Engine Cleaning good or bad

I went to get my oil changed today and the guy goes to me that I need to get my Engine cleaned ..you know when they hook up the car to a machine that cleans the sludge...

I know Iv heard of people saying there car ran like crap after and lost power.... I duno
what do you guys think

Should I get it done or not ???

Ive had my engine cleaned a couple of weeks ago.
I didnt trust myself on doing it, so i took to a detailing shop. Ive had no problems to report.
I definitely recommend it. The engine looks like a million bucks.

What machine are you talking about here....what sludge are you talking about. In the engine bay or the actual engine?

lol..i think he means cleaning the inside of the engine.

Vince , i think he's talking about the Crappy tire engine de-sludgging machine.

you could also save some money by using some ATF and a can throttle body cleaner (ie Carb cleaner/FI cleaner/MCCC), and a bottle of injector cleaner (god knows if they work but they are cheap as hell anyway).

put in some AFT, run for a day or two, use MCCC (or whatever similar) as per VFAQ, change your plugs and oil.

Only downside is, if your engine is old the "sludge" and carbon buildup actually helps compression. Some complain that they loose compression after a cleaning and some report leaking seals.. so to each their own. I cleaned my last engine...no problems but I didn't have to do it to my present car yet since it's got a new engine.

Oh yeah..do yourslef a favour and go clean the outside of the engine as well.

YES I'm talking about inside the Engine.. not out side...

Why would I lose power if I clean the outside .....????

To Scott yes I get my hands dirty... I've done all the work on my car so far( Breaks, rotors, rear main seal, tranny, and all the upgrades) except for the timing belt...

Thanks Jeremy...

I have about 120 K on the car ... so what would you think

I have had it done once at Cosco. I noticed a couple of things my car felt more peppy, but that doesn't necessarily mean it was faster. Secondly my lifters do not tick at idle, I had one liter than made some noise at at idle (quite loud), that problem no longer exists. Finally my base oil pressure if a bit lower on the guage (I am a bit of freak on this guage as I spun a rod bearing on my Mustang years ago), this is likely due to the reduced sludge in the crankcase and oil gallaries.

So overall it worked for me, hopes this helps.

Yasar:

The is a chain of Oil Change facilities that offer this service. www.oilchangers.ca
Not all locations offer the engine flush, so you may have to call a few.
I went to the one in Kitchener, and was very pleased with the result. It really does give a good flush of the engine, and gets rid of a lot of inner crap, thus making it work more efficiently. Consequently, you engine will run smoother, idle better, and you will probably notice an increase in fuel economy, as opposed to a power increase. This procedure has more to do with maintaining/cleaning the interior of your engine than increasing power.
I believe it is around $70, and that includes an oil change with the service. Furthermore, they use Purolator filters.

Dan

SAFETY NOTE:

if you decide to take the route to do an 'engine flush' yourself by using adding ATF or a bottle of 'engine flush' by STP or Motomaster DO NOT, I repeat DO NOT drive your car with the 'additive' in the engine!!! DON'T "run for a day or two.." as you run the risk of SERIOUS engine damage (read: $$$$).

These additives break down the oil (to try and clean the sludge from your engine) and the oil will no longer be capable of providing sufficient lubrication under load (you can overheat and 'burn up' bearing and running surfaces).

When doing a flush by yourself, add somewhere around 1/2L of ATF (if my memory serves me correct) or the STP/Motomaster 'engine flush' (instructions are on the bottle) to the oil and let the engine idle for around 15-20 min - IDLE ONLY, NO LOAD OR DRIVING. Afterward, drain the oil, change the filter and refill. *Personally, before doing my 'final' oil change I run a refill of cheap oil thru the engine (still using the 'old' filter) just to better flush out any of 'additive'd oil' (and possibly left over sludge) -idling again for about 5min. I then drain, change the filter and put in my 'final' change oil.

It's not an overly complicated thing to do, but if you are unsure about anything, it's best to have a 'professional' do it.. doing it incorrect could have serious consequences.

just my .02

I second Watson.

Don't Load the Engine while Flushing. Could be bad.

Sherlock. LOL

opps...I stand corrected...