Not sure if this has been covered before as I didn't find a whole lot of 100-specific stuff when I searched around. But, I did a Seafoam treatment on my Hundy this afternoon and happened to have the digital camera with me...I thought to myself, "Self, this might be a good opportunity for a forum write-up." So, here we go! First, a little background:
Ah, Seafoam. Love it or hate it, it's a relatively common product among vehicle enthusiasts. It is designed to clean your intake track and fuel system/injectors, and retails for between $6-$9 per can at your local auto parts store. There are a couple different ways you can use it, described below. Some people think it works (I happen to be in that catagory), some people think that it's a waste of money. The basic premise is that you can do three things with it:
1. Add it to your engine oil to "de-gunk" your crankcase if it has been neglected and there is alot of sludge built up. I won't use it this way, but if you go this route I wouldn't drive more than 100 miles or so before getting an oil change. Thats my personal opinion.
2. Add it to your gas tank. It mixes with the fuel and acts as a more potent version of your standard off-the-shelf fuel/injector cleaner additives.
3. Pull a vacuum line off of your intake manifold (PCV line, brake booster, etc) and slowly pour it in with the engine running, letting the suction inject it into the manifold/cylinders. Let it sit for a half hour or so, then start the car up and go for a spirited drive around town or on the insterstate while white smoke billows from your tail pipe (the smoke is a product of the treatment and dissipates after a couple of minutes).
The idea here is that the Seafoam goes in and dissovles carbon deposits, loosens sticking/dirty valves, cleans your injectors, etc, thereby restoring lost power and improving MPG. I have seen mileage improvements on several of my cars after using it, so I am a believer that it does work to some degree.
Personally, I do a mix of #2 and #3...something about adding it to the crankcase just doesn't jive with my brain, despite the can saying it's ok. If you would like step by step instructions on how to do the vacuum-line induction style treatment on a Hundy, read on.
First, remove the engine cover by removing the two 10mm bolts in the front and the two 10mm nuts in the back. This will allow you access to the PCV line that we will use to feed the seafoam in.
(I only had one hand available to use for pointing
)
Note:
When removing the engine cover, mind the little clip that is attached to one of the lines at the driver's side rear of the cover. A gentle tug should be all that is needed to free the line from the clip - the clip stays attached to the cover.
Next, locate the PCV valve and the associated line running from it into the intake manifold, seen here:
Again, being gentle, give the line a tug to free it from the PCV valve. On my cruiser, it came right off. This might be a good time to replace the PCV valve itself, if you so desire.
Now turn the line a little so that the end is facing up. You will be pouring the Seafoam directly into the line to feed it into the intake manifold.
Note: the vehicle has to be running for this to work, and we are intentionally creating a vacuum leak to feed to the seafoam into the manifold. Keep in mind that there is ALOT of vacuum on this line - so much, that you will notice a rough idle when you start the car. This is normal, don't fret...it goes away as soon as you put the line back on the PCV valve.
Now at this point, how you do it is up to you. I usually just open the can of seafoam, grab the line, and pour it in. The vacuum in the line will suck it right in - no funnel or anything needed. Just pour slowly and use between 1/2 and 2/3 of the can. Some people say that when you are almost done pouring it in, "flood" the line with the liquid until the engine stalls. I don't subscribe to that method personally - I just shut the vehicle off with the key. Any time you introduce liquid to an engine in large quantities, there is a risk of hydro locking the engine. Its rare with a product like this, but still possible...up to you how you want to do it, but these motors aint cheap! If it stalls due to the rough idle, so be it, but I don't do it intentionally with the Seafoam. Now, take the remainder of the Seafoam in the can and add it to your gas tank. Shut the vehicle off (if you didn't stall it out), reinstall your PCV line on the PCV valve, and reinstall your engine cover.
Now go eat dinner, sweep the garage, re-organize your stamp collection...whatever you want to do to kill about 30-45 minutes of time. Then head back out, start the Hundy up, and prepare for a smoke screen. Go for a spirited drive, get the revs up a bit - white smoke will billow out of your tailpipe for a few minutes. This is normal. The smoke is the product of all the carbon and gunk that the seafoam dissolved, and should dissipate within 3-5 minutes at the most.
Thats it, you're done!
I just did this on my Hundy for the first time tonight. Its has about 135K miles, and it smoked for about 3 minutes. I'll keep track of the mileage and edit this post with my findings. After the treatment:
Ah, Seafoam. Love it or hate it, it's a relatively common product among vehicle enthusiasts. It is designed to clean your intake track and fuel system/injectors, and retails for between $6-$9 per can at your local auto parts store. There are a couple different ways you can use it, described below. Some people think it works (I happen to be in that catagory), some people think that it's a waste of money. The basic premise is that you can do three things with it:
1. Add it to your engine oil to "de-gunk" your crankcase if it has been neglected and there is alot of sludge built up. I won't use it this way, but if you go this route I wouldn't drive more than 100 miles or so before getting an oil change. Thats my personal opinion.
2. Add it to your gas tank. It mixes with the fuel and acts as a more potent version of your standard off-the-shelf fuel/injector cleaner additives.
3. Pull a vacuum line off of your intake manifold (PCV line, brake booster, etc) and slowly pour it in with the engine running, letting the suction inject it into the manifold/cylinders. Let it sit for a half hour or so, then start the car up and go for a spirited drive around town or on the insterstate while white smoke billows from your tail pipe (the smoke is a product of the treatment and dissipates after a couple of minutes).
The idea here is that the Seafoam goes in and dissovles carbon deposits, loosens sticking/dirty valves, cleans your injectors, etc, thereby restoring lost power and improving MPG. I have seen mileage improvements on several of my cars after using it, so I am a believer that it does work to some degree.
Personally, I do a mix of #2 and #3...something about adding it to the crankcase just doesn't jive with my brain, despite the can saying it's ok. If you would like step by step instructions on how to do the vacuum-line induction style treatment on a Hundy, read on.
First, remove the engine cover by removing the two 10mm bolts in the front and the two 10mm nuts in the back. This will allow you access to the PCV line that we will use to feed the seafoam in.
(I only had one hand available to use for pointing
)Note:
When removing the engine cover, mind the little clip that is attached to one of the lines at the driver's side rear of the cover. A gentle tug should be all that is needed to free the line from the clip - the clip stays attached to the cover.
Next, locate the PCV valve and the associated line running from it into the intake manifold, seen here:
Again, being gentle, give the line a tug to free it from the PCV valve. On my cruiser, it came right off. This might be a good time to replace the PCV valve itself, if you so desire.
Now turn the line a little so that the end is facing up. You will be pouring the Seafoam directly into the line to feed it into the intake manifold.
Note: the vehicle has to be running for this to work, and we are intentionally creating a vacuum leak to feed to the seafoam into the manifold. Keep in mind that there is ALOT of vacuum on this line - so much, that you will notice a rough idle when you start the car. This is normal, don't fret...it goes away as soon as you put the line back on the PCV valve.
Now at this point, how you do it is up to you. I usually just open the can of seafoam, grab the line, and pour it in. The vacuum in the line will suck it right in - no funnel or anything needed. Just pour slowly and use between 1/2 and 2/3 of the can. Some people say that when you are almost done pouring it in, "flood" the line with the liquid until the engine stalls. I don't subscribe to that method personally - I just shut the vehicle off with the key. Any time you introduce liquid to an engine in large quantities, there is a risk of hydro locking the engine. Its rare with a product like this, but still possible...up to you how you want to do it, but these motors aint cheap! If it stalls due to the rough idle, so be it, but I don't do it intentionally with the Seafoam. Now, take the remainder of the Seafoam in the can and add it to your gas tank. Shut the vehicle off (if you didn't stall it out), reinstall your PCV line on the PCV valve, and reinstall your engine cover.
Now go eat dinner, sweep the garage, re-organize your stamp collection...whatever you want to do to kill about 30-45 minutes of time. Then head back out, start the Hundy up, and prepare for a smoke screen. Go for a spirited drive, get the revs up a bit - white smoke will billow out of your tailpipe for a few minutes. This is normal. The smoke is the product of all the carbon and gunk that the seafoam dissolved, and should dissipate within 3-5 minutes at the most.
Thats it, you're done!
I just did this on my Hundy for the first time tonight. Its has about 135K miles, and it smoked for about 3 minutes. I'll keep track of the mileage and edit this post with my findings. After the treatment:
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