Chinese Water Torture (a SeaFoam recipe)

[Three Fat Tigers]

Chinese Water Torture
a SeaFoam recipe

This procedure when properly administered has been proven effective at improving power, and for some, fuel economy and other various improvements. While these results are usually immediately evident, not everyone who has run this procedure has had results that they could measure or feel. Be prepared for lots of steam and clouds of smoke to accompany this. *click for pic* (http://www.threefattigers.com/Protocore/Volvo/seafoaming.jpg) This procedure is routinely run on a wide variety of cars regardless of make, model or number of cylinders, including Turbos, all with no damage. It is ideal to do this procedure just before every oil change, or at least once a year. Changing your oil soon afterward is ideal, but is not mandatory. Properly administered this procedure will not significantly contaminate the oil or cause any change in oil consumption rates.
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Ingredients:

<img src=http://www.threefattigers.com/Protocore/FunStuff/sphere07.gif align=absmiddle> 2.5 to 3 cups distilled water
You can use tap or bottled water if that is not available, if you are working alone the ideal container will easily stand up on it's own, not a plastic soda/water bottle. Suggest: 1 qt mayo jar / Mason jar / spaghetti sauce jar.
<img src=http://www.threefattigers.com/Protocore/FunStuff/sphere07.gif align=absmiddle> 1 can of SeaFoam (16 oz) *click for pic* (http://www.threefattigers.com/Protocore/Volvo/SeaFoam.jpg)
<img src=http://www.threefattigers.com/Protocore/FunStuff/sphere07.gif align=absmiddle> 2 to 2.5 feet of small vacuum line, 4mm (5/32")
<hr>
Procedure:

<img src=http://www.threefattigers.com/Protocore/FunStuff/sphere01.gif align=absmiddle> Preheat the oven: Always start with a fully warmed up engine that has been running, preferably driven, for at least 20 minutes. Then park where you will be up wind of the car's exhaust, leave it running, or turn it off, but dont leave it off for long.
<img src=http://www.threefattigers.com/Protocore/FunStuff/sphere01.gif align=absmiddle> Locate a suitable vacuum port and connect your vacuum line, this will be a small nipple, around 4mm in size with good vacuum at idle, where possible down stream of the throttle body. Do not use any large ports such as for the brake booster *click for pics* (http://www.threefattigers.com/Protocore/Volvo/Nipples.htm)
<img src=http://www.threefattigers.com/Protocore/FunStuff/sphere01.gif align=absmiddle> (Assuming your are working by yourself) Place the jar of water where it will stand on it's own, hold the throttle around 3000 RPM, best guess, and with the other dip the vacuum hose into the water. Use a rhythm where the hose is submerged for 1/2 second, and lifted out of the fluid for 1/2 second, repeated until all of the water is used up, while at the same time regulate the throttle to keep the engine speed around 3000 RPM as it will run rough.
<img src=http://www.threefattigers.com/Protocore/FunStuff/sphere01.gif align=absmiddle> Repeat using the SeaFoam. I recommend using an entire can for this, others have reported good results using between 1/3 to 3/4 of a can, then putting the remainder in the gas tank. During this process, Turbo cars seem to like to leak at the manifold, either between the head and manifold or between the manifold/turbo junctions...don't worry...it will seal back up after you run the car for a while.
<img src=http://www.threefattigers.com/Protocore/FunStuff/sphere01.gif align=absmiddle> It is recommended, but not required, that toward the end of the process you allow the engine to stall. This is done by dropping the throttle, leaving the vacuum line submerged in the SeaFoam, and allowing the engine to stall. An alternative and possibly better method may be to drop the throttle and immediately pull the hot wire off the (+) #15 terminal of the ignition coil, or if you have a helper, switch off the ignition. Then let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes. Then crank it up, and finish feeding in the remaining SeaFoam.
<img src=http://www.threefattigers.com/Protocore/FunStuff/sphere01.gif align=absmiddle> Then right away take the car out for a rev fest, here you want the tachometer to reach redline several times, stay in low gears. You should immediately notice the improvement in power.
<img src=http://www.threefattigers.com/Protocore/FunStuff/sphere01.gif align=absmiddle> Optionally you could run another can of SeaFoam in the tank, and then if you are planning to change the oil, wait until after the tank is run down, reason being most fuel injection cleaners run through the tank will tend to darken otherwise clean looking motor oil.
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As for SeaFoam substitutes:
You want to use a product specifically designed to be fed through the intake manifold, they are commonly known as top engine cleaners, it must be oxygen sensor safe, which SeaFoam is. GM makes a top engine cleaner, Mazda does too, these are designed to be fed into the intake manifold just as this procedure describes and should produce similar results. Another alternative that I know of would be Lubro Moly "Ventil Sauber Valve Clean". I do not recommend using Barymans Chemtool (B12) or any other carburettor cleaner. I recommend using SeaFoam wherever possible.

Additional information can be found here: http://www.seafoamsales.com/

My initial experience with this procedure is documented in this post I archived from Miata.net: <img src=http://www.ezboard.com/images/posticons/pi_arrow_right.gif align=absmiddle border=0> Chinese Water Torture <img src=http://www.ezboard.com/images/posticons/pi_arrow_left.gif align=absmiddle border=0> (http://www.threefattigers.com/Protocore/Miata/ChineseWaterTorture.htm)
(I'm Chemical Spill)

[stylngle2003]

as something to add that i have noticed being that i have foamed 7 bricks now

turbo cars seem to like to leak at the manifold, either between the head and manifold or between the manifold/turbo junctions...don't worry...it will seal back up after you run the car for a while...trust me! just make sure if you are under the hood that you can get nice fresh air...im sure all the smoke i inhaled this weekend couldnt have been too healthy for me :oops:

great writeup TFT!

[Three Fat Tigers]

Added ↑↑ thanks ;-)

[Sinbad the Sailor]

Great write up. So you can let it stall and have no detrimental effects. i knew I had heard that correctly somewhere.

[Freakin]

I did this last night on my 740. I can't find Seafoam in Calgary, and from what I've gathered, no one else can either. I opted for the GM 'Cleener' or something like that. The instructions were for a carb engine, so I'm not sure if it's 100% safe with my O2 sensor. It did work quite well though. Gave my street a little smoke show. I ended up pulling off the vacum line that feeds the turbo gauge. There was a little connection just before it went in to the firewall. It was the perfect length and then I just added a bendy straw on to the end of it and stuck it in to the glass of water. I followed this up with an oil change after running it through the gears for an hour or so.

Thanks for the great write up.

[JonnyScorch]

Great write up! Way to go TFT!

[Beanie]

How important is it to reach redline on the drive after? I did the procedure as directed above, with not so much water, and during, I accomplished the manifold smoke. But I have no resulting smoke on the higway. Is it because I didn't let the Tach go over 4,000?

[EricF]

Awesome, I think my car is a great candidate for this... Can't wait to test it out.

Just need to find a neighborhood I don't like where I can park for the duration of the procedure :-D

I'll edit any input I can afford after I do this, into this post.

[nothing but turbo]

i think chemical spill sounds way cooler than TFT :badboy:
thanks for the article!

[MetalgodZ]

I've done this quite a few times, and it works very well. I have dont it with B12 Chemtool as well (listed as a fuel injector cleaner as well as a top engine cleaner) and it worked somewhat well on my '29 242 and my g/f's '93 940. It DID NOT work well, initially, on my friend's '98 S70. The S70 chugged and choked and didn't rev right for about 3 days and my friend almost kicked my @$$ for convincing him to do this, but after 3 days it started to clear up and ran better (slightly, but not much) than initially.

This MAY be due to an oil change that we did afterward. (Turns out he was running 1 1/2 quarts low as well. :-O)

Stay away from the B12 Chemtool as a Seafoam substitute though.

[DoubleV]

Absolutely great write up TFT!

I just have one question.

I just changed the oil on my '92 940 about 1,000 miles ago. I used Mobil 1 15w50 and usually go 5k before each change. Do you think I'm safe using Seafoam and not changing the oil for another 3,500-4,000 miles afterwards?

Thanks.

[Three Fat Tigers]

How important is it to reach redline on the drive after? I did the procedure as directed above, with not so much water, and during, I accomplished the manifold smoke. But I have no resulting smoke on the higway. Is it because I didn't let the Tach go over 4,000?I've not personally observed smoke from the exhaust after a minute or two of completing the procedure. It's not critical to see redline, it is ideal though, and easily achievable at slow speeds if you keep it in lower gears.


I just changed the oil on my '92 940 about 1,000 miles ago. I used Mobil 1 15w50 and usually go 5k before each change. Do you think I'm safe using Seafoam and not changing the oil for another 3,500-4,000 miles afterwards?Yes, but you might want to skip the stalling & soak part. I've run this procedure both with and without the stalling part on the same car, and for me, either way the car ran notably better after. Between the two methods, I don't think the seat of my pants could quantify a difference in performance, but then they are low mileage cars that have seen this procedure before.

[Unregistered]

just wondering -

I just did this tonight and yep much smoother and more responsive. but has anyone, especially those of you who have been Foaming the same car for a while now, noticed/suspected any damage to the cat converter from this procedure?

thanks for the tip -

96 850 wagon
it's blue

[Three Fat Tigers]

I've been doing this to my cars for 6 years, no damage to any cat or other component of any car.

[1straven]

any of the brits done this?

if so, what did you use instead of seaform.

[ravennexus]

i've done with just water, a large jug of water, smoked to start with but soon stopped.

[SwedishFish]

I tried this today.
My idle cleared up very well, however(yes that evil word), since my cat is original, and most likely partially clogged (its a smoker, and the temp after it was above the temp in front by 45* F), no copius amounts of smoke exited my tailpipe. I did get the smoke from my manifold/turbo junction as per normal, but like i said no copious smokeout. Bad clogged cat! Bad!

*when i say my cat's a smoker, i mean literally aftern shutting the car down you can look underneath and see smoke rising from the outside of the cat. never seen this before...and am very confused. oh well 3" pipes here i come.

[Three Fat Tigers]

I tortured my 245 today, not much of any smoke, but a decided performance improvement. The only car that I've ever had put out tons of smoke was my Miata, my Volvos just dont :e-shrug:, this is not a cat issue.

Poor 245 :please: mothballed till September :grrr:

[karl_760ti]

Just to clarify, all this seafoam/water does is remove carbon buildup on the back of valves/in combustion chamber.

Therefore it will prove most benifit to a older car with lots of mile driven by a granny who never goes past 3k.

It will benefit least to a car that dosnt have as many miles and sees redline often.

[Three Fat Tigers]

It will benefit least to a car that dosnt have as many miles and sees redline often.Logically I agree, but my real world experience disagrees. I run this procedure on my Miata at each oil change, and every time I can feel a notable seat of the pants improvement, and this is a car that sees redline nearly every single shift where traffic allows, and also sees sustained high RPM every day. This is also a car that is driven very often but rarely for only short periods, say less than 30 minutes. If I can reach that 7400 rpm rev limiter I'm in heaven, I trigger it on purpose as the sound of the engine cutting off and then back on again is amazing in that car.

All¹ of my every day cars see redline quite regularly, and all² are low mileage, and all³ respond to this treatment with performance where I can feel the difference ever time I run this procedure.

[dhallilama]

dont mean to bring this back from so long ago....
but i just did this today to my '85 740t...
started with the water. no smoke...
then the seafoam. i look, no smoke. look again, no smoke. look again, GOOD LOWD!!! THE FOG ROLLED IN!!! couldnt see a thing. thought for sure someone would call the fire department... tons of smoke. everywhere. i was a wee bit down wind of the exhaust exit (like a 1/2mph current).... just enough to surround me.
i let it stall out with the seafoam...
minue later, start it up again. MORE smoke than before....

smoke burns off a bit... take it out for a rev-fest.
right off the bat, my boost hits 16psi... when it was hitting 14 yesterday. had to actually turn-down the MBC.
notice the idle... where it was pretty good before... is now silky smooth. it pulls a bit harder, spools quicker (14psi by 3k rpm, now... didnt hit 14 until 3400rpm, before)... and all around just runs better.

it's got about 150k on the clock, the PO drove it 1 mile to work each day... hadnt been on the freeway for 5+ years until i bought it last month. so, it's reasonable to say it had a wee bit of carbon buildup.

gone now.

Three Fat Tigers- thanks for the writeup... i'd not have thought to getting around to this, if it wasnt for this article...

best bang for the buck on this car, so far...

[PRVersion]

i've considered this, but do you think it's something that will benefit ohv engines as much as non?

[klr142]

i've considered this, but do you think it's something that will benefit ohv engines as much as non?
It doesn't make a difference what it is, so yes... :)

[Bricknoob]

Why is this article still in Composition?

[BabyBlue240]

Hey, I just did this procedure today and I had a different sort of experience. It did put out a little bit of smoke at the rear, but not nearly as much as I expected or as much as that pic in the original write-up had. My cat was rattling for a while right when the engine passed about 1000 RPM, but lately, I haven't noticed it and just kind of forgot about it. Also, if I gun it while standing still and let it get up to about 4000 RPM then let it drop back to idle, it has some pretty loud pops that you can hear coming from the exhaust. Further, theres some off idle hesitation that's always been there, so I'm thinking maybe a clogged cat creating more back pressure? Is that a reasonable speculation? The main reason that made me think this was the very little amount of smoke the car put out. Could that be normal that mine didn't put out much? Thanks.

[Three Fat Tigers]

Why is this article still in Composition?
Because I have no real understanding of how to get stuff published :e-shrug: or what the procedures are.


Hey, I just did this procedure today and I had a different sort of experience. It did put out a little bit of smoke at the rear, but not nearly as much as I expected or as much as that pic in the original write-up had. My cat was rattling for a while right when the engine passed about 1000 RPM, but lately, I haven't noticed it and just kind of forgot about it. Also, if I gun it while standing still and let it get up to about 4000 RPM then let it drop back to idle, it has some pretty loud pops that you can hear coming from the exhaust. Further, theres some off idle hesitation that's always been there, so I'm thinking maybe a clogged cat creating more back pressure? Is that a reasonable speculation? The main reason that made me think this was the very little amount of smoke the car put out. Could that be normal that mine didn't put out much? Thanks.
Just so you know, if your question is not closely targeted at making an article more complete, the maintenance forum is the better place for it, this forum is for developing articles, not discussing issues. Best to ask this is over in the maintenance forum ;-)

See also: http://forums.turbobricks.com/showthread.php?t=32217 Feel free to revive that thread any time.

[Bricknoob]

Because I have no real understanding of how to get stuff published :e-shrug: or what the procedures are.

Lol, sounds like the one I put in here. I think the next step is to "email" it to a mod. It says in the rules sticky. It seems a little overly complex.

Also, the Vault needs an indexed sticky. That way we have a article list with a 'table of context'.

[dtom4]

I just did the procedure today in the hopes it may help my fuel economy. I'm getting 13-15 on on 89 740T and someone suggestted trying it as his mileage went from 17mpg to 24 mpg. I used the vacuum fitting on the intake for the boost gauge to suck in the water and Seafoam. I've done this proceedure on my other cars with GM top engine cleaner and made huge smokescreens. Expecting the same I backed the car up to the exhaust would point away from the neighborhood and toward open land. As it was sucking up the Seafoam I kept waiting for the huge cloud to appear but it never did. Nothing. Hmmm, something wrong? No smoke anywhere, from the engine, exhaust, nothing. Let the car sit for 10 minutes, went out for a rev fest and never got any smoke. Car does seem to idle and run a bit smoother but I'm not sure. In any case if it is better it isn't by much. I'll have to top off the tank and see if it did anything in terms of helping the mileage but as far as performance I can't say it really did much.:-(

[growley]

I did this friday on my car. Good stuff. Some would say that doing this would clog up your o2 sensor. How would you guys respond to this?

[saabnewbie]

I did this friday on my car. Good stuff. Some would say that doing this would clog up your o2 sensor. How would you guys respond to this?

Exactly how would this procedure clog up your O2 sensor?

[growley]

Exactly how would this procedure clog up your O2 sensor?
Maybe from all of the excess crap/smoke going through the exhaust? My friend thinks I would clog up my o2 sensor doing it.

[Three Fat Tigers]

I've found exactly the opposite to occur, my '96 MX5 threw an ODB2 code that indicated a fault in the O² sensor, voltage test showed it dropping below the minimum spec, after this treatment, the code never came back and to this day, the sensor reads normal. I've since moved on to an aftermarket ECU (Link) which can tell me at the push of a button the sensor voltage reading, right from the driver's seat. Anyway, SeaFoam is O² sensor safe, and I've never heard of anyone having an issue with their O² sensor as a result of running this procedure.

[lankytim]

Ive never heard of "seafoam" I dont think we can get it in the U.K :( I may try the same treatment with "redex" though.

[harley]

i got a thin layer of chocolate milk on the inside of my oil cap after doing this on my wife's wagon. i never let it die. i assume this is normal on a high mileage engine with a little blow-by. i checked the oil and the dipstick looked fine. anyone else check for this?

[klr142]

That's normal, nothing to worry about. My cars do that too, it's normally something you see if the car's only been on for a couple of minutes instead of really driven and fully warmed up. But even then, it sometimes gets milky up there. Dunno why, but it does, and it's normal enough.

[lammmy]

I tortured my car today finally, been meanign to do it for a while, but didn't get around to looking for products I could use (being in Canada, I could not find seafoam). I managed to get my hands on some AC Delco Cleener (GM), which was listed as a seafoam substitute. The stuff smelled a lot like carb cleaner that I used in my truck one time.

I was super surprised at how fast the water and cleaner got sucked through that hose...the descriptions of "1/2 second in 1/2 second out" made it seem like it would be super slow, but no, each dip sucked up huge gulps into the hose. Man it was fun, seeing all that steam coming out the pipe was sweet, and then the smoke, and yes it smelled exactly like when I did the truck, but not quite as much smoke.

At first I was like "damn", the old girl was sputtering and chuggin and even at 4500rpm it was missing a little bit for the first while, but after a few rev-ups, wow...it's so smooth now. Especially at idle and cruising speed. Normally I kind of gauge my speed by the amount of vibration in the steering wheel, but today I found myself going over the speed limit many times, because there was just no vibration.

If you have not done this to your car...do it, do it now.

[paetrw]

I've heard that you can actually dothis with just water (you know, like steam cleaning), is it possible that you actually don't need the seafoam?

edit: I'd like to know so I can change my oil today

[rgalgon]

Just so you know, if your question is not closely targeted at making an article more complete, the maintenance forum is the better place for it, this forum is for developing articles, not discussing issues. Best to ask this is over in the maintenance forum ;-)

See also: http://forums.turbobricks.com/showthread.php?t=32217 Feel free to revive that thread any time.

I agree with the above, revive that thread rather than turing an article composition thread into a maintence one.

[stylngle2003]

I've heard that you can actually dothis with just water (you know, like steam cleaning), is it possible that you actually don't need the seafoam?

edit: I'd like to know so I can change my oil today

you can, but it doesnt clean deposits as well, either

if you wanna change the oil, i suggest that you do the seafoam today and change it later on today

[PresidentBushe]

where is the vaccum line? i want to try this but im not sure where the hose is that will suck the water and seafoam in. help me out please i really want to do this

[stylngle2003]

any post throttlebody vacuum source going directly into the manifold will work just fine. i continue to use the one on the back of the plenum

[Camyman]

I think it would be nice if you would add in a bit about where you got the seafoam, how much it cost, and if you really need a helper for this one or not. it seems like you do but i just cant tell.

[paetrw]

oreilly's has seafoam for about 6 bucks, and it's really easier if you have someone with you. alot easier.

[marsie85]

NAPA--$5.99 each
Advance AutoParts--$4.39-$6.19 (depending on where we've seen it)

helpers are very um...helpful for this procedure...it's just too much to do with one hand, from what i've witnessed (i think billy has done it to ~20 cars now)

[-=DeanstuD=-]

I am new here, and to Volvo. I thought I could ad some info, as I have been involved with this subject in my other groups... These three options should be available internationaly.

GM top engine cleaner is GM part number 1050002.

http://www.6mmbr.citymaker.com/i/Reader%20Photos/Gear_GMTEC130x220.jpg

They also have a new 3 part process. One bottle you pour in the tank, another cleans the throttle body and IAC. and the last is for the internals like the above cleaner. The kit is part # 10-5021 (88901364).

http://www.acdelco.com/images/bn_fuel_induction.jpg

Another that has been used with good results is Yamaha Ring Free You can get it in a little fuel additive 12oz, quart, and even a GALLON jug!

http://www.yamaha-motor.com/assets/accessories/250/acc-rngfr-ee-12-250.jpg

Something that goes WAY beyond these cleaners is Motorvac (http://www.motorvac.com/) Many people have used it in my Impala club with excellent results. Many chapters have even set up group purchases with shops. We had a few machines at last years national meet.

http://www.motorvac.com/imgs/img_carbonClean.jpg

[rgalgon]

that motorvac looks hella industrial, do all the others items use the same process as SeaFoam?

[BDKR]

where is the vaccum line? i want to try this but im not sure where the hose is that will suck the water and seafoam in. help me out please i really want to do this

Don't you have advisors to help you with this sh!t? And since when are you taking care of cars in the motorcade?

[BDKR]

Another that has been used with good results is Yamaha Ring Free You can get it in a little fuel additive 12oz, quart, and even a GALLON jug!

http://www.yamaha-motor.com/assets/accessories/250/acc-rngfr-ee-12-250.jpg

Something that goes WAY beyond these cleaners is Motorvac (http://www.motorvac.com/) Many people have used it in my Impala club with excellent results. Many chapters have even set up group purchases with shops. We had a few machines at last years national meet.

http://www.motorvac.com/imgs/img_carbonClean.jpg

The Yamaha Ring free is good stuff. The dealership that worked on my FJ1100 used it. However, there was allways the recomendation that you change your oil afterwards.

[davidmacq]

Did my car. Straight through 3 inch cat, did not see much smoke through the exhaust. Car still seems not quite as responsive as my 91 did. I recently removed the head of the 91. I had done seafoam some and it was running pretty good. Broke down the head and there was carbon build up on the valves.

I used the vacuum line on the turbo actuator. Is this a ineffective line to use? It made it easy to do it alone. I unhooked the vacuum line from the turbo and pulled it over to the throttle. Head seamfoam can in left hand, and guided the vacuum line with the right and pulled on the throttle cable as well.

[760 Sleeper]

I don't think the seafoam would work going through the turbo, that make no sense to me, but hey, what do I know?

[BDKR]

I don't think the seafoam would work going through the turbo, that make no sense to me, but hey, what do I know?

It's not going through the turbo. He disconnected the line going from the manifold to the CBV. That's a viable line to use.


....but hey, what do I know?


OOOoooooohhhhhh..... sooo tempting. ;-)

[davidmacq]

Did it again today. I can confirm that I did not get any smoke or steam except from the manifold until I let the car die with the seafoam going in. I also got some revving without giving it any throttle after a restart. Revving up then back down, cycling, as if it was burning off carbon maybe. Throttle response seemed a bit better afterwards.

I think letting it die might be necessary. Heard some knocks I'd not like to hear in another situation.

Water did not sound as good going through. Ugh.

[InferiorWang]

It's not going through the turbo. He disconnected the line going from the manifold to the CBV. That's a viable line to use.


That's the one I used when I did it. I so wasn't prepared for the amount of smoke that was going to come out of my car. I was able to make a nearly continuous cloud all the way down the street without moving my car. I think I'll do it again this summer. I gotta get a better helper though. My brother doesn't follow directions very well.

[DaytonAE86]

Ok, what about hydrolocking an engine. I'm sure the amount going through a vacuum line wouldnt be enough to do that, but still a concern on a hi-compression engine.


I think this is similar to the crap that I used to do at a lube center (engine flush/cleaner). ALL the cars would smoke like bandits afterwards, but would run amazingly well. We never used water, or anything called seafoam, but the procedure was similar.

[beckzach05]

Bringing back a quiet thread! WOO!

Gotta say, it was cool as hell to see all that smoke.

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g311/beckzach05/VolvoSeaFoam11024x768.jpg


http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g311/beckzach05/VolvoSeaFoam21024x768.jpg

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g311/beckzach05/VolvoSeaFoam31024x768.jpg




I can definitely tell a difference. Well worth the time (not that it took long).

Thanks TFT!

[Camyman]

well seems i will be doing this soon. yay thread ressurection (sp?)!

[bag3lbit3s]

I'm hoping I'll do this this weekend, I've had a can of seafoam sitting up in my garage for the past month and I've been telling myself every weekend I'll do it. Just got to find a spot where someone won't call the fire department or something :-P .

[beckzach05]

I'm hoping I'll do this this weekend, I've had a can of seafoam sitting up in my garage for the past month and I've been telling myself every weekend I'll do it. Just got to find a spot where someone won't call the fire department or something :-P .

I wouldn't worry too much about the smoke. It dissipates(sp?) pretty quickly. Though I did manage to conceal a tree across the street...:-D

[bag3lbit3s]

Wow, wow, wow, wow...I just did this right now. I'm speechless, this stuff worked really well. When I first started using the seafoam the car didn't smoke much, after a few more sucks it really started getting going, but I was suprised it didn't smoke as much as I thought it would. I let it stall and wait 10 minutes till I start it. Well it really took a long time to get it to turn over, but it finally did.

Once it first started it really was smoking really bad now, and idled terrible. But after about 30 seconds the idle smoothed out. So now it's time for my revfest :), put the car in first (automatic) and just stepping on the gas instantly felt a more touchy throttle and a lot more pep. So I'm driving down the block and smoke is trailing pretty far down, neighbors are looking at me like :???:. After about 2 minutes it finally cleared up and I took it for a basic drive, car drove sooo much better especially in the higher rpms. Now that I've got a full tank of gas I'm going to see how much mpg improves.

Thanks a bunch for the recipe,
-Mike

[WrenWright]

Definately made a difference in how smoothly my '82 NA runs, especially at higher rpms. I did manage to smoke out the yard though.

[Hoop]

Bump for a great write-up.

My 245 with 257k on the clock smoked like you would not believe. Ran smoother, too.

[WrenWright]

One thing that I noticed after the treatment was that my frequency valve wasn't running about 20 seconds after engine startup. I had some Seafoam in the tank as well as running it through the engine. Now with the Seafoam-enriched gas burned out of the tank and a new O2 sensor, the frequency valve still isn't buzzing as it should be.

I've got an '82 245 with K-Jet. Here's a link to the thread on brickboard:

http://www.brickboard.com/RWD/index.htm?id=1095856

Anyone else had this trouble??

[alidrus]

I just tried this yesterday on my 91 NA 240 GLT but since they dont sell Seafoam in Malaysia, I opted to use water (about 1 quart) and some carb cleaner spray through the PCV vacuum inlet on the inlet manifold.

There was a little bit of smoke with the Carb cleaner spray but unfortunately there wasnt much left in the spray can to do the job. So I continued doing this with water only. After a good run I noticed the car felt much lighter and idled much more smoothly. I will get a couple more cans of carb cleaner spray and do this again next weekend to finish the job.

Thanks a lot for a great post

A.B.

[Bricknoob]

Someone correct me if I'm wrong here but; I don’t think you would want to use carb cleaner. It's really flammable, which isn’t really what you're looking for.

[alidrus]

Someone correct me if I'm wrong here but; I don’t think you would want to use carb cleaner. It's really flammable, which isn’t really what you're looking for.

:omg: Hmm.... if not carb cleaner what about one of those injector cleaners which claim to remove carbon deposits? Would that be a viable alternative? I just bought one last night which is labelled "super concentrated" something. I checked at the back and it says that this product removes carbon deposits. It is supposed to be added to a full tank of gas though.

[beckzach05]

:omg: Hmm.... if not carb cleaner what about one of those injector cleaners which claim to remove carbon deposits? Would that be a viable alternative? I just bought one last night which is labelled "super concentrated" something. I checked at the back and it says that this product removes carbon deposits. It is supposed to be added to a full tank of gas though.

You want to use SeaFoam or another top engine cleaner. They do different things than carb cleaner or injector cleaner. GM makes one, I believe it's called 'cleaner' (different spelling IIRC).

[alidrus]

You want to use SeaFoam or another top engine cleaner. They do different things than carb cleaner or injector cleaner. GM makes one, I believe it's called 'cleaner' (different spelling IIRC).


Well looks like I will have to dump the injector cleaner I bought into the fuel tank and keep looking for the right solvent :rofl:. In Malaysia there is always a limited number of products available to consumers. From all the stores I have checked, SeaFoam or the GM cleaner is not available here.

I recall there was one guy on another Malaysian auto forum who sells a product called "The Professor" and the procedure he outlined was similar to this SeaFoam recipe. I'm guessing this is the product I will have to use. I'll try to look him up again and take it from there.

Thanks for all the helpful information.

regards
A.B.

[stylngle2003]

don't know how many mazda dealers there are in Malaysia, but they have a "top engine cleaner" that is very similar, from what i recall

[alidrus]

don't know how many mazda dealers there are in Malaysia, but they have a "top engine cleaner" that is very similar, from what i recall

Thanks. I'll be sure to put the mazda dealers on my list of places to look. I'll post again with information about the appropriate product to use once I find it. (for the benefit of others living near me)

regards
A.B.

[stylngle2003]

by the way, it is P/N 0000 77 2025

[Krepotkin]

I have done this to my car a few times successfully (90 740t), but when I did it to my girls car (88 740t), Flames started to shoot out of the exhaust manifold seals. LOTS of flames. Don't know why, but i figure its probably bad.

[alidrus]

Grrr... I went to the Mazda dealers and asked about the part number for the TEC. They simply dont carry the product! :(

If somebody doesnt mind telling me, what is the reason u shouldnt use injector cleaner, kerosene or diesel for doing the decarb?

The only product which I know is meant for decarb is called ProfessoR express decarbonizer. Sells for about RM 68 (USD 18) per bottle of 350ml. Is that a reasonable price?

[beckzach05]

Because TEC is 100% petroleum.

[sk8daysaweek]

Could this procedure cure a poor idle problem on an 84 non turbo?

[beckzach05]

Could this procedure cure a poor idle problem on an 84 non turbo?

Quite possibly. But a poor idle could be caused by any number of things. It's kind of like asking "Will this equation give me 4 as an answer?" Obviously there's 2+2, 3+1, sqrt(16), etc.

But never hesitate to do this procedue. The worst that could happen is you'll clean off your pistons ;-)

[CAPT_BLOTTO]

I rcently did it with both my cars. I did half through the vac lines and half in the tank. But i didnt realize about the distilled water. How important is that?

[Aoder1]

i would think it makes it easier to remove the buildup...loosening it up by the steam
just my 0.02

[beckzach05]

i would think it makes it easier to remove the buildup...loosening it up by the steam
just my 0.02

Pretty much. When the water hits the hot piston and stuff, it (the water) instantly vaporizes and blows the carbon buildup off the metal.

[revolvoct]

Thanks, worked wonders. Better power and the temp dropped about 15 degrees.

Now I have an annual event!!!

[brickhead]

i did my 94 945t about a month ago. i forgot to let it sit tho. what i mean is when it killed the engine, i should have waited the 10 -15 minutes before starting the car per the instructions and i did not do the CWP either.

i will seafoam my car again but i was talking to my exhaust guy and he said that the seafoam is NOT good for the cat.

any truth to this?

[beckzach05]

i was talking to my exhaust guy and he said that the seafoam is NOT good for the cat.

any truth to this?

seafoam is 100% petroleum. It's not going to hurt your cat. Kittah, maybe. Cat, no.

[Aoder1]

ive done this trick before, but i was wondering if running ATF in the crankcase did anything different, and if so if i could do both of these back to back?

[beckzach05]

IDK what ATF procedure you're talking about...but whatever it is, it doesn't do the same thing as seafoam. Seafoam is a top engine cleaner. Blows carbon buildup off the pistons and cylinder walls. Doesn't have anything to do with stuff below the combustion chamber.

[Aoder1]

its an old thread about running ATF in the crankcase for like 30 minutes with a crappy filter and it cleans out tthe gunk in your engine, then put in the good oil

im guessing i will so the seafoam then ATF tricks back to back...thanks again

[yumling]

Just did the seafoam and it triggered a check engine light. Will pull the battery in hopes of resetting it.

[stylngle2003]

Just did the seafoam and it triggered a check engine light. Will pull the battery in hopes of resetting it.
don't you have a 940?

http://brickboard.com/FAQ/700-900/EngineOBDCodes.htm#FuelInjectionandIgnitionDiagnos ticCodesi

[yumling]

don't you have a 940?

http://brickboard.com/FAQ/700-900/EngineOBDCodes.htm#FuelInjectionandIgnitionDiagnos ticCodesi


You are right I have a 1991 940 turbo but this time around, I seafoamed my 97 Toyota Avalon and CEL came out. When I did it on the 940 everything went as planned and described and car ran excellent after the procedure so I decided to do the Toyota.

I noticed that the O2 sensor for the Volvo is after the turbo and quite far from exhaust manifold.

In the Toyota's case, it is a V6 and the O2 sensor is barely 6 inches from exhaust port and there are 2 of these O2 sensors. I was just thinking that the short distance from the exhaust port might mean that carbon, steam, etc do not have time to dissapate before it reaches the O2 sensor and thereby contaminate the O2 sensors. If this is the case, then Sea Foam can affect O2 sensors if the sensors happened to be very close to exhaust ports. after all the process of seafoaming does throw out a lot of carbon, soot, steam and chemicals.

But then it could all just be that O2 sensors picked up the seafoaming and threw a code.

In fact when I was seafoaming the car, the CEL light started flashing which is a signal that engine is misfiring - at that exact moment engine was misfiring because it was sucking up all the seafoam. Tomorrow, I will disconnect the battery and see if the code comes back.

[klr142]

I don't know if leaving the battery disconnected will get rid of the codes. And, if it doesn't, you can go to almost any car parts store near you and have them check and clear the code. It shouldn't come back on, and the oxygen sensors should be fine.

Hell, I'd just go to the car parts place to begin with, so I know what it says anyway. And report back! :)

[yumling]

I disconnected the battery and CEL went off. But boy the transmission was shifting funny because it probably forgot all the settings too.

Hopefully CEL does not come back.

On hindsight, one should expect CEL to come on (esp newer cars with OBD2) when seafoaming the car since the engine does misfire and stumble during the treatment. After all the purpose of OBD2 is better monitoring of engine function so as to get better emissions.


My Toyota was made in 96 for 97 model year and is a CA car. Those made in 97 came with an AF sensor (wideband O2 sensor) instead of an O2 sensor.

[yumling]

I disconnected the battery and CEL went off. But boy the transmission was shifting funny because it probably forgot all the settings too.

Hopefully CEL does not come back.

On hindsight, one should expect CEL to come on (esp newer cars with OBD2) when seafoaming the car since the engine does misfire and stumble during the treatment. After all the purpose of OBD2 is better monitoring of engine function so as to get better emissions.


My Toyota was made in 96 for 97 model year and is a CA car. Those made in 97 came with an AF sensor (wideband O2 sensor) instead of an O2 sensor.

CEL went away, never came back, all is well.

I guess for some cars where the O2 sensor is very close to exhaust port, the CEL might come on. For our B series engines, especially those with turbos, the O2 sensor is not only a good 2 feet away from the exhaust port but there is also a hot turbo in the way - more then enough time for any fumes to dissipate.

[tjts1]

I seafoamed the 240 tonight following the instructions at the beginning of this thread starting with water. But I did half a can in the then EGR valve vac hose and half a can in the tank because I'm cheap like that. It dieseled for about 5 seconds when i turned off the ignition with the seafoam pouring in. I couldn't get it to stall on its own. 10 minutes later it started with a little throttle. As soon as I saw the black cloud I took off like a bat out of hell and never looked back. It was dark so I didn't see the smoke show. Started off at sea level elevation and I didn't stop until i reached 1000 ft elevation 5 miles later. Used full throttle as often as possible. First thing I noticed was the idle. The shifter vibrates less and engine is almost dead silent. We'll see about the fuel economy and power.

[McLovin]

Hmmm. Well I did this today, but I didn't really notice much of anything. Except that I need a new exhaust manifold gasket. :lol:

[Aoder1]

did mine yesterday, worked really well...nice white cloud from behind and found i have an exhuast mani leak somewhere

[Tamnakz]

Oh, see. When I seafoam my car. Exhaust mani, head gasket, bunch of holes along the exhaust, and I'm pretty sure I saw it coming from my valve cover gasket once, didn't know that could happen.

BUT, Never leaked a drop of oil, until just recently, and that's from the valve cover gasket.

I do it every other oilchange.

[sk8daysaweek]

I did this two days ago to my 71' 145 with great initial results. I had improved accel, better throttle response, noticeably more power, and a little less detonation. I revved the crap out of it and burned it all out of the system and drove it for a good 30 - 45 minutes afterwards. I parked it for a day and today when I started it up I heard this terrible rattling noise, I can't tell where the hell it's coming from. Is it normal for sea foam to kill cars? Any thoughts as to what it might be?

edit: It sounds really bad, like something is terribly wrong.

[242teeI]

Is it normal for it not to suck up any water or seafoam? I used the nipple in the write up. What am I doing wrong?

[v8volvoman1]

Just did this water torture procedure again on my 240 after doing it about 3 or 4 years ago with no effect and guess what.....no difference this time as well. Actually, one of the exhaust gaskets started to leak.:e-shrug:

[B Mac66]

I've used seafoam on my car a few times with great results. Starts in less turns, muuuuuch better throttle response, smoother revving. My engine was in good condition to start with as well. After I put in the bigger injectors, mafs, chips in, it made it even better. I've put it in the crankcase as well with good results, a whollllllllle bunch of **** came out in the drain pan...all chunky and stuff. my .02

[totaled108]

You don't need to rev the crap out of the motor to get it clean. It cleans better if you just take it out for a spirited drive, instead of having the car not moving and revving it. No need to bounce off the rev limiter. I have seafoamed the 260,000 mile motor in my 245, for what I'm fairly curtain was its first ever, with great results. I use the stuff on my gfs 165,000 mile Rodeo everyother oil change too, works great. They both smoke like hell, its a good cleansing.

[shellshock]

Is it normal for it not to suck up any water or seafoam? I used the nipple in the write up. What am I doing wrong?


Sounds like the car is building boost and not sucking up the liquid. Dont rev it so high. Just enough to keep it running

[plantationwalrus]

I did the procedure above using 3 cups of distilled h20 and about 1/2-2/3's can of Seafoam There was no smoke show, but the exhaust seems to be a tad louder at idle... Is that normal?

[B Mac66]

i hate to be "that guy" and bring this thread back up. but the more water i run through the motor, the more steam cleaning will occur?? Having all that crap backed up into your cat though...wouldn't that be a baaaaaaad side effect....and end up causing more damage because they're a ton more backpressure??

[PantherAKS]

I did the procedure above using 3 cups of distilled h20 and about 1/2-2/3's can of Seafoam There was no smoke show, but the exhaust seems to be a tad louder at idle... Is that normal?

Same here except with only about a cup and a half of water. I think, pretty much, the more water you run through the engine initially the less smoke will occur during Seafoaming. That is to say, if you engine is already in a more or less clean state. Although, if your engine suffers from large amounts of carbon deposits, this may not be the case.

[Tom Wiley]

What vacuum line should I use?

[tryingbe]

I use vacuum nipple on the top of the intake manifold, run couple lines so it goes form 3/8 to like 5/16 and just let it suck while I apply the throttle.

[Tom Wiley]

I use vacuum nipple on the top of the intake manifold, run couple lines so it goes form 3/8 to like 5/16 and just let it suck while I apply the throttle.

I used the one on the FPR. It worked well.

[VolvoSporter]

It should be added to the first post that seafoam is supose to smoke.

[AdmiralSenn]

Just performed this procedure yesterday. Even with a little over 3 cups of water sucked into the engine, it still produced a column of smoke over my house. It's not a huge difference since I drive rather aggressively anyway, but it is smoother and seems to just be happier now. No word on MPG change, though.

I used one of the lower vacuum fittings and some surgical tubing that I had laying around. Worked fantastically. Thanks for the writeup!

[DaButcher]

where can I find a seafoam distributor that ships intl. ?

[carnut1100]

That stuff sounds cool.
I'm gonna try it with just water first then try and get some upper engine cleaner from somewhere.
Never seen seafoam here :-(

[Gabe244]

apparently subaru make one....i think.

[Three Fat Tigers]

Fixed all the broken links and stuff, will endeavor to add in the additional info soon and then see if I can get this published after all these years.

[Booster]

awsome stuff

[McLovin]

Anybody know how this works on newer cars? My friend has a '97 Stratus that seems like it could REALLY use a foaming. Anything to be careful of?

[gsellstr]

Plan on having a scan-tool handy to clear the codes that'll get set. Otherwise we used to use the Wynn's treatment all the time at the stealership, which is basically doing the same thing, only for 10x the price. We did run this on my brother's 99 Dakota with no major issues other than it setting a CEL for cylinder misfire, and cat-damaging engine misfire. :-)

[McLovin]

Plan on having a scan-tool handy to clear the codes that'll get set. Otherwise we used to use the Wynn's treatment all the time at the stealership, which is basically doing the same thing, only for 10x the price. We did run this on my brother's 99 Dakota with no major issues other than it setting a CEL for cylinder misfire, and cat-damaging engine misfire. :-)

I don't think we'll be able to get a scan tool, but we can probably have 'em reset it at the dealership, eh?

[gsellstr]

MAYBE they'll be nice and reset it, but I wouldn't plan on it without having to give them an hour's diagnostic time, which is typically the bare minimum charge for them to do anything with a scan tool. Some of the local autozone's still loan out code readers, or you can buy em for around $150 for a basic reader.

[calcompton]

i use that stuff on all my cars

[WindowsBreakerG4]

Autozone will let you borrow an obdII scanner if you have a credit card and drivers license.

[nitroboie]

Ingredients

2 carrots
2 hot green chilies chopped finely vary it based on your spice tolerance level
2 spoons grated coconut optional
2 tablespoons lime juice
handful of chopped coriander leaves
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp ghee for seasoning
salt to taste

Method

Grate carrots. I grate carrot, green chilies and chopped coconut pieces in an automatic salad shooter.
Mix grated carrot, chopped green chili, lime juice, grated coconut, chopped coriander leaves and salt to make a salad.
Make seasoning with ghee and mustard.
Add seasoning to the salad.

:roll:

Anyway, I did this a few weeks ago. 1 cup water, 1 cup seafoam, 2.5kRPM the whole time. There was smoke during the seafoam, but after the restart no smoke, lumpy idle until I revved it a few times. MPG seems to have improved. My odometer is broken, so I based it off of how the gas needle is. I fill up every two weeks (14 days), I'm on day 10 right now and the needle is still halfway (usually it's 1/4 from the red by now). Driving style hasn't changed.

[Krepotkin]

Ingredients

2 carrots
2 hot green chilies chopped finely vary it based on your spice tolerance level
2 spoons grated coconut optional
2 tablespoons lime juice
handful of chopped coriander leaves
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp ghee for seasoning
salt to taste

Method

Grate carrots. I grate carrot, green chilies and chopped coconut pieces in an automatic salad shooter.
Mix grated carrot, chopped green chili, lime juice, grated coconut, chopped coriander leaves and salt to make a salad.
Make seasoning with ghee and mustard.
Add seasoning to the salad.



Dude WTF!!! I MIXED UP A BATCH OF THIS STUFF AND POURED IT IN MY CRANKCASE AND NOW MY CAR WON'T START! I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED! I MEASURED EVERYTHING EXACTLY? HELP!

[SlowRide]

Dude WTF!!! I MIXED UP A BATCH OF THIS STUFF AND POURED IT IN MY CRANKCASE AND NOW MY CAR WON'T START! I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED! I MEASURED EVERYTHING EXACTLY? HELP!

:lol:

wait...

:rofl:

[ktm450]

Please excuse if this has been addressed, but why doesn't all this crud clog the cat? It has nowhere else to go but out the exhaust. If the cats not gutted, why doesn't it clog the cat?

[Krepotkin]

Please excuse if this has been addressed, but why doesn't all this crud clog the cat? It has nowhere else to go but out the exhaust. If the cats not gutted, why doesn't it clog the cat?



When I did it on my old 740, it actually gutted all the fibers out of my cat too. Which was fine because it gave me a reason to buy a 3" system.

[klr142]

Please excuse if this has been addressed, but why doesn't all this crud clog the cat? It has nowhere else to go but out the exhaust. If the cats not gutted, why doesn't it clog the cat?Because it burns and turns into smoke, for the most part.

[SlowRide]

Please excuse if this has been addressed, but why doesn't all this crud clog the cat? It has nowhere else to go but out the exhaust. If the cats not gutted, why doesn't it clog the cat?

I think this is partially why you get the car heated up first, so the cat is good and hot