On the highly debated topic of the AFT engine flush here are my primitive recent results...
Anyhow, I am a big fan of these if one knows the maintenance history of the vehicle they are flushing. Here is my example; Our 2012 Honda Civic with 147k miles on it. We have owned this since new and I have been fairly religious about the maintenance. I usually use the maintenance minder on the car which comes in at around 8k at the 15% notice. I have done 2 or 3 10-12k runs on quality full synthetic oils that were sent off for UOA's. 90% of the OCI's were full synthetic 0w20 or 5w20. I have run maybe two or three conventional 5w30 runs at shorter 5-7k intervals.
So this brings me to the flush. The ATF flush I use had evolved a bit over the years. I like the ATF since it has lubrication properties unlike kerosene. My most recent flush consisted of;
-2.5 quarts of ATF (1.5 quarts of ST ATF and 1 quart of ST ATF+4)
-1 quart Motor Medic engine flush
-Approximately 4-6 ounces of ST engine stabilizer (Walmart's version of Lucas)
Here is my primitive theory... 1) Motor medic for the cleaning portion. 2) ATF to lubricate and show the color change from the bright red. 3) The oil stabilizer to thicken it all up a little bit.
The car was driven about 50 miles and the old oil was drained and filter removed. Everything drained for 30-40 minutes. A new sacrificial filter was installed and the cocktail added. The engine was run at idle for 20 minutes and then drained.
I am actually very surprised at how dirty the fluid was that came out considering that the engine looks spotless through the fill hole on the top end. In my opinion, this flush works. Just my .02 on the age old topic.
Anyhow, I am a big fan of these if one knows the maintenance history of the vehicle they are flushing. Here is my example; Our 2012 Honda Civic with 147k miles on it. We have owned this since new and I have been fairly religious about the maintenance. I usually use the maintenance minder on the car which comes in at around 8k at the 15% notice. I have done 2 or 3 10-12k runs on quality full synthetic oils that were sent off for UOA's. 90% of the OCI's were full synthetic 0w20 or 5w20. I have run maybe two or three conventional 5w30 runs at shorter 5-7k intervals.
So this brings me to the flush. The ATF flush I use had evolved a bit over the years. I like the ATF since it has lubrication properties unlike kerosene. My most recent flush consisted of;
-2.5 quarts of ATF (1.5 quarts of ST ATF and 1 quart of ST ATF+4)
-1 quart Motor Medic engine flush
-Approximately 4-6 ounces of ST engine stabilizer (Walmart's version of Lucas)
Here is my primitive theory... 1) Motor medic for the cleaning portion. 2) ATF to lubricate and show the color change from the bright red. 3) The oil stabilizer to thicken it all up a little bit.
The car was driven about 50 miles and the old oil was drained and filter removed. Everything drained for 30-40 minutes. A new sacrificial filter was installed and the cocktail added. The engine was run at idle for 20 minutes and then drained.
I am actually very surprised at how dirty the fluid was that came out considering that the engine looks spotless through the fill hole on the top end. In my opinion, this flush works. Just my .02 on the age old topic.