I have heard pros and cons for all of these fuel additive cleaners/treatments. Some say Techron has a patented unique chemical that performs better with fewer side effects, Seafoam seems more widely used, and some argue Berryman is the best. Some say they all do the same thing and they all are equal, others say they should be used for different reasons. Anyone have any clarification or opinions on these products.
VladThe
I use top tier fuel about 80% of the time. I always just use 87 Octane. I occasionally top off my fuel at Sams if they are like 30 cent per gallon cheaper. Since I bought my current car used, I don't know what kind of fuel was used in it for the first 33,000 miles. Since it was a rental, probably a lot of cheap E85 fuel got used. So I decided to go ahead and run a can of seafoam through and I also bought a can of the Seafaom spray to clean the top of the engine (air intake). I have to replace the engine air intake filter anyway, so I figured while I am tinkering around in there anyway I might as well do the Seafoam spray to see if it makes a difference. All this is probably the equivalent of trading a cow for magic beans, but the cost of Seafoam products at Blains was so reasonable I figured I could waste $13 this one time.
OK, I did the top engine clean with the Seafoam spray. Several observations and questions.
1. The only smoke show occurred during the treatment, and even that was minimal. Does that mean my car had minimal carbon buildup, or did I screw up?
2. During the treatment the both fuel rich engine codes went off. After clearing those codes the problem did not re-occur. Again, does that mean I screwed up? Or does it kind of make sense since I was pouring a combustible solvent directly into the air intake?
3. With the hood open before the treatment, the engine seemed to have a bit of a tapping noise going, not very loud. I have not rechecked now that the treatment is done. Maybe that is the noise the engine makes and I just never noticed as I don't have the hood open with engine running often.
4. Unrelated to the Seafoam, but with the HVAC and radio off, I noticed a bit of a whirring sound only with brakes applied at low speed. Clearly something brake related is rubbing and causing a noise that slows down as the wheel slows down.
1. The only smoke show occurred during the treatment, and even that was minimal. Does that mean my car had minimal carbon buildup, or did I screw up?
2. During the treatment the both fuel rich engine codes went off. After clearing those codes the problem did not re-occur. Again, does that mean I screwed up? Or does it kind of make sense since I was pouring a combustible solvent directly into the air intake?
3. With the hood open before the treatment, the engine seemed to have a bit of a tapping noise going, not very loud. I have not rechecked now that the treatment is done. Maybe that is the noise the engine makes and I just never noticed as I don't have the hood open with engine running often.
4. Unrelated to the Seafoam, but with the HVAC and radio off, I noticed a bit of a whirring sound only with brakes applied at low speed. Clearly something brake related is rubbing and causing a noise that slows down as the wheel slows down.
Sea foam was developed for 2-stroke outboards. See Scotty Kilmer video about that…avoid it. YouTube channel Vice Grip Garage uses and recommends Berryman. I’ve used Techron in my Corvette, but Berryman is about 1/6th the price of Techron.
All I can say is - my 2011 DI Equinox (bought brand new) is about to hit 175,000 miles and it’s never drank anything but the cheapest 87 octane fuel (90% Walmart/Murphy’s), and it’s never ingested an ounce of Techron, Berryman’s, or Seafoam ... and no problems.
And not only that, but it’s still all-original parts from the factory. I’ve only changed the Oil & filter (~40 times), battery (twice), brake pads (once), and a purge valve. Even the air filters are still original!! I know ... I know ...
But - my Nox has been taking 900-mile, one-way drives at least 4 times per year (2 round trips), and the last two years it was 8 times (that’s 4 round trips)!!
My conclusion is - running the engine hot on the highway (for an extended time) must be like running the cleaning cycle on a “self-cleaning” oven. It makes using “top-tier” gas, and all these additives, unnecessary.
And not only that, but it’s still all-original parts from the factory. I’ve only changed the Oil & filter (~40 times), battery (twice), brake pads (once), and a purge valve. Even the air filters are still original!! I know ... I know ...
But - my Nox has been taking 900-mile, one-way drives at least 4 times per year (2 round trips), and the last two years it was 8 times (that’s 4 round trips)!!
My conclusion is - running the engine hot on the highway (for an extended time) must be like running the cleaning cycle on a “self-cleaning” oven. It makes using “top-tier” gas, and all these additives, unnecessary.
If you want the best use this, Cataclean https://www.walmart.com/ip/Cataclean-Fuel-And-Exhaust-System-Cleaner/135378546
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