Seafoam Engine Treatment

Depends on what the car is doing to warrant the additive treatment.

Seafoam works reasonably well, if used according to its application. In some cases, it will really help clear the top end of the engine - other times, the engine was clean enough that nothing will change. Worst case - you break something or cause leaks that were intially sealed to loosen up and start leaking again. I've heard good and bad things with Seafoam - so if you are afraid that you might cause more damage - that is enough reason to not even think of using them.

As for Restore products - if I had a car that I needed to dump quickly or a needed a last ditch, quick fix - then I'd have no problem using them. For a preventative maintenance thing - you don't need to bother with additives at all. Most will "add" foreign material to the engine - some just act as an oil stabilizer (viscosity modifier) - works in the short term, but usually ends up accelerating engine problems.

On http://www.seafoamsales.com/motorTuneUpTechGas.htm where it says "How Many Mechanics Use SEA FOAM" it talks about:

-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.

My question.....I assume my 2000 LE is "port injected" so where do I find the "direct manifold vacuum line that will feed all cylinders (possible sources are P.C.V. valve or brake booster line)"?

I purchased two (Sea-Foam) cans this week! I put one full can in the fuel thank when my car was running on empty and probably running on fumes… The following morning I did notice my Corolla idle smoother and its acceleration response was noticeably better

The fun part was done this morning when I used 1/3 can of SeaFoam or about 160ml through the PCV and another 1/3 can in the crankcase. Five (5) minutes later, I stared the engine and a cloud smoke came out. The smoke was so think and white that I covered half a block and my neighbors came outside. I also got scream at from kids (3 & 5) for killing mother earth. Funny Stuff!

(Let the engine warm up for about 10-15 minutes before)

Don't forget to change your oil & filter after!!

I assume you sprayed it in when cleaning through the PCV valve. I have a 2000 LE automatic and I guess my steps for using Sea Foam would be the same as yours. Also, I wonder if I can do the Sea Foam, Oil Change, & a tune up all at once.

I will probably just change the PCV valve too ssince they don't cost too much.

For anyone else that might be interested:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-YldQvjjRbw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EQRUYXb28s8...feature=related

That's what I'll do too since a PCV is pretty inexpensive. As for the Seafoam, I put a can in my gas tank friday and will do the crankcase and PCV part tomorrow evening before I leave work, God willing. I'll change the oil, too.

I found that out after having bought 2 cans @ AutoZone last friday @ $8.99 each. I still haven't done the can through the crankcase or PCV yet. I looked and couldn't figure out where the PCV was, but will probably try it through the brake booster line since it's easily accessible.

Found the PCV line and did 2 seperate treatments. The 2nd time the CEL came on and the code was PO300. Did I overdo the seafoam? The guy @ Advance Auto said it was a multiple cylinder misfire code. I plan to change the plugs anyhow. Advice?

I had them reset the CEL also.

I actually only used 1 can and still have some of it left, which will be used in the crankcase when I finally get a chance to change oil. The CEL has not come back since it was reset.

Depends on how much crap was shot out the exhaust after the treatment. Kind of hit or miss with cars - some are more sensitive than others with this sort of treatment.

Doesn't necessarily mean that the quality has gone down for a particular part - maybe the treatment dislodged larger chunks in the one car than another. Possible that enough "crap" got blown down the exhaust pipe to foul a sensor or two - fould plugs like crazy. Doesn't mean that Seafoam automatically is bad - even large amounts of combustion blowby, oil consumption issues, overly rich mixtures can fould sensors just as easily.

Old trick was to pull the sensor out and burn off the contaiminants with a torch - though some have indicated that even a torch can leave behind its own contaminants (type of gas varies - propane leave behind organic compounds and with MAPP gas - leave behind quite a bit of hydrogen).

But I have noticed that Seafoamed Camrys seem to have more occurances of CEL than other Toyota makes. Not sure if this is indicative of Camrys in general - or that their owners are more keen on trying treatments like these - can't say for sure. The ECM characteristics are quite different between one generation to the next - the 8th gen did fine with a 16bit ECM, but the 9th gen went with a 32bit setup to enable finer control of parameters and handle more sensors with faster data rates.

If you are set on replacing parts - Catalytic converter and various sensors - keep in mind that some models have an air/fuel ratio sensor instead of a garden variety narrow band O2 sensor - the air fuel ratio variants have a much broader sensitivity range - similar to a wide-band O2 sensor. Many of those sensors were introduced around the 1998 or earlier (some came out on Toyotas in 1990) - I believe many 2003+ use them now. That's part of the reason why a $60 universal Bosch or similar O2 sensor throws a CEL on come Toyotas.

Some of the early 1ZZ-FE did have some issues - 8th gen Corollas had EVAP or oil consumption issues, 9th gen had clogged cats, induction/ECM issues, Celicas and MR2s had their share of issue - seemed to be a mix of both generation of Corollas. It was a two part issue on the MR2 - rings got stuck or excessively worn, which blew crap into the cat, clogged it up, increasing backpressure which accelerated the ring sealing issues. There was a redesign in the 1ZZ-FE around 2001-2002 that addressed the ring issues - as most have picked up - the 9th gen didn't seem to have the oil control issues like the early 8th gen Corollas and MR2s.

As for the S2000 - nope - it is just an example dyno I pulled for a topic on another forum. I was a Honda guy before I jumped on Toyotas - way back before they had the explosion of bolt-on aftermarket support for powertrain mods. This was back in the late 80s, early 90s.