Wouldn't Have Expected.

[Kaotic Lazagna]

Okay, so I Seafoamed my Vios today and did an oil change. Well, when Seafoaming a car, you're suppose to drive it like you stole it. So that what I did. However, before that, you have to rev your engine and idle to let most of the carbon build up out (seen as heavy smoke). So I revved and idled for 15-20 minutes, all the while thinking that my crappy tank (I had a lower mileage after the 2nd bar went off) is just getting crappier. Then I went to go to my place (an hour or so away) to change my oil (Gotta drive around with the Seafoam in). I was accelerating hard, doing jack rabbit starts until I got on the freeway. That's where I kept on flooring it every other minute (or less). I would floor it in 3rd all the way up to around 5k rpm (up to 65 mph). Then I would ease off and let it fall to 55 mph (in 5th), and drive at 55 mph for half a minute. Then I would drop it back to 3rd and repeat the process. I did this all the way back to my place (again, a little more than an hour away from my mom's). Changed my oil, and did some laundry. Then we ate dinner, and started to drive back to my mom's. I decided to fill up once I only had a quarter tank of gas left. Again, I was thinking, man, this has got to be the lowest mpg I'll ever get. So, I calculated my mpg, and got 39.615 mpg!!! I thought I did it wrong, so I recalculated everything again; 375 miles divided by 9.466 gallons (I put in 2.001 gallons prior to Seafoaming since I was already at half tank, so when I filled up just now, I added 7.465 gallons). I just find that crazy.

Anyway, back to the Seafoam. With 42k miles on the odometer, and hypermiling driving habits, I got a ton of carbon build up. I tried to take pics, but it's hard when you have to set the timer on the camera, run to the car and rev it in time before the shutter opens. I'll post some pics in a few. Gotta take care of some things first.

[Kaotic Lazagna]

Here are the pics. This was nothing. I had the entire lot overhang area filled with smoke.

http://i208.photobucket.com/albums/bb261/YarisKaos/Seafoam/DSC_0312-2.jpg

http://i208.photobucket.com/albums/bb261/YarisKaos/Seafoam/DSC_0313-2.jpg

http://i208.photobucket.com/albums/bb261/YarisKaos/Seafoam/DSC_0314-2.jpg

http://i208.photobucket.com/albums/bb261/YarisKaos/Seafoam/DSC_0315-2.jpg

[Kioshi]

hmm learned something new today, you get carbon buildup by hypermiling.....

Thats crazy though Kaotic....i remember you saying lower mpgs after the whole custom intake box fitting you did in the past and mpg dropping ever since, but yea this is good to hear bro :)

I never tried seafoam and am clueless on that 100%....will try this someday and see if i too get mpg improvement like you~

[rningonfumes]

Yes, hypermilers tend not to floor it so much, and not often at all. From what I've read over the nets, less than "spirited" driving can lead to some carbon build up.

Good job man!

[Kaotic Lazagna]

hmm learned something new today, you get carbon buildup by hypermiling.....

Thats crazy though Kaotic....i remember you saying lower mpgs after the whole custom intake box fitting you did in the past and mpg dropping ever since, but yea this is good to hear bro :)

I never tried seafoam and am clueless on that 100%....will try this someday and see if i too get mpg improvement like you~

Yeah, I'm thinking may be the filter was over-oiled and got onto the intake manifold or the like. Plus, feathering the throttle doesn't make a very strong vacuum to suck in and blow out any carbon build up.

[Kioshi]

good to know rningonfume.

Now i feel like going to Half Moon Bay and flooring it through the curvy turns tomorrow night to get rid of carbon buildup :)
I've been feathering for the past 2 weeks in a row now due to saving money for college....

[Kaotic Lazagna]

Hey, Hassin, I can show you how to use Seafoam. It's quite simple. I was scared at first since I've never used it, but it turned out fine.

[Kioshi]

Can you show me this Saturday? ;)

[Kaotic Lazagna]

hahaha, if I make it. hahahahahaha.

[Yaris Hilton]

The smoke tells you nothing about how much carbon was built up in your engine or was removed by the Seafoam. The smoke is mostly coming from the light oil in the Seafoam, called "pale oil" in the MSDS. True, if the gummy stuff that builds up on intake valves and ports, or the harder stuff that builds up in combustion chambers, gets broken off and moved to the exhaust, it'll get hot enough to put out smokey gases. But you can't tell how much of it's from that stuff as the oil you're pouring into the intake smokes out. Do the procedure over and over and you'll always see lots of smoke. (I wouldn't recommend repeating it frequently as I think it is somewhat hard on catalysts and O2 sensors.)

[RedRide]

The smoke tells you nothing about how much carbon was built up in your engine or was removed by the Seafoam. The smoke is mostly coming from the light oil in the Seafoam, called "pale oil" in the MSDS. True, if the gummy stuff that builds up on intake valves and ports, or the harder stuff that builds up in combustion chambers, gets broken off and moved to the exhaust, it'll get hot enough to put out smokey gases. But you can't tell how much of it's from that stuff as the oil you're pouring into the intake smokes out. Do the procedure over and over and you'll always see lots of smoke. (I wouldn't recommend repeating it frequently as I think it is somewhat hard on catalysts and O2 sensors.)

Although I use seafoam I have to agree. People see the smoke when sucking Seafaom though the intake/vacumn lines etc and think they are cleaning out dirt.

Personally, I just dump a can of Seafoam in the gas tank ocasionally. This gives the most benefits.

[advocate]

Although I use seafoam I have to agree. People see the smoke when sucking Seafaom though the intake/vacumn lines etc and think they are cleaning out dirt.

Personally, I just dump a can of Seafoam in the gas tank ocasionally. This gives the most benefits.

My mechanic threw some stuff into my gas tank for my 30k checkup and said that I should fill up right when I leave his lot then drain the tank all the way. Not sure exactly what he put in it but I assume it's something similar to this seafoam stuff?

[Yaris Hilton]

Could have been any one of a multitude of fuel system cleaning solvents, detergents, etc.

[Kaotic Lazagna]

The smoke tells you nothing about how much carbon was built up in your engine or was removed by the Seafoam. The smoke is mostly coming from the light oil in the Seafoam, called "pale oil" in the MSDS. True, if the gummy stuff that builds up on intake valves and ports, or the harder stuff that builds up in combustion chambers, gets broken off and moved to the exhaust, it'll get hot enough to put out smokey gases. But you can't tell how much of it's from that stuff as the oil you're pouring into the intake smokes out. Do the procedure over and over and you'll always see lots of smoke. (I wouldn't recommend repeating it frequently as I think it is somewhat hard on catalysts and O2 sensors.)

Although I use seafoam I have to agree. People see the smoke when sucking Seafaom though the intake/vacumn lines etc and think they are cleaning out dirt.

Personally, I just dump a can of Seafoam in the gas tank ocasionally. This gives the most benefits.


hmm, didn't know that, but why did my car not smoke as bad as I see on YouTube? In anycase, easy maintenance that I can do every other oil change (so every two years).

[Kaotic Lazagna]

Off-topic, but your car looks just beautiful...

Cheers

Thanks Echo. Yours looks amazing as well.

[Yaris Hilton]

hmm, didn't know that, but why did my car not smoke as bad as I see on YouTube?

Perhaps your catalyst was warm enough to be active and afterburned the oil more efficiently than some that have been posted. My '98 Mercury Villager smoked modestly as well. It had 117,000 miles on it, BTW, and was starting to make a cold engine knocking that I suspected was "carbon knock." That engine had reason for suspicion of a good bit of buildup after that long a life of mostly in-town driving, and ran better after treatment.