Italian Tune vs Long Trips in DI Engines

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Speak2Mountain

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Some ppl say Italian Tuneups for carbon build up prevention, others say limit short-tripping and have extended runs on highway.

I've(ALSO) read that Italian tuneups are a waste of gas and really not needed.

Goal: preventing as much CB as I possibly can.

Thx ahead
 
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Italian Tune Ups and short trips need to be defined before this thread goes anywhere. I have never had carbon buildup but don't have any Direct Injection automobiles. I'm fortunate enough to live somewhere with alternate routes for my daily destinations which include segments of highway. This allows full throttle for merging, full throttle for passing(those dawdling along at less than the speed limit). I think it helps. What I think and what is happening could be very different.
 
Mine is a DI engine with 195k miles on it. Yes, there is a patina of carbon buildup (as of 180k when I removed the intake manifold) but it was not a major issue on mine.

I have a feeling that the carbon buildup is a hyped up issue with these engines. Yes, it happens but not as often as the 10-15 stories on the internet would suggest.
 
Italian tuneup from my readings,taking to or near RL for extended periods of time..perhaps 20-30 minutes. Kinda scares me to do this.
 
"Italian tune ups" don;t work on D/I motors as the Fuel is injected inside the cylinder. They barely do anything on a modern port injected car as well. The Italian tune up worked on older Carb/Throttle body injected vehicles as the fuel ran through the entire intake system.

Want to get rid of build up then spray out the throttle body every 10-30k as needed. Regular carb cleaner works ok for most and for hard to clean ones use the D/I cleaner by CRC.
http://crcindustries.com/gdi/
 
Important distinctions required.

First of all, this info is wildly platform specific. Italian Tune Up was coined to refer to highly tuned engines that load up the plugs around town and respond well to higher gear highly loaded runs. So the regular mundane cruiser might not do this well.

Secondly, what kind of gearing? Is it like my old 4.56 geared street car? Or is it an 8 speed double overdrive with 3.36's? With a 1 to 1 top gear and some short rear gears an 80 mph cruise might really get the revs up, but again the regular cruise will not respond as well.

And a real ITU is only effective at full throttle. Just cruising around the redline with light loading will not clear the plugs like it was meant to do...
 
That does sound scary! I think(this should cause doubt straight-away) that one would have to drive in a very sedate manner in a cold climate on several short trips over a period of months for this to be an issue. Anything I'm driving is going to get to the red line under full throttle a few times a day. Of course this isn't for extended periods of time.
 
Don't worry about it, unless its a motor that is known for carbon buildup issues. Like the VWAG TFSI, or similar.

My preventative steps, as its unknown if the newer VW 1.8T DI will have this issue:
RLI Bio-Plus at 1oz per tank and LC-20 in the oil.

I plan on scoping the intake, if its easy to get to, at 30 or 40k miles...
I do lots of highway on weekend trips, along with the above steps, I'm assuming I'll be at a lower chance of having issues.
 
Originally Posted By: Alfred_B
Mine is a DI engine with 195k miles on it. Yes, there is a patina of carbon buildup (as of 180k when I removed the intake manifold) but it was not a major issue on mine.

I have a feeling that the carbon buildup is a hyped up issue with these engines. Yes, it happens but not as often as the 10-15 stories on the internet would suggest.


What car is this?
 
Originally Posted By: Jimzz
"Italian tune ups" don;t work on D/I motors as the Fuel is injected inside the cylinder. They barely do anything on a modern port injected car as well. The Italian tune up worked on older Carb/Throttle body injected vehicles as the fuel ran through the entire intake system.

Want to get rid of build up then spray out the throttle body every 10-30k as needed. Regular carb cleaner works ok for most and for hard to clean ones use the D/I cleaner by CRC.
http://crcindustries.com/gdi/


THIS IS COOL!

Finally something that works. I used to use Redline SI1? cleaner as it contains lots of PEA.

I didn't know this existed until now. BG had a product too but that required a bunch of extra [censored] to work. Bookmarked!
 
Originally Posted By: vgliou
Originally Posted By: Jimzz
"Italian tune ups" don;t work on D/I motors as the Fuel is injected inside the cylinder. They barely do anything on a modern port injected car as well. The Italian tune up worked on older Carb/Throttle body injected vehicles as the fuel ran through the entire intake system.

Want to get rid of build up then spray out the throttle body every 10-30k as needed. Regular carb cleaner works ok for most and for hard to clean ones use the D/I cleaner by CRC.
http://crcindustries.com/gdi/

THIS IS COOL!

Finally something that works. I used to use Redline SI1? cleaner as it contains lots of PEA.

I didn't know this existed until now. BG had a product too but that required a bunch of extra [censored] to work. Bookmarked!

If that B.S. works I'll eat my hat.

And FWIW, the VWs I have seen with less/no deposits were driven more "enthusiastically." The valves get hotter and intake velocity is increased so yes, the Italian tune-up will work to an extent on D.I. engines.
 
Had a 2.0T FSI engine from VAG. I know the feeling of doubt.

The BG product actually did improve things (used a boroscope). But that was many moons ago and I since ditched the car.

PEA is known to help. Whether or not it does to the extent claimed (up to 23% removed within the first hour) is up to someone to test.
 
Correct me if I'm wrong but the ITU also is supposed to help with sticky rings. I can say that after a very aggressive drive on "The Dragon" and the nearby Cherohala Skyway, my Red Sled (Optima) felt peppier and more responsive for the next few thousand miles.
Just guessing, but I think it helped clean my plugs a bit and "blow out" some carbon I had collected as my sedate DD.
It could also be totally in my head - but I sure enjoyed it!
 
I have a Audi A6 3.2 whichh is a DI motor with 118k miles which I have owned for past 10 years. I use Mobil 1 0w40 at 10k miles on oil changes. I have not experienced any carbon issues although I havent visually inspected the valves. I drive mostly highway. I once saw a paper by VW to run engines at 3krpm for over 20 minutes to get valves hot to bake off the carbon. Not sure if it applies to my motor. I have done that maybe 3-4 times in the last 10 years and all seems well for me..
 
Originally Posted By: Speak2Mountain
Some ppl say Italian Tuneups for carbon build up prevention, others say limit short-tripping and have extended runs on highway.

I've(ALSO) read that Italian tuneups are a waste of gas and really not needed.

Goal: preventing as much CB as I possibly can.

Thx ahead


Italian tuneups are not for prevention. They actually can and do burn off deposits if you can keep the RPMs above 4k for 20 minutes or more.
 
Originally Posted By: rooflessVW

If that B.S. works I'll eat my hat.

And FWIW, the VWs I have seen with less/no deposits were driven more "enthusiastically." The valves get hotter and intake velocity is increased so yes, the Italian tune-up will work to an extent on D.I. engines.


So would I. Spraying liquids or even vapor into a dry manifold design guarantees uneven distribution. Expect uneven results...
 
Originally Posted by badtlc
Italian tuneups are not for prevention. They actually can and do burn off deposits if you can keep the RPMs above 4k for 20 minutes or more.


Is it nesessary to to drive a car with high revs or it's just do it standing on a parking lot?
 
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