I can understand that people want the internals of their engine to be super clean and sludge free, but that may not be what's important in reality. If you run ARX through a motor, it cleans what needs to be cleaned for it to run well and to perform better like freeing the rings for example.
If ALL the sludge and crud doesn't get eradicated, but the engine runs great, compression is better, oil passages are flowing again, sensors are clean and able to do their jobs etc., then ARX made a huge improvement and will allow that engine to perform much better for the rest of it's service life. Other than disassembly and cleaning, what other method can do what ARX can do? Tell me, I'll gladly buy the product. I am not inclined to take the oil pan off and scrape it clean or take the valve covers off and scrape out the sludge or remove the heads and have them hot tanked, valves reground etc.
Pour a bottle in, change the oil 1500 miles later, I can do. ARX saves time, saves effort and saves money. If the engine runs great and it's reliable, then what's the problem?
Chemtool and Seafoam don't do what ARX can do slowly and gradually over 1500 miles without damage to the engine. This place has me convinced that I need to stay away from solvent cleaners like Chemtool and Seafoam in my oil. I've used both before. I would be very reluctant to do so now after reading this BB for a long time. I don't think my engine would blow up because of it, but I would rather get the results gently, without risking internal wear even if it's not major.
The only negative side effect I've found with ARX is that oil leaks do develop. I've added seal conditioners afterwards and it makes a big difference. Because of this, I'm convinced that ARX is strictly for the automobile enthusiast and not for the average consumer who might freak out from an oil leak. I've also noticed oil consumption in more than one vehicle I've treated with ARX. The oil level during treatment and during the rinse phase definitely needs to be monitored.
Given the oil leaks and the oil consumption, I'll still use ARX because of the noticeable improvement in the way the engines run. I'm looking at ARX benefits long term. If you have a car for only a year or 2 years then don't sweat it, why bother? If you keep vehicles for a long time and/or put lots of miles on them then ARX makes sense. The bottom line is that you don't need to clean every bit of sludge and crud out of an engine for it to run great and provide a long and reliable service life. It depends on how meticulous you are I guess.
