Through Rail Injector Cleaner? What to use.

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Dec 19, 2019
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Muncie, Indiana
I've been looking at possibly getting one of those cheap china clones of the OTC through rail injector cleaner that you plug into an air compressor and use the appropriate adapters to connect to your fuel rail.
I've been looking around at the cleaners for it and they can get pretty steep like $10-20 for 16oz, I was thinking of just homebrewing my own concoction to use.
I was looking at the SDS for OTC's Pro Inject-R Cleen and it appears to just be pure Xylene and it seems to be out of stock everywhere currently. I was looking that Lowe's and Menards have Xylol thinner and the SDS shows that it's not pure Xylene but it's majority Xylene, then ethylbenzene, and maybe a little cumene depending on what brand you buy exactly, which are all solvents I've seen in injector cleaners, is there any reason not to use the hardware store xylol as through rail injector cleaner? I was also thinking to just use cheap B12 chemtool at a high concentration maybe somewhere between 1:1 and 1:4 Chemtool to gasoline.
 
Trav is the guy for this question!!, But I have best luck with GM Top Engine Cleaner mixed per GM recommendations....Unless I'm dealing with stuck/heavily varnished Injectors where I bump up the dosage.
 
+1 on the GM product, the problem being overlooked is the filters in the injectors themselves. Sometimes they are okay but often they are brittle and strong chemicals can deteriorate them even further and push the loosened particles down into the nozzle. When I clean them I use stainless filters to prevent that.
The other issue is even if you improve the flow on any low ones the spray pattern may still be poor, this can be critical to proper engine operation more so on some engines than others eg multi valve non turbo head(s).
 
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I decided not to buy one of the tools that you need an air compressor for, I just had a few GM cars I wanted to do it on, an R12 can tap, and an appropriate hose with an angled adapter on it worked perfectly with both the 4.2L in my 2008 Trailblazer and the 2.4L Ecotech in the 2008 Malibu.
 
I have one of those a 7448A OTC cleaners. I used to use this with it:
61Ifb1eDKgL._AC_SX679_.jpg

It must have been regulated out of existence because I haven't been able to find it for years. On the occasions that indicate an injector issue, I use a can Seafoam or Berryman B-12 before tearing down for an injector replacement..
 
I have one of those a 7448A OTC cleaners. I used to use this with it:
View attachment 122585
It must have been regulated out of existence because I haven't been able to find it for years. On the occasions that indicate an injector issue, I use a can Seafoam or Berryman B-12 before tearing down for an injector replacement..
That was the kind I was talking about that's pretty much just a bottle of pure xylene. I'm guessing it's no longer legal to use in California and other states with similar evaporative emissions requirements.
 
Thanks, but I don't have a pressing need. Local Car Quest brick/mortar referenced has one can. I tried putting 2 cans in my cart and it returns out-of-stock. Seems availability is a one-off thing. Retail outlets will have old stock; no warehouses have it.
 
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Where have you been looking?

View attachment 122662
Maybe that store has old stock that never sold or something, all the parts stores seem to be out of stock in my area, when I find the item on AAPs site every store including Carquest locations in 40 miles says "call store to order" . Also every place I find on google that had it says out of stock, some places even say "discontinued"
 
Maybe that store has old stock that never sold or something, all the parts stores seem to be out of stock in my area, when I find the item on AAPs site every store including Carquest locations in 40 miles says "call store to order" . Also every place I find on google that had it says out of stock, some places even say "discontinued"

This should be available at your local Ford dealer or online. You mix the 8oz can with 2 pints of gasoline per the instructions here:


 
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