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Question about Seafoam and all that fun stuff

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by darkgiant, May 29, 2016.

  1. darkgiant

    darkgiant Member

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    So, in my new Prius, the previous owner mentioned that last year closer to the summer, she experienced some cylinder misfire, but it was just the case of bad spark plugs in cylinder 1 and 3. Anywho, I do want to ask:

    I was wondering if there is a "best" additive I can use to do a cleaning of the fuel system and engine (aside from using a vac)? I obviously know there are super mixed opinions with what works and doesn't work, which is why I am asking. I was wondering if Seafoam, Techron, Gumout, or whatever cleaner works. If they do, which one is the best for the Prius? I use only Costco gasoline and never have had issues with the gas on any of my cars, but don't know what kind of additives are in the fuel. Anywho, just wondering to see if buying any of that stuff can help, or if all those products just fall under the "placebo" effect.
     
  2. JimboPalmer

    JimboPalmer Tsar of all the Rushers

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    Save your money, find the busiest gas station in town and buy from there. Fresh gas is good gas.
     
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  3. David Beale

    David Beale Senior Member

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    Most of the additives are so diluted they do next to nothing. To -properly- clean the engine inside the method is to inject pure cleaner through the fuel system. Not for non-techs! Even this is only a stop-gap measure. Mostly does nothing but extract money from the customer's wallet. Taking the parts off the car and soaking overnight in the -very- toxic solution is really the only way.

    Save your money. There is very little buildup in most engines. In the Prius there can be problems with oil getting into the intake due to the "Atkinson cycle". Check your intake tubing and sensors (MAF) for oil. Make sure the air filter is clean. The exhaust recirc. piping and the crankcase vent filter can also be cleaned to great effectiveness, but that is a "tech job". That's about all you can do that is effective.

    Costco gas is good. Very high volume around here.
     
  4. wjtracy

    wjtracy Senior Member

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    Costco is a member of TopTierGas.com which means they add adequate extra amounts of detergent additive.
     
  5. The Electric Me

    The Electric Me Go Speed Go!

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    Here's my philosophy, and I'm not even saying it is the right thing to do, just the ritual I've used for a long time.
    About 2 tanks before my next oil change I run a treatment of Techron.
    In between this process, I try to only purchase gas at "Top Tier" stations.

    Never had a problem.

    Is this placebo effect?

    Well maybe. But the cost of a bottle of Techron coupled with just trying to go to "Top Tier" stations is pretty minimal.

    If your vehicle is misfiring, it might be too late for a commercial maintenance preventative move.
    Which Prius are you talking about?
    Your signature suggest you own 3.
    I'd be suspicious of a bigger problem if a 2011 Prius already had bad spark plugs.
     
  6. darkgiant

    darkgiant Member

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    Well, you have to come see the lines at Costco. I am not joking, you can easily waste 30-45 minutes at around 5 PM on an afternoon. I usually fill up at around 9 AM or 7 PM when I am either going home, or going to school/work, the lines are probably 5-10 minute wait, but the fact that Costco gas is pretty good, and cheaper by a mile than any other brand, it just seems worth it. That, and getting the annual check from Costco doesn't hurt.








    Merged.







    Yeah, sorry I didn't mention that, its the 2011 Prius. The previous owner had the misfire issue (Showed receipt at the dealership replacing the spark plugs). The car doesn't have any issues (just some drill holes, and wiper arms that probably got screwed wrong). I think these kind of things just are a hit and miss, for instance, I had an old 2008 Prius, no issues at all, had high mileage, replaced the spark plugs on it, fast forward three years later, we decide to put new set of plugs on the car. By the second week, the car just didn't feel right, the last thing I could have thought of was the spark plug, turns out that was the issue. We replaced it once again (fortunately, warranty was still on it, so we just swapped at an AutoZone). Fast forward another three years later, it is working and driving great (sold it to a friend). Sometimes I guess you just can't explain the nuts and bolts of things going awry in cars...
     
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  7. Former Member 68813

    Former Member 68813 Senior Member

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    cleaning fuel system and engine are 2 different things.

    the only "proven" things to clean fuel system are polyetheramine (PEA, an active ingredient in Techron) and various solvents (active ingredients in B12). there are peer review articles on PEA and CR did a study on B12.

    as for the engine cleaning, any engine flush will do it.

    IMHO, seafoam is a gimmick that does nothing (except for smoke, but no mirrors).
     
  8. darkgiant

    darkgiant Member

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    Good to know. Would you in that case have a better product recommendation, or are they all basically a gimmick?
     
  9. Former Member 68813

    Former Member 68813 Senior Member

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    did you actually read my post?
     
  10. Eastside

    Eastside Member

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    I had the same thing with plugs from one of the auto stores. Now I use only the factory brand from the dealer.
    Toyota for the Prius and Ford for the F-150.
     
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  11. darkgiant

    darkgiant Member

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    Lol, Bruh. Seriously? I did read your post. As per your original post - "the only "proven" things to clean fuel system are polyetheramine (PEA, an active ingredient in Techron) and various solvents (active ingredients in B12)."

    Which is WHY I ASKED what product recommendation you may have that uses the PEA since I for sure don't have a clue. Techron uses it as an active ingredient? Great, but if I understand that correctly, I would need to pump Chevron gas, no? Would this have to be a one time thing, or would I have to consistently pump Chevron whenever I fill gas?
     
  12. qdllc

    qdllc Senior Member

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    I use B-12 because it's basically the less expensive version of Seafoam. FOR FUEL SYSTEMS, it's da bomb! For cleaning an engine, I don't know what to say. It works great for degumming parts removed from the motor (they have a dip bucket you can buy), but the way some people let it be sucked into the engine just doesn't seem like it should be necessary.

    Especially with fuel injection systems, you MUST run a fuel system cleaner on a regular basis because crud does build up over time.

    As far as keeping your motor clean, I'd recommend AMSOIL lubricants. One of their benefits is that they use the engine heat to CLEAN the inside of the engine of gum and varnish. Many testimonials exist of people who've torn down motors running AMSOIL for well over 100K and there's no evidence of gum or varnish or buildup in the motor. I did a valve clearance check on my motorcycle (which runs AMSOIL) and the parts were spotless. To me, that's a more effective way to keep the motor clean than additives you shoot in once in a while.