, job with a professionally designed intake engine cleaner like 3M or the like.

This product and others like 3M have you place a fine spray jet just inside the throttle body butterfly and reseal the plumbing for the intake and engine. You turn the car on depress the nozzle on the spary can and run the car at about 2500 rpms until the can is empty. So you have a sparkling clean intake and combustion chamber and this product and others like it also clean off carbon from the exhaust valves and the O2 sensor and cat converter.

As for a SCIENTIFICALLY PROVEN bottle additive...ONLY "PEA" detergent is PROVEN by the automotive and petrolium industry to EFFECTIVELY remove carbon deposits from combustion chambers, valves, and fuel injectors WITHOUT leaving its own residue behind! You can find a high percentage of PEA in Regane total fuel system cleaner (40%) or Redline products...I do believe that Techron still has it but you have to check with them.

I can't say this enough...if you depend on your car and can't afford to spend bundles to fix a mistake. DO THE JOB RIGHT BY SPENDING A FEW MORE BUCKS TO BEGIN WITH!!!!!!!

If you are not SURE you can properly do a job DO NOT ATTEMPT IT!!!! Take it to a pro. You might spend a few more bucks in the short term but it might turn out to be much cheaper in the long run!!!!!!

 

[bustednutz]

Well I had an old V-Dub that ran like garbage. I pulled a vacuum line off the throttle body. Stuck it down a can of seafoam. Manually revved the throttle to keep it going. I ran half a can through at high rpm's. Then I deliberatly flooded it out with the seafoam. Let the stuff sit in the valves for half hour. Then started it up and watched one of the greatest smoke shows ever. I fumigated the entire neighborhood for bugs that evening. After that the car ran fantastic. I know the stuff works.

 

[GMBoy]

Originally Posted By: bustednutz
Well I had an old V-Dub that ran like garbage. I pulled a vacuum line off the throttle body. Stuck it down a can of seafoam. Manually revved the throttle to keep it going. I ran half a can through at high rpm's. Then I deliberatly flooded it out with the seafoam. Let the stuff sit in the valves for half hour. Then started it up and watched one of the greatest smoke shows ever. I fumigated the entire neighborhood for bugs that evening. After that the car ran fantastic. I know the stuff works.



Same with me! Stuff works when you use it right.

 

[Vizzy]

Originally Posted By: bustednutz
Well I had an old V-Dub that ran like garbage. I pulled a vacuum line off the throttle body. Stuck it down a can of seafoam. Manually revved the throttle to keep it going. I ran half a can through at high rpm's. Then I deliberatly flooded it out with the seafoam. Let the stuff sit in the valves for half hour. Then started it up and watched one of the greatest smoke shows ever. I fumigated the entire neighborhood for bugs that evening. After that the car ran fantastic. I know the stuff works.



It may work and sometimes probably does. BUT if you're not lucky or experienced it's likely to end up DAMAGING someone else's ride!!!!!


Again you can get the SAME results or BETTER, from a safe cleaning kit like the 3M kit or similar.

I think unless you are truly an experienced tech or such folks just aimessly look for an easy cure and end up doing far much damage than just spending a few more bucks for a proper product.


Stay away from Seafoam unless you are experienced in working with cars!!!!!!!

 

[severach]

Seafoam cleans about as well as buckshot which is fine if you're happy with an overpriced underachiever. Most of the Seafoam goes out the tail pipe without cleaning anything. The PEA based cleaners scrape everything clean for a lot less money if you give them enough time.

 

[Saturn_Fan]

Originally Posted By: severach
Seafoam cleans about as well as buckshot which is fine if you're happy with an overpriced underachiever. Most of the Seafoam goes out the tail pipe without cleaning anything. The PEA based cleaners scrape everything clean for a lot less money if you give them enough time.


Long live PEA!! Long live Redline SI-1 with 30-50% PEA in every bottle!!!!

 

[ionbeam22]

Ok, status update.

I get up early in the morning (~ 2:00pm) and get ready to head to autozone. Start up the car, and lo! The check engine light is gone!!

I agressively drive down to autozone, and pull the OBD codes. Which pulls up code P0480 M scan reveals no issues with any emissions systems components.

So my conclusion (so far) is that no permanent damage was done. What may have happened is that all the vapors/smoke produced during the seafoaming triggered the ECM to conclude that the fuel mixture was too rich. After a few restarts with no fuel mix problems, the ECM decides to turn off the check engine light.


The problem of gasping at idle is still there, but somewhat less than before. So hopefully the combination of 1/2 tank of Mobil 93 + all the other stuff in the tank will help clean out any remaining intake/cylinder residue vulnerable to chemical cleaning. Thus shrinking the universe of possible causes for this problem.

 

[nthach]

Originally Posted By: severach
Seafoam cleans about as well as buckshot which is fine if you're happy with an overpriced underachiever. Most of the Seafoam goes out the tail pipe without cleaning anything. The PEA based cleaners scrape everything clean for a lot less money if you give them enough time.

The only intake cleaners worth a darn is GM TEC, Mopar Combustion Chamber Cleaner or BG Air Intake Cleaner.

 

[ziggy]

I leanred this from a neons forum,a nd have manyt imes, used seafoam and deepcreep. IN my opinion, the regualr sefoam works way better. It is normal, at least in our neons, for the check engine light to come on after seafoaming the commbustion chamber...its cell reading cylinder 3 misfire. that is normal, after using seafoam. Yuor supopsed to let seafoma sit for about 30 minutes, start up, and drive till the smoke and stumbling goes away. Remember to take the emoty can of seafoam with you, incase a cop pulls you over..simply tell him yuo heard about it, gave it a shot(seafoaming) and didnt know it was gunna fume the streets up and of course nicely applogize to him.
After your engine has evened out..jack the car up, drain oil, new filter, remvoe the black negative cable fom battery for abuot 15 minutes, then re attach it. removing the negative cable will reset the pcm, correcting the false cell/cylinder 3 misfire.

 

[severach]

PEA does the work with no special procedure, no smoke to annoy the neighbors, no stumbling, no codes, and no threat of a police man reaching for your wallet. PEA doesn't cost 10 times as much as it's worth and doesn't send 90% of itself unused out the tailpipe in a matter of minutes. PEA doesn't leave most of the work undone.

I have a 1974 Briggs engine that had hard carbon splotches all over. 3 Seafoam treatments had no effect. Some deep creep had no effect. A few hours of PEA enhanced gasoline and the carbon isn't gone but it is on the run.

 

[ionbeam22]

I'm pretty comfortable with the idea that Seafoam'ing has a large element of show in it. However, I learned that when doing a professional fuel system cleaning (3 step run right system) the shop has to run the car's exhaust into a special ventalation system which prevents the shop from being filled with fumes and smoke.

So smoke formation does not seem to be exclusive to Seafoam.

 

[Drew99GT]

Originally Posted By: Pablo
Originally Posted By: ionbeam22
According to Seafoam:

Quote:
Deep Creep is Sea Foam Motor Treatment in an aerosol can which makes it convenient for use as a tool in many different household and shop applications, along with many engine maintenance projects. The Deep Creep can sprays upside down.


I figured using the spray can would be the best way to get an even seafoam vapor into the intake air system.


Deep Creep is NOT an engine treatment product! It's for freeing frozen bolts and such.

At this point just drive the thing like you stole it. Then replace the plugs and change the oil. Hope the O2 sensor is OK - it should be (or maybe it was shot to begin with)


WRONG. Deep Creep is 100% the exact same thing Seafoam. Both products are safe for oxygen sensors. I've used Deep Creep many times on engines.

"Safe for use on all engine parts, Deep Creep is useful for cleaning carbon from engines with side draft or up draft carburetors, throttle body and carburetor intakes, and PCV systems"

http://www.seafoamsales.com/projects-dee...ke-engines.html

 

[Pablo]

Drew - you should have kept reading.


Originally Posted By: Pablo

OH yeah the MSDS's do show all the Seafoam products to be the same (weak?) juice.


I used spray Deep Creep about 7-8 years ago and back then it was not for engines.

 

[Drew99GT]

You're wrong Pablo! Wrong I tell you!

 

[Pablo]

Yeah I know. But I was never a deep creep.

 

[doitmyself]

Originally Posted By: ionbeam22
Background: 2004 PT Cruiser (48,000mi). PT has a rough idling problem, in which the engine seems to missfire every few seconds , and "gasp" for air every 10-15 seconds. So far check engine light has not come on.


My Caravan has the non turbo 2.4 engine. It started running "rough" in a way that I thought must be a fuel problem or sometimes a tranny problem. I chased the problem with some Techron and Regane with no effect.

NO CEL/codes were shown on two different code scanners. I finally gave up and took it to a dealer and their more sophisticated diagnostic computer (so they told me) found an intermittent weak spark due to a faulty plug wire. Again, no error codes ever came up.

My point....with today's complex computer controlled engines, you can sometimes be mislead on a wrong diagnosis.

 

[ionbeam22]

Originally Posted By: doitmyself
Originally Posted By: ionbeam22
Background: 2004 PT Cruiser (48,000mi). PT has a rough idling problem, in which the engine seems to missfire every few seconds , and "gasp" for air every 10-15 seconds. So far check engine light has not come on.


My Caravan has the non turbo 2.4 engine. It started running "rough" in a way that I thought must be a fuel problem or sometimes a tranny problem. I chased the problem with some Techron and Regane with no effect.

NO CEL/codes were shown on two different code scanners. I finally gave up and took it to a dealer and their more sophisticated diagnostic computer (so they told me) found an intermittent weak spark due to a faulty plug wire. Again, no error codes ever came up.

My point....with today's complex computer controlled engines, you can sometimes be mislead on a wrong diagnosis.


Bingo, at this point I'm leaning towards this being a problem with the plug wires/plugs. Plan to take this to dealer to see what they say.

Having done the professional fuel system cleaning (and unprofessional seafoaming) remaining possiblities include bad plugs/wire/coils or some kind of insoluble obstruction in the fuel injection pintles, since the cleaning wasn't done through the fuel rail.