How to Clean Intake Valves On Ford EcoBoost Engines with CRC GDI IVD® Intake Valve Cleaner

[t4thfavor]

Where did you inject the crc into? Like what port or vacuum hose?

Someone above mentioned that he used the hose just before the throttle body, it could be in a different thread though, but there were pictures.

Sponsored

 

[2.7EcoBoost]

Where did you inject the crc into? Like what port or vacuum hose?

This hose pops off easily. I sprayed down into the intake tract, just held my other thumb over vacuum hose, but you could use a piece of black tape etc. to cover the vacuum if desired. The can sat on the intake tube and the sraw bent into the hole for spraying. I am going to get some (hopefully) clear fuel line, about 12"-16" that fits into the hole, that way it will be easier to spray. These cans need to be almost completely vertical, at least a little more than 45* or upside down to work properly. A 12-16"" piece oh hose sticking up from the intake tube would have made spraying much easier by giving more room. Overall, though very easy.

 

[CompDude]

This hose pops off easily. I sprayed down into the intake tract, just held my other thumb over vacuum hose, but you could use a piece of black tape etc. to cover the vacuum if desired. The can sat on the intake tube and the sraw bent into the hole for spraying. I am going to get some (hopefully) clear fuel line, about 12"-16" that fits into the hole, that way it will be easier to spray. These cans need to be almost completely vertical, at least a little more than 45* or upside down to work properly. A 12-16"" piece oh hose sticking up from the intake tube would have made spraying much easier by giving more room. Overall, though very easy.

Thanks for taking time to post this!!

 

[txquailguy]

I totally agree. I have just under 5k miles on my truck. Will be performing it’s first service sometime next week. Going to install an oil catch can at that time to try and extend the intake valve cleaning interval. I will not be using any type of intake valve cleaner through the engine. I will just do a walnut blast once I have an issue, hopefully around 50-60k+. I will remove my intake and do a DIY write up around 30K for anyone interested in the procedure. For the time being let’s just enjoy our Rangers. All direct injection engines suffer from this issue at some point.

Get a BIG can so you don't have to empty it ALL THE TIME...lol

 

[HarryD]

I would like to weigh in, agreeing with t4thfavor recommending AGAINST the use of spraying a solvent solution through the intake system!
On a normally aspirated system the downside would probably be quite low, but with a turbo the downside gets exponentially worse. The biggest problem that I see is with the turbo bearings which would get washed somewhat of the oil film that supports the shaft. The possibility of carbon chunks impacting the impeller blades is also not good.
My experience with turbos is in owning a number of Subarus (Legacy GT and a couple of WRXs) and following a couple of Subaru forums.
With the Subarus the issue was usually oil starvation due to oil supply line filters getting clogged, but bearing damage is bearing damage however it happens. When the bearings fail you get impeller to housing contact sending metal shards downstream and into the turbo oil supply line. This has a cascading effect. When you have metal fragments in the oil, it often takes out cam bearings, etc.
With all that said, I personally would rather pay the $350-$400 on occasion for walnut blasting than take the chance of catastrophic engine damage.

 

[dtech]

The biggest problem that I see is with the turbo bearings which would get washed somewhat of the oil film that supports the shaft. The possibility of carbon chunks impacting the impeller blades is also not good.

I don't understand how the the turbo bearings would get washed of oil film - the bearing sits in an enclosed chamber with seals that keep the oil and water contained in the center bearing chamber, at least on turbos I've taken apart - to rebuild because over time when those seals degrade they leak oil and hence blue smoke.
I believe the premise of the cleaning solution is that it is done prior to allowing substantial buildup on the valves and it is done at periodic intervals - thus mitigating the risk of chunks of carbon breaking off. Echoing what a mechanic posted earlier in the thread a mechanic I spoke with says it (solvent cleaning) isn't very effective once the buildup becomes significant - usually with higher mileage, but he has seen only a few engines - these with high mileage where the buildup has noticeably impacted engine performance.

 

[HarryD]

I believe that the turbo bearing seals are not designed for, or expecting to be subject to petroleum solvents. The seals are normally only externally exposed to air flow.

 

[mailbox4449]

This hose pops off easily. I sprayed down into the intake tract, just held my other thumb over vacuum hose, but you could use a piece of black tape etc. to cover the vacuum if desired. The can sat on the intake tube and the sraw bent into the hole for spraying. I am going to get some (hopefully) clear fuel line, about 12"-16" that fits into the hole, that way it will be easier to spray. These cans need to be almost completely vertical, at least a little more than 45* or upside down to work properly. A 12-16"" piece oh hose sticking up from the intake tube would have made spraying much easier by giving more room. Overall, though very easy.

Have you had any issues so far doing this? I am looking into doing this as well as preventative maintenance.

 

[Aonarch]

The only proper way of doing this is with professional walnut blasting.

Chemicals won't work, or for those who argue, won't work well, since fuel doesn't hit the valves, and a short burst of spray cleaner will not actually do anything. You need mechanical cleaning for direct injection (Abrasive).

^ That is for a non-turbo direct injection vehicle

Chemical cleaning is not a good idea on a turbo DI engine, because you risk damaging the turbo, either with the chemical spraying into the cold side (Intake) of the turbo, or the byproduct of cleaning going into the hot side (Exhaust) of the turbo.

 

[mailbox4449]

The only proper way of doing this is with professional walnut blasting.

Chemicals won't work, or for those who argue, won't work well, since fuel doesn't hit the valves, and a short burst of spray cleaner will not actually do anything. You need mechanical cleaning for direct injection (Abrasive).

^ That is for a non-turbo direct injection vehicle

Chemical cleaning is not a good idea on a turbo DI engine, because you risk damaging the turbo, either with the chemical spraying into the cold side (Intake) of the turbo, or the byproduct of cleaning going into the hot side (Exhaust) of the turbo.

I disagree. Engines with both port and direct injectors, use GAS in the port injectors to "clean" the valves as the motor operates. Gas is a natural cleaning agent and does not damage any turbos or the like. While doing an occasional cleaning with a CRC type cleaning system is not as good as a constant cleaning from gasoline being sprayed from the port injectors, I feel if one does this every 5000 miles or so, it would keep the area "cleaner" than just leaving it alone.

I personally do not wish to use a catch can as it requires more attention especially during colder months, and I don't want to putz with emptying cans during the winter months. Some of that condensation that mostly fills up those cans, while good to catch, just naturally burns up in the motor. I don't want to get into a pissing match over the catch can. I just personally think the cost and design is just "ok" for me. Do they work? Appears some may help, but others really don't, IMHO. Honestly, I would love to just vent it out into the atmosphere and leave it at that

While I do agree the walnut way of cleaning is probably the safest way to clean the valves that are already caked up, it is hard to locate (at least for me) a reputable shop that will do it correctly and not cause more issues performing this procedure. I guess I've been burnt too many times by these "service technicians" who lately seem to be glorified parts changers, and not actual MECHANICS ?. So, I wish to take matters into my own hands (while I still can) and would rather just perform a deep clean with chemicals before every oil change and it should do fine. Will this get ALL the crud out...probably not, but if its done on a routine schedule, it should keep the crud from building up enough to effect engine performance. Easy to do, and only needs to be done every 5000 or so. My vehicle, my opinion

 

[Aonarch]

I disagree. Engines with both port and direct injectors, use GAS in the port injectors to "clean" the valves as the motor operates. Gas is a natural cleaning agent and does not damage any turbos or the like. While doing an occasional cleaning with a CRC type cleaning system is not as good as a constant cleaning from gasoline being sprayed from the port injectors, I feel if one does this every 5000 miles or so, it would keep the area "cleaner" than just leaving it alone.

I personally do not wish to use a catch can as it requires more attention especially during colder months, and I don't want to putz with emptying cans during the winter months. Some of that condensation that mostly fills up those cans, while good to catch, just naturally burns up in the motor. I don't want to get into a pissing match over the catch can. I just personally think the cost and design is just "ok" for me. Do they work? Appears some may help, but others really don't, IMHO. Honestly, I would love to just vent it out into the atmosphere and leave it at that

While I do agree the walnut way of cleaning is probably the safest way to clean the valves that are already caked up, it is hard to locate (at least for me) a reputable shop that will do it correctly and not cause more issues performing this procedure. I guess I've been burnt too many times by these "service technicians" who lately seem to be glorified parts changers, and not actual MECHANICS ?. So, I wish to take matters into my own hands (while I still can) and would rather just perform a deep clean with chemicals before every oil change and it should do fine. Will this get ALL the crud out...probably not, but if its done on a routine schedule, it should keep the crud from building up enough to effect engine performance. Easy to do, and only needs to be done every 5000 or so. My vehicle, my opinion

Our engines do not have port, or dual injection, only direct.

The key there is port injection with a top tier fuel does gradual, or constant cleaning. Dumping a bunch of chemicals into the engine to blast off carbon is not the same as that gradual cleaning.

The only way to confirm the chemical method did anything is with an inspection scope. I've personally tried this with VW direct injection engines and the chemical cleaners did absolutely nothing.

 

[Fitzmotor]

I'm surprised nobody has mentioned water, I'm sure I will get flamed for such a comment.
It works rather well for removing carbon, I have seen both the pull a intake hose and carefully dispense a controlled amount of water for a short amount of time, as well as the slow vapor draw through a container of water, both work very well.

Anybody remember Granatelli Tune Up masters? part of the service was pouring a huge cup of water down the carb to decarbon the engine, as well as moving the seat forward 1 click, so it seemed like the gas pedal was more responsive.

I know, a different time and different engine controls.

 

[mailbox4449]

Our engines do not have port, or dual injection, only direct.

The key there is port injection with a top tier fuel does gradual, or constant cleaning. Dumping a bunch of chemicals into the engine to blast off carbon is not the same as that gradual cleaning.

The only way to confirm the chemical method did anything is with an inspection scope. I've personally tried this with VW direct injection engines and the chemical cleaners did absolutely nothing.

I understand the ecoboost motors in the Rangers do not have dual injectors.

I have a neighbor with a BMW without the dual injectors as well, and he has been doing the chemical cleaning since getting his vehicle new. I'm not sure how many miles he currently has (i want to guess at least 30k), but he has access to more scopes and tools that it convinced me to look into doing this maintenance. He had his vehicle's engine tuned but does not have any catch cans. He swears by the chemical cleaning method. He stated he lets the chemical sit for at least the time suggested by the manufacturer if not longer. He does this religiously at every oil change. I do believe he too uses the 5K mark. His OCD and inspection of the motor performance is my gain . I do not claim to know it all, but after seeing his results, it definitely peaked my interest and to question this catch can/chemical cleaning process. I'm not a fan of the direct injection, but it seems the way these auto makers are going to meet those tight rules imposed on them.

While I'm not new to engine maintenance, I would like to do what I can to extend the life and performance of my vehicles, as I'm sure you and others want as well. Again, not knocking the walnut process. I just feel that adding this chemical process in lieu of, or in addition to the catch can, should help extended the need to do the walnut cleaning. I'm sure there are others here who don't even care about adding ANY more gadgets, mods, or more maintenance expense and will probably be fine in the long run as well... FYI: I hate those people!! ? I guess everyone's OCD is different and YMMV.

 

[Stevedbvik1]

I believe that the turbo bearing seals are not designed for, or expecting to be subject to petroleum solvents. The seals are normally only externally exposed to air flow.

There are no “seals” in a turbo. There are tiny piston rings on the cold and hot sides. That’s what keeps oil from leaking out of the turbo. Petroleum solvents will do nothing to the piston rings. The biggest concern I would have for the turbo would be if you had carbon build up on the cold wheel. If the petroleum solvent breaks up the build up then next stop is the intercooler and if not broken down small enough may plug the intercooler. Also the same goes for on the hot side of the turbo. Garbage out, next stop catalytic converter and possible plugging

 

[Aonarch]

There are no “seals” in a turbo. There are tiny piston rings on the cold and hot sides. That’s what keeps oil from leaking out of the turbo. Petroleum solvents will do nothing to the piston rings. The biggest concern I would have for the turbo would be if you had carbon build up on the cold wheel. If the petroleum solvent breaks up the build up then next stop is the intercooler and if not broken down small enough may plug the intercooler. Also the same goes for on the hot side of the turbo. Garbage out, next stop catalytic converter and possible plugging

This is why I only recommend walnut blasting.

Sponsored