Fuel Injector Cleaning Kit

Fuel injectors supply fuel to the combustion chamber of the engine. They are considered as a replacement for carburetors. These days most of the cars come with fuel injectors rather than carburetors. The advantage of fuel injectors is that, the rate at which fuel is supplied to the combustion chamber can be controlled with the help of a computer program.

Fuel injectors are very much vulnerable to clogging and getting dirty. This may lead to several car problems such as degraded engine performance, poor idling, increased emission, etc. Fuel injector cleaning is often recommended in such cases to improve the car performance.

Fuel injector problems can be easily minimized if you regularly use an additive for cleaning them. This additive is mixed with fuel. There are many gas stations where you get impure quality of fuel. Over the time, the impurities get clogged in the injectors, thereby affecting the engine performance.

Additives can greatly prolong the clogging of fuel injectors. However, they do nothing to clean the existing clogged fuel injectors. If you haven't ever used additives, chances are your injectors might have already become clogged with impurities. In such case 'on car' and 'off car' cleaning is your only option.

Off car cleaning is performed by a mechanic and is usually the last resort. However, before that you can try cleaning fuel injectors on your own with the help of a cleaning kit. These kits are available at any auto parts store. The kit comprises a pressurized fuel injector cleaner solvent and the assembly for connecting it to the fuel port on the fuel rail.

The process for fuel injector cleaning with the help of a pressurized solvent is simple, though it requires a little technical knowledge. The first and the foremost thing after buying a fuel injector cleaning kit is locating the fuel injectors of your car. User's manual of your car may help you locating the injectors.

Next, you need to remove the fuel lines connecting the injector and fuel pump. This can also be done by placing a U tube which helps the fuel to return directly to the fuel tank. Now, connect the solvent to the fuel port on the fuel rail. Since the solvent delivers a high amount of pressure in the fuel tank, it is better to remove the fuel cap from the tank.

Open the valve on the kit until the fuel pressure reading reaches the mark for your vehicle. Turn the ignition on and run the engine until the fuel cleaning solvent is completely exhausted. Remove the cleaning kit and reconnect the fuel lines.

There is a lot of confusion regarding the number of times you should take up the cleaning job. In case you have been using the additive on a regular basis, your fuel injectors should be reasonably clean. This situation does not warrant the need for cleaning the injectors with a cleaning kit.

One must not exceed the use of cleaning kit more than three times in the lifetime of a car. The reason is, the cleaning solvent erodes the injectors, thereby making them inefficient after more than three cleaning sessions. A fuel injector replacement would be an ideal solution in such a case.

If you find heavy build up on your injectors, it is best to take them to a mechanic for off car cleaning than inflicting damage upon them with the use of a fuel injector cleaning kit. Cost for professional cleaning is about $40-$80, which is not an expensive option.