Seafoam For A 1990 190e 2.6l - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

lsmalley · #1 03-11-2008, 01:59 AM

ok so i just changed my oil, oil filter, air filter, and bought a can of seafoam and poured it into my oil and gas tank, drove for about 60 miles and nothing happened. there wasnt a huge cloud of smoke or anything. is there somewhere else i should pour it? i keep hearing about a pcv or letting some tube suck in the seam which will cause the engine to stall or shut off, but not sure what or where it is. can someone please help me? i am trying to pass smog. oh yeah, i bought a bottle of techron as well, but havent used it yet. pictures would be great help if at all possible. thanks guys.

MTI · #2 03-11-2008, 02:09 AM

1) Seafoam in the fuel tank is just a fuel cleaner.

2) Seafoam in the oil, via the valvecover oil cap, will help clean the bottom part of the engine BUT you have to change the oil shortly thereafter, probably within the first 20 miles or so, so it's generally only done just before an oil change. You do not want to run the engine for any long period of time while the engine oil is mixed with Seafoam.

3) To clean the upper part of the valve train, use a funnel to put Seafoam into the vaccum line from the engine, the big tube that powers the brake master cylinder. You will need to rev the engine to keep it from stalling as the Seafoam is fed to the injectors, throwing the mixture off.

lsmalley · #3 03-11-2008, 02:18 AM

ok so i did it backwards. i changed the oil, and then i put in the seafoam. no what? do i have to change it again? also what is the vacuum line? is it the tube connected to where the air filter is? if i take the air filter cover off, there is a large valve that depresses when i press on it and comes back up, is that where the seafoam will be going? should take the cover off and pour it in there directly? when will the excessive smoking from the exhaust occur? sorry i have so many questions, but im trying to pass smog and i need to save money right now because i need a new rear axle as well ($650.00 or somewhere around there, installed). thanks again for your speedy reply

MTI · #4 03-11-2008, 02:48 AM

Yes, you have to change the oil again.

Link To Procedure With Pictures

VEGASTECH777 · #5 03-11-2008, 04:27 AM

Try dumping 2 bottles of 90* isoprpyl alchohol in the gas tank its an old used car dealer trick. Alchohol burns cleaner than gasoline but the engine will run kinda crappy till you burn it all out.

bengerman · #6 03-11-2008, 05:04 AM

anything i should know before buying this stuff?

and, as requested in the other posts, any pics of that vacuum line? or advice on finding the line?

also, is this better than the fuel additive stuff i've used before? sounds like seafoam is part maintenance, part religion
this isn't quite what i've used but its basically the same. i have some of this laying around too, that i might try (the stuff i had was extremely generic and cheap, it was just the first i saw at the parts store, and i was in a hurry.)

skhagen · #7 03-11-2008, 07:24 PM

you need to find a mechanic. If your having trouble finding the vacum line. It's probably not something you can do without fouling spark plugs and causing your self more problems.

sorry

bengerman · #8 03-11-2008, 10:31 PM

honestly, haven't even poked around for said line.

and, have a mechanic who's going to help me with it, but he hasn't worked much on mercs before

donbryce · #9 03-12-2008, 09:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lsmalley

ok so i did it backwards. i changed the oil, and then i put in the seafoam. no what? do i have to change it again? also what is the vacuum line? is it the tube connected to where the air filter is? if i take the air filter cover off, there is a large valve that depresses when i press on it and comes back up, is that where the seafoam will be going? should take the cover off and pour it in there directly? when will the excessive smoking from the exhaust occur? sorry i have so many questions, but im trying to pass smog and i need to save money right now because i need a new rear axle as well ($650.00 or somewhere around there, installed). thanks again for your speedy reply

As posted, you're going to have to change the oil again. The vacuum line is the one from the brake booster to the intake manifold. It's about 1/2" diameter. The 'large valve' under the air cleaner is not the best place to pour Seafoam in, in fact, other threads on this subject have specifically warned against using the main air intake. I did, with no 'bad' results, but I'll use the brake vacuum line next time. It's very hard to get off, maybe use a heat gun or hair dryer to make it more pliable. The smoking will occur after you restart the engine after letting it sit for awhile with the Seafoam inside.

S-Class Guru · #10 03-13-2008, 11:08 AM

The biggest scare with Seafoam in the intake is possibly pouring in too much at once and hydro-locking the engine (getting non-compressable liquid in the combustion chamber and bending a rod). However, I think this is pretty difficult if you take about two minutes or so to pour the whole bottle in.
Thru the main intake butterfly is not recommended for MB's because the manifold dips down inside, and the liquid will just sit down there and congeal with all the goo that's already down there.
The brake booster line is so large that keeping the engine running with that line open is difficult.
Best way may be to pull one of the small vacuum lines off the manifold, like the tranny vacuum line, and connect a hose/funnel there. Then just run the engine at fast idle and pour the SF in. The small line will restrict the volume, so you can't over-do the pouring. As soon as it gets nearly all in, just kill the engine - maybe not quite as effective as drowning the engine with SF liquid to kill it, but much safer in my opinion.

Let it sit overnight, then drive it pretty fast for 10 miles or so. should smoke like a demon. Then change the oil and filter.

DG

LUVMBDiesels · #11 03-13-2008, 11:26 AM

I always use a small vacuum line to inject seafoam. last tiem I did it on the BMW (Jetronic K) I used the line from the fuel pressure regulator. Just stick the line in the can and it wil suck the stuffout like through a straw. You do have to rev it above idle to keep the engine running. I injected a whole can into the engine that way, let it sit about 15-20 minutes then started it up. You get lots of smoke and if youhave a lot of carbon a nice BBQ smell

I have never put in in the crankcase but you will have to change your oil immediately or you could damage the engine. I only run Mobil 1 and the engine is nice and clean after 24 years and 230K.

Another great product is GM Top Engine Cleaner, which you can get at any GM parts counter. I used it many times by pouring it down a carb throat. Same idea as with Seafoam, SLOWLY pour it in until you stall the engine, wait 15 minutes and run the engine. I just did it to my 34 year old Jeep and it made a HUGE difference. When I bought the thing it was running on only two cylinders and the other four were really fouled. The TEC cleaned them up (after I changed the spark plugs and wires and got them firing again)

jose · #12 03-14-2008, 08:14 AM

here in the phillipines what some tech do to clean the inside of the engine is to pour diesel fuel at least 4 liter inside the engine after the old oil is drain (sort of flushing out the dirt inside) run the engine for 30 sec. then drain it. put new filter and new oil. you can see that the new oil is super clean.

esanding · #13 03-17-2008, 12:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lsmalley

ok so i just changed my oil, oil filter, air filter, and bought a can of seafoam and poured it into my oil and gas tank, drove for about 60 miles and nothing happened. there wasnt a huge cloud of smoke or anything. is there somewhere else i should pour it? i keep hearing about a pcv or letting some tube suck in the seam which will cause the engine to stall or shut off, but not sure what or where it is. can someone please help me? i am trying to pass smog. oh yeah, i bought a bottle of techron as well, but havent used it yet. pictures would be great help if at all possible. thanks guys.

I have experience before of high HC and nox to that model I change the cat converter and I used the OBD II cat. more efficient HC