PEA: Is the key ingredient for fuel system cleaner.-->(polyether amine).
This is the view from Chad8: Very detailed and good.
Chevron Techron Concentrate (32% PEA, based on an older published MSDS spec sheet--may be different now; $8 for 12oz. bottle) has been the leading fuel system cleaner since its development sometime in the 1970’s (it's also a touted leading detergent in gas, albeit in MUCH lower concentrations than the stand-alone concentrate formulation). The main active cleaning ingredient is PEA. Other known fuel system products containing PEA include the following:
* Gumout Regane (30-40% PEA content based on published MSDS data; about $5 for 12oz. bottle)
* Redline SI-1 (30-50% PEA based on MSDS data; about $9 for 15oz. bottle)
* Amsoil Performance Improver (28-37% PEA based on MSDS data; $10 for 12oz. bottle)
* BG Products 44K (unknown PEA content since they reformulated—does anyone have this data?).
Other than the active-cleaning PEA, each product has variable fillers/detergents (i.e. Gumout has kerosene, Redline seems to have an octane booster, Chevron and Amsoil have naptha among other ingredients). I’m sure that there are other PEA-containing fuel system cleaners, but the previously listed products (with the possible exception of BG 44K) are known, sure-fire products (so I can not recommend any other products). Also, as an FYI, the cheaper Chevron Fuel Injector cleaner is NOT the same as Chevron Techron Concentrate—it’s just a watered down version of it from what I’ve read.
The use of the PEA fuel system cleaners is listed as every 3,000 miles. Personally, from what I’ve read, I would use the cleaner about 2 weeks before I got an oil change, as the cleaned up deposits will wash into your oil—not necessarily a bad thing as the oil can probably absorb and neutralize the deposits, but there will be peace of mind from having clean oil in the engine. Also, I’d use the cleaner ideally when you can make longer drives in your car to allow the cleaner to do it’s job at full operating temperature.
To use the PEA fuel system cleaners, get your gas down to about ¼ tank. Put the whole bottle of PEA-containing fuel system cleaner in your tank, then fuel up to get it properly mixed. FYI, Chevron Techron Concentrate (12 oz treats up to 12 gallons), so I used two 12-oz. bottles as the GS400 has a 20 gallon tank. Follow the manufacturer instructions for the other products.
This is a bit old so the % might have changed a bit.
