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Intake valve cleaner

31K views 45 replies 17 participants last post by  jraba 
#1 ·
Looking for possible tips on where would be a good location to spray valve cleaner into a 2.0l turbo gdi.I'm sure some of you diy mechanics have done this.Thanks
 
#2 ·
Hi Coolwhip,
Just follow the owner's manual maintenance guidelines: Use the Techron based injection cleaner on 3500 or 7000 miles intervals, for either severe or normal vehicle use. Other procedure(s) may create more harm than good, or void warranty, just follow factory guidelines.
A lot has been said about carbon buildup on GDI engines; notice that most of the horror stories were early German GDI engines. There is little to no corroborative evidence about this being a common issue with Kia or Hyundai GDI engines. There is very little evidence (also) that catch cans solve the carbon buildup issue.
Review this article:
https://www.motor.com/newsletters/2016/20160301/!ID_Bosch_GDI_CarbonBuildup.html

MV
 
#3 · (Edited)
And I could post 20 links that say otherwise.

Catch cans won't solve the carbon build-up issue (and yes it's an issue) but a properly engineered catch can will help to mitigate it.

Injection cleaner will help to keep the injectors clean but it does nothing to prevent carbon deposits from forming on the intake valves.
 
#11 ·
I'm running a catch can so the hose I'm pointing at would normally be black and would lead directly to the intake manifold. This would be the hose to introduce the chemical cleaner of your choice.

The hose diameter is rather large so you will create a rather huge vacuum leak. I suggest using some type of fitting to reduce the hole diameter to slightly larger than the spray tube diameter.
I made one from some odds and ends.


I add the cleaner at the outlet of the catch can which connects to the factory hose that goes to the intake manifold.

There you have it.[emoji482]


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#12 ·
I am asking this seriously... not for sake of argument but out of genuine curiosity. Has anyone pulled apart one of these 2016 / 2017 GDI motors??????? Has there been actual carbon issues documented?

I have literally put hundreds of thousands of miles on vehicles and never has carbon or deposits in any form ever been an issue. With the catch can posts and this one about cleaner ya'll have me wondering if all this stuff is preventative or there's a genuine documented problem with CURRENT motors.

My last work car before this godforsaken Prius they force me to drive was an 2011 Elantra GDI. It never left town, it idled like a taxi, motor on and off 20+ times a day, short trips - how about 1 block! It was still clean when we unloaded it with 85k on it. Once every few weeks I'd floor it and it would look like a Cummins diesel "rolling coal" and then it was clean for awhile. It did that from new though. My 16 Sorento V6 is %95 highway and the oil still has gold to it at the (my choice) 5000 mile change.

I just don't get it...
 
#13 ·
Preventative measure for me and I'm not implying that a catch can is necessary. I have them on both of my vehicles and both catch cans collect nasty looking sh!t that I don't want baking onto my valves or ports.

2.0 GDI turbo has been around since 2011 in various KIA/Hyundai vehicles. There are numerous threads with pictures of caked up intake ports after 100K miles if you're willing to do a google search.
 
#14 ·
Greetings hand-filer:

What type of intake cleaner are using. I just posted a thread last week about CRC company intake cleaner. I was asking if anybody had any feedback from using this product. Didn't get much response. I also have the 2.0 turbo thanks for the pictures will help minimize the vacuum leak for sure great idea.
 
#18 · (Edited)
Rather than using an aerosol can, I use a canister type fuel system cleaner. That way I can use a liquid without having to deal with vacuum leaks since it seals to the system. I use the aerosol to clean the throttle body. This is on a 2014 Rio with a catch can installed.



 
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#24 ·
hand-filer,

I'm going to use the CRC in-take cleaner just before my next oil change. Is easy to find in stores. Not to familiar with the sea foam product, i've seen videos on YouTube. CRC is a reputable company so I feel confident in using it.

Thanks for your recommendation regarding Pennzoil ultra platinum. I researched it extensively and it's an excellent product I will begin using it next oil change. One problem almost impossible to locate at Walmart. Out of stock online and in the stores as well as other vendors. I will be calling Pennzoil tomorrow to ask what is the reason for the lack of availability.
 
#25 ·
I have the 2.4L, it looks to me like using the PCV intake to the manifold would put all the cleaner in one cylinder, granted this cylinder would probably be in the worst shape due to the PCV system. In looking I also don't see anything that looks like a mass airflow sensor, do these engines not have one?
 
#27 ·
At my oil change, I asked the dealership mechanic where I would connect to use the aerosol cleaner, he showed me the intake at the center rear of the engine. He also said it would be fine to remove the air filter and spray it in there......i'm not so sure on that one.....
 
#28 ·
The best place to use the aerosol seafoam cleaner, or any other aerosol intake cleaner is right at the throttle body, which is on the front of the engine on the 2.4 or the 2.0 turbo. Not 100% sure on the v6 as i've not seen one but i had the 2.4 before and now the 2.0 turbo on my new sorento.

I've seafoamed my 2011 dakota when i had it and my 2012 that had the 2.4 GDI. I have not done my 2016 yet. i was going to wait until the spring to do that. I don't want the air temps to be too cold.

Basically, these are the steps

Warm up the engine to normal temps and turn it off.

Loosen the band clamp so you can take off the intake tube. Insert the adapter from the can and put the tube back. tighten the band clamp to get a good seal. it will not be perfect but it's not for a long time anyways.

Start the engine and have someone press on the gas lightly to bring the RPM's up about 1500 to 2000.

Start spraying the aerosol until you reach the amount that you want to do. On a small inline 4's like these half a can of seafoam is plenty. Even on a v6 it's plenty. Stop the engine.

Wait about 10 minutes to let it soak a bit more.

Turn on the engine and let it idle until the exhaust comes out normal. it will be thick and blueish for a while. you can give a few small revs once it's normal. don't over rev while it's clearing out the buildup and the cleaner.

Go for a drive for about 10 minutes to keep the engine warm and to let it get rid of any other buildup. and that's it.
 
#29 ·
I actually just cleaned my intake on my V6 over the weekend. I bought one of the intake cleaners off the shelf at Pep Boys (can't remember which one but one of the name brands) and removed the bellowing between the air box and the throttle body. I just sprayed the cleaner directly into the throttle body since it was a one-man job and I didn't have anyone around to rev the engine for me. I started out spraying the throttle body with the engine off since this is hot the cleaner suggested to do so. I then hit the start button and let it eventually start. I then went and sprayed the cleaner at the throttle body since the butterfly valve would barely open at the time. Eventually the butterfly valve opened and I was able to spray into the throttle body and give the intake a good cleaning. You might want to do short burst of cleaning since I was going for a deep clean and sprayed a little too long and the engine ended up burping up a flame and killing the engine. After that it was just a quick reset of the computer since it "saw" the burp as a serviceable issue and triggered the check engine light and wanted me to notify the Kia dealership that my car needed service.
 
#31 ·
I'll take a few pics tonight when I get home from work. I drive an old Rondo for work so I have to get the pics later. The part at the back of the engine would be the turbo. You to not want to spray intake cleaner into the inlet of the turbo as there are sensors after it before it goes in the engine and the cleaner might damage them.

On the turbo, air goes through the airbox (with the filter), then to the inlet of the turbo, then the compressed air goes through the intercooler before entering the throttle body. You'll be able to see what i mean with my pics. i'll even highlight certain areas so you can understand the intake path.
 
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#33 ·
Sorry, been really busy at work an by the time i get home there is not enough light for getting a good pic and my sorento was at the dealer yesterday for a few minor warranty things. Hopefully i get to leave work on time today so i can get you those pics.
 
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#35 · (Edited)
First, the entire engine. The thing at the rear with the pipes leading out from it (the thing your mechanic said where to put the cleaner) is the turbo. On the left (the part under the metal) is the exhaust side. The right side of it is the cold air inlet (the part connected to the air box) and the compressed air tube to the intercooler which is not in the picture.

113454


Air comes into the air box, then to the Turbo inlet. The exhaust spins the turbo and the compressor compresses the air.

113455


The red circle above is the best accessible place to put the adapter from the seafoam aerosol can. Normally it would be closer to the throttle body, but due to other stuff in the way, we can't get anywhere near it. You also don't want to spray into the turbo inlet as there are sensors between it and the throttle body that could be damaged by it as well as the intercooler which could cause issues.

This is how it is normally done, but in our case, it will be a little further then that.



So, the best place for us is that spot that i circled. It's close to the throttle body anyways so it should be fine. Just be careful of the MAP sensor that is just bellow there.
 
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#37 ·
you would put the spray going to the left (towards the engine). And yes, the MAP sensor is the one just to the right of what I circled.
 
#39 ·
Why do people comment or try to give advice on things they gave no clue about? As others have said GDI engines have an issue with carbine build up on the back of the valves. Any treatment that you dump into your fuel tank will not remove it at all. So you have to use a treatment such as CRC GDI intake valve cleaner.
 
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