Seafoam into a 3.2 intake?

[defcon65]

I've been dealing with rough idle on my 85 since I bought it and now that it looks like the ice age is receding from the midwest, I'm going to dig into the problem. It idles about 800 rpm but is rough, like it has high-lift racing cams.

I've read a ton of threads and would like some direct feedback on my questions about Seafoam.
Should I put it in the gas? Techron has not solved the problem thus far.
Should I siphon it into the intake? It sounds kind of risky - hydro lock, ruining the cat.
Exactly which vacuum line should be used? - some confusion here.
At what RPM should it be while the Seafoam is going in?
How quickly should the Seafoam be fed in?

I have already decided to replace the intake gaskets and vacuum hoses, plus clean and check the ICV. O2 sensor will be cleaned or replaced as well.
To me it's counter-intuitive to expect that a can of anything poured into an engine is going to make much of a difference, but I'm open-minded about it and would like to hear of your experiences with Seafoam and the 3.2 engine.

Thank you in advance for any replies.

[ZOA NOM]

My only experience with SeaFoam was during a rebuild of my 3.2 race motor. It was the ONLY product that could clear one of my piston squirters. I had tried everything, and a single drop of SeaFoam cleared it immediately. It is amazing stuff. Whether it will solve your rough idle, I don't know. I would go through the things you listed above deliberately, and give each change a chance to be eliminated as the source of the problem before moving to the next. Every time I've dealt with an idling problem with one of my 3.2's, the first place I started was the CO mixture setting. If that is off, you will spend many frustrating hours trying to isolate the problem. Confirm the CO mixture with a gas analyzer FIRST.


From SeaFoam's website:

# With engine warm, slowly pour 1/3 to 1/2 pint through carburetor or throttle body throat. (If vehicle is port injected slowly pour SEA FOAM through direct manifold vacuum line that will feed all cylinders, possible sources are P.C.V. valve or brake booster line.) This will pull SEA FOAM down on top of the pistons and to the back of the intake valves to dissolve carbon. Turn ignition off. Restart engine after 5 minutes. If severe carbon build up is apparent, use more Sea Foam as previously directed. Make sure exhaust is well ventilated when using Sea Foam in these various ways as fumes will be extreme for a short time.
# Pour 1/3 to 1/2 pint into oil crank case to clean rings, lifters, dirty parts and remove moisture.
# Pour 1/3 to 1 full pint into fuel tank to clean injectors, carburetor jets, fuel lines and remove moisture.
# Immediate Results: Smoother idle, increased R.P.M.'s better throttle response and improved performance. See label on can for detailed results for use in each area.

When Used Thru Injection or Carburetor

* Cleans carbon build up
* Cleans intake valves and pistons
* Gives smoother idle
* Cleans catalytic converter odors
* Cures hesitations and pings
* Restores power and pickup
* With warm engine running, SLOWLY poor 1/2 pint through carburator, throttle body or direct manifold vacuum line that will feed ALL CYLINDERS. Possible sources are P.C.V. valve or brake booster line. Turn ignition off. Restart engine after 5 minutes. Be sure exhaust is well ventilated. Fumes will be extreme for a short period of time.
* For use in injector cleaning machines, use 50% SEA FOAM and 50% fuel.
* Fill diesel filters with SEA FOAM to clean injectors fast.

When Added to Crankcase (Oil)

1. Frees sticky lifters and rings
2. Increases R.P.M.'s vacuum and compression
3. Cleans dirty parts
4. Removes moisture
5. Cleans PCV valve systems

[dipso]

Don't know about the 3.2 but I used it on my 2.7
Smokes like a mother after you start it, people thought my car was on fire by the way they looked at me driving down the street.
If I remember correctly, I used the vacuum line, for the distributor advance, as an intake.
I couldn't really tell if the seafoam made a difference or not,but after new injectors I really noticed the difference. It could of been a combination of the two?
Give it a shot, buy a couple of cans and have some fun. Smokey fun.

[88911coupe]

I've done this on my 3.2, there are a couple of relatively small vauum hoses on the back of the throttle body. Use a mirror to see what you are doing. You can pull them off one at a time to see which one is a vacuum into the intake. This is what I did.
You then hook up a long hose (same inside diameter) to the connection and then dip the other end into the can of Seafoam. It will stumble so you have to manually keep the rpms up by moving the accelerator on the engine. It'll smoke like hell. Best is to get a good amount sucked into the engine over a few minutes then turn it off and let it sit. Fire it back up and watch out, you won't have mosquito problems for the near future.

[89911]

My mechanics recommended SeaFoam by name for cleaning my injectors. These guys have been working on 911's for years.

[rnln]

I did it on a different car and the whole neighbor thought our house are on fire. I won't have a gut to do it again at home.
I have read somewhere (maybe this board too) that you can use water too and it will have good affect. Do you know anything about this?

Originally Posted by 88911coupe

I've done this on my 3.2, there are a couple of relatively small vauum hoses on the back of the throttle body. Use a mirror to see what you are doing. You can pull them off one at a time to see which one is a vacuum into the intake. This is what I did.
You then hook up a long hose (same inside diameter) to the connection and then dip the other end into the can of Seafoam. It will stumble so you have to manually keep the rpms up by moving the accelerator on the engine. It'll smoke like hell. Best is to get a good amount sucked into the engine over a few minutes then turn it off and let it sit. Fire it back up and watch out, you won't have mosquito problems for the near future.

[JohnJL]

Some FJ40 fans on www.ih8mud.com swear by it. I could never find it so never tried it.

[ljp911]

You can find the sea foam at most NAPA stores. It's also available in an aerosol and is called Deep Creep. Same stuff according to the sea foam folks. The spray can makes it easier to just spray into the intake.

[wnsgc]

I assume the Seafoam loosens up the carbon build up in the engine. If so, is there any need to worry about big pieces/chunks of carbon hurting the engine?

I'd like to do this to my 85 Carrera with 120k miles, but I'm not sure which hose to disconnect. Does anyone have a picture?

[88911coupe]

I tried it with water just to see what happened and it was hard to tell exactly what the impact was but there's a lot of evidence from numerous hot rodders that the superheated water does a GREAT job of cleaning up carbon build up on pistons.

[emac]

Water is a old hot rodders trick. I used it in my youth when I had a Hemi Cuda. It will clean up the carbon,, funny, I used it on a Hemi but would be afraid to do the same to my SC

[cashflyer]

Another old hot-rodder trick was to slowly pour transmission fluid into the carb while the engine was at a high idle. Supposedly it will loosen carbon from the valves and piston domes.

[TimT]

You can find the sea foam ......

Or you can make your own, IPA 10-20%, Naptha 20-35%, Light Oil 40-60%.

IPA = isopropyl alchohol.

and this is the same recipe for seafoams "trans tune"


nothing really special or magic in the bottle.

[RLJ]

This post caught me in a dumb a$$ attack.
I lived at the beach for about 15 years (Long Beach Peninsula of the Washington coast) and we drove the beach almost every day.

When the wind was blowing hard we would get great big gobs of "sea foam" blowing across the beach. Called them"gompsters".

My first thought was. How did it get through the air cleaner? Duh, never heard of SeaFoam additive.

Randy Jones
1971 911 "Iris" (who has never been on the beach)

[defcon65]

Thanks for the replies, guys! I will print out this thread for reference while I attack the problem.

But - will the Seafoam damage the cat? I read in another thread this is a possible concern.

The Porsche is coming out of hibernation this weekend! Temps forecasted in the 60s all week and the ice and snow should be completely gone by then.

What a long, miserable winter - worst in fifteen years.

Thanks again.

[89911]

Originally Posted by TimT

Or you can make your own, IPA 10-20%, Naptha 20-35%, Light Oil 40-60%.

IPA = isopropyl alchohol.

and this is the same recipe for seafoams "trans tune"


nothing really special or magic in the bottle.

As soon as I get my next batch of Meth done, I'll whip some up!

[88911coupe]

I don't know if it may hurt the cat but my car has passed emmissions after using it just fine. I did run into a problem passing with fouled plugs but new ones solved that problem.

[JFairman]

Seafoam and Techron smell similar... both smell kinda like naphtha.

Back when Techron first came out it had the ingrediant listed on the bottle: aromatic naptha.
Thats also plain old lighter fluid... a great cleaning agent that leaves no residue behind.

It's also the ingrediant in pre-cleano and prepsol which are both used as the final wipedown on a primered car ready for color sprayed on. It's purpose there is to remove any contaniments that may cause fisheye in the paint.

I wonder how different Seafoam and Techron are...

Maybe Seafoam has more light oil or kerosene in it so you can use it in the motor oil. I wouldn't though.

[911Freak]

I've been using SeaFoam on my older BMW's and especially my RV for years...

All we do is:
cut a small water bottle in half
pour half a can into the cut-off bottle
while engine is running pull off a vacuum line from Brake booster on BMW/RV, CIS line on SC
And while someone keeps the revs high (2500 b/c it will want to stall) it suck's into the system
Then we turn off the engine and let sit for 10-15 min, IMO 5 min isn't long enough, just my .02
Fire up the engine and watch in stunned silence as the brownish carbon burns and smokes out the entire area! The more the smoke the more carbon deposit being removed!

Not only do the engines run better, but there's noticable fuel mpg increase etc.

I have never had any issues regarding the Cat. I use this in my daily driver Honda V6 every
30K mi service.. In fact I believe it contributed to my SC passing smog right after I bought it as it was sitting for a time...

BTW~Beware the stench is TOXIC!

[toolman]

Seafoam is one of the products we sell, and it is made of Chevron Techron, Marvel Mystery Oil and (red) Iso Heet. It seems to be the right mix of those products because it really works well.