I just did the 3rd carbon cleaning on my car in a little over a year (16 months to be exact) Seems like every 5 to 6 months its right back to where it was. Just wondering if anyone else cleans this often. I want to try the provent catch can to see if it helps.
It all depends on how long that you want to stay at maximum performance. I recommend a carbon clean every 30-40K miles to people around me.
Have you checked your PCV valve or oil separator? Clean off the area around the oil filler cap, start the engine, let idle, and try to open the oil filler cap. The engine should flutter for a second and the kind of smooth out. If it stalls or runs like shit for more than 30 seconds then your PCV is shot. You can also pop the round black cap off the back to see if the diaphragm is torn. If your PCV valve is bad then oil will be sucked onto valves/ports faster than normal.
Have you been getting your injectors serviced when you do a carbon clean? I ask because a lot of FSI engines across the board are having issues as of late from carbon.
How are your spark plugs? If you have replaced them in a while then I would pull a few and check. They might be covered in carbon too unless you actually get the engine up to temperature and drive hard every now and then.
define ‘right back where it was’
are you referring to the amont of carbon? or performance?
I can tell you that performance is marginally affected by carbon, other than sustained top end 7000-8000 RPM motoring. Having tested it.
oh and for the poll (add a poll) I have only cleaned once in 90,000 miles and it was at about 40,000 miles I think.
I agree, carbon is a problem but the effect is not that big. Make sure everything else is working as it should and then do the CC if you really have to. A vacuum leak or the power flap not opening at 5500 rpm has a much bigger impact on performance and in many cases, the shop doing the CC also fixed the vacuum leaks etc. and one then tend to just contribute all the gains to the carbon clean.
I had mine cleaned about 100 miles back but I made sure that my vacuum etc. was all working fine before they did the clean and the result of the clean wasn’t that dramatic, it was really hard to tell the difference.
On the PCV valve though, that definitely needs some checking as Jimmy mentioned. I had mine on a dyno prior to fitting the JHM Stage 1 and I noticed some smoke at high RPMs, not serious but you could see it clearly. I replaced the PCV valve during the Stage 1 install and when we put it back on the Dyno it was running clean, no smoke visible at all. Sure, it could be some other factors but at 40K miles I am convinced the PCV valve was the culprit.
As for the Catch can idea, been discussed in great detail on multiple forums, that won’t stop the Carbon problem, it’s the nature of the beast.
Thanks for the info guys. By right back where it was I mean the amount of build up. I feel a difference every time i do a cleaning.
Now as for the PCV, I changed it a few months back. Along with spark plugs when I had a failed injector. Well tonight as I got home from work I let the car run and pulled the oil cap. It stumbled and then the idle shot up until I put the cap back on. Does this mean the PCV is shot already?
Well, Im convinced I need to try something else. I think the internal EGR system has a lot to do with this as well. I was reading today and it has an egr function done by calculated valve overlap via cam adjusters. There is no actual EGR valve to disable. I think Im going to try the provent 200. But ill place it between the valve cover fittings and the stock oil separator/pcv.
On to another theory, has anyone tried different oil viscosity? Or types of oil? I use liqui moly and i try to change every 5k. Wondering now if there are any others that may be less prone to coking up?
Do you mean the combi valves on the cylinder heads.
Carbon and carbon cleaning is a hard thing to nail down. If your PCV system and oil separator are not working properly your going to have issues that can lead to more carbon build up.
Some carbon build up isnt that big of a deal but lots of carbon build up is a very big deal. Since nobody has the same amount of carbon at the same amount of mileage everyones perspective of how bad or how damaging carbon build up can be.
The simple fact is carbon build up isnt helping the car and it can lead to bigger issues. Its good to monitor and check carbon every 15 to 20k depending on your drivng style and oil consumption. Having a PCV and oil sep system running 100% is going to be a big part in keeping the carbon at bay
Nope, my kombi valves are in the trash. Blockoff plates installed. I was saying id like to route the mann provent between the valve covers and the stock oil separator and see if it helps at all. Maybe something to cool down the crank case vapors before they hit the oil spearator? Could that possibly be part of the reason its inefficient? After hard driving if i sit and idle like in a drive thru it belches oily smelling smoke. I changed the oil separator in the last 6 months.
wow that is an issue. The catch can before the separator is a good idea. I think it can be a serious part of the solution in solving the over all issue including carbon as a total