Carbon build-up in intake manifold

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Question is, how much normally builds up in a car over time?

I have a more specific question but want to know this first.
 
Originally Posted By: cchase
Question is, how much normally builds up in a car over time?

I have a more specific question but want to know this first.


air intakes can get pretty blackened with carbon. the only thing i know about detecting leaks is the "spray it with started fluid" test but id imagine it can accumulate a thin layer of carbon that if removed would make the part a shiny metal. i could be wrong and i hope this helps

vehicle?
 
I took an intake manifold off a Toyota Camry with 245k miles and it didn't need much cleaning. I've seen 1980's volvos that are just junked up everywhere. Some designs are better than others but it still gets down to the owners changing pcv's and the easy stuff.
 
the egr lets exhaust gases in the intake so they can get pretty nasty. no worries, thats what it is suppose to do.
you can run seafoam in threw a vacuum line to get rid of some of it but i just run regane or techron to keep the valves clean and dont worry about it
 
Originally Posted By: electrolover
but i just run regane or techron to keep the valves clean and dont worry about it

+1.....Regane or Redline SL-1 are excellent cleaners.

I use SL-1 with every fill-up.... as a maintainance dose.

1.5 to 2 oz. per 10 to 12 gallon fil-ups.
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03' Ford Focus (2.3L Duratec) / 95,000
M1 5w20EP/ M1 102EP Filter/ OCI: 10,000K +/-
 
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Thanks for the responses.

The question was raised because I had the MAF and air cleaner assembly off and already had an inspection tool out so decided to stick it in through the intake manifold.

The vehicle is port fuel injected and is about 9 years old. The layer seemed to be 1/16" to 1/8" thick and covering everything evenly.

The PCV valve appears to be operating properly. The EGR is a bit of an unknown but I don't want to risk taking it off for no reason as it has a gasket where it mates to the intake manifold.
 
Leave it alone, it’s normal, especially if the vehicle is city driven. There is really nothing you can do about it short of venting the PCV gasses to the atmosphere and deleting the EGR, which is illegal if you have emission laws.

I used MMO and Lucas UCL for over a year with almost every thank of gas, still no difference in intake deposits, so I don’t believe any fuel additive will help, other that clean the intake valves, but the intake manifold will still be dirty.


The only thing you should do is clean the throttle valve periodically to prevent sticking, dirty intake manifold will not harm anything.
 
I use a top end cleaner and spray it through the throttle body at the intake with the engine running at full temp during the summers(a once a year thing) and I spray directly towards all sides of the intake that I can spray directly onto. Otherwise, alternating between than and straight down the intake.

It helps clean up most general build up but nothing really plastered on without a good soaking, afterward while the cleaner is sitting on the top of the piston heads for 1-2 hours, I use a rag with a tool to push past the throttle plate, and clean what I can reach inside the intake manifold by hand.

I notice on a few cars that the PCV valve allows through quite a bit of oil over time.
 
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