Terraclean for a petrol direct injection
Discussion
I have a 2009/59 BMW E92 330i with 145k miles on it. It's the N53 direct injection engine and with the mileage the only gripe is a cold start misfire for ~30 seconds (possibly a sticking valve or injector, rather than carbon build up). I do not have any of the usual suspects of carbon build up but as I bought the car on 126k I may just have never driven the car when it wasn't clogged up. I'm getting 26 - 33 MPG on shortish commutes (20 miles each way) depending on how many traffic jams I sit in.
There's a Terraclean van doing the rounds and I'm tempted by the wonderful things the miracle service promises. I have no complaints with power or economy but the van is haunting me as perhaps I'm missing out on 3,000,000 BHP and 65 MPG. Is it a case of it can't break anything, but it might not make anything better, or that it has the potential to dislodge something bedded in and case more harm than good? Opinions of anybody who has given it a go would be appreciated, particularly if it was carried out on a DI car as I can't find as much feedback for these.
There's a Terraclean van doing the rounds and I'm tempted by the wonderful things the miracle service promises. I have no complaints with power or economy but the van is haunting me as perhaps I'm missing out on 3,000,000 BHP and 65 MPG. Is it a case of it can't break anything, but it might not make anything better, or that it has the potential to dislodge something bedded in and case more harm than good? Opinions of anybody who has given it a go would be appreciated, particularly if it was carried out on a DI car as I can't find as much feedback for these.
SoupAnxiety said:
I have a 2009/59 BMW E92 330i with 145k miles on it. It's the N53 direct injection engine and with the mileage the only gripe is a cold start misfire for ~30 seconds (possibly a sticking valve or injector, rather than carbon build up). I do not have any of the usual suspects of carbon build up but as I bought the car on 126k I may just have never driven the car when it wasn't clogged up. I'm getting 26 - 33 MPG on shortish commutes (20 miles each way) depending on how many traffic jams I sit in.
There's a Terraclean van doing the rounds and I'm tempted by the wonderful things the miracle service promises. I have no complaints with power or economy but the van is haunting me as perhaps I'm missing out on 3,000,000 BHP and 65 MPG. Is it a case of it can't break anything, but it might not make anything better, or that it has the potential to dislodge something bedded in and case more harm than good? Opinions of anybody who has given it a go would be appreciated, particularly if it was carried out on a DI car as I can't find as much feedback for these.
If my understanding of how this system works is correct, then it won't do anything to remove the carbon build up in your engine - though it will probably help get rid of any carbon on your piston crowns. The issue with DI engines is that they have no fuel washing over the surfaces of the inlet tract and the back of the valves. Because of this, the oil residue from engine blow-by (which is vented back into the inlet tract) starts to build up on the back of the valves and the surrounding area. The fuel injector is in the combustion chamber, as opposed to the inlet ports on a port injected engine, and this is the cause of the problem. Practically all DI engines suffer the same issue. To clean the carbon build up in your inlet valves you will need to have the manifold removed and have it media-blasted with walnut shell granules. This mechanically removes the build up properly. Check on google images for 'before' and 'after' shots of BMW N54 intake valves after a walnut blast. This is the more common engine to have had the work done.There's a Terraclean van doing the rounds and I'm tempted by the wonderful things the miracle service promises. I have no complaints with power or economy but the van is haunting me as perhaps I'm missing out on 3,000,000 BHP and 65 MPG. Is it a case of it can't break anything, but it might not make anything better, or that it has the potential to dislodge something bedded in and case more harm than good? Opinions of anybody who has given it a go would be appreciated, particularly if it was carried out on a DI car as I can't find as much feedback for these.
Thanks for the reply. I thought the same as you with standard cleaning not being helpful for DI but came across this - http://terracleanshropshire.co.uk/petrol-induction... Presumably it would work but it's a case of justifying it when I think that everything is OK.
Been quoted £216 all inclusive for a direct injection specific clean and then the standard Terraclean service. Pricier than expect and not sure if both are required. Plenty of positive feedback for the service in general and the horror stories seem to be "friend of a friend" or "man down the pub".
I have the same engine, and have had my injectors cleaned by my local Bosch injector company. They can't be tested, but this cured my misfire for a few weeks!! I ended up replacing my coil packs and my engine runs a lot better now!! It feels all of its claimed bhp and is good on fuel!! I nearly had the terraclean. Glad I didn't now.
carl911rugby said:
I have the same engine, and have had my injectors cleaned by my local Bosch injector company. They can't be tested, but this cured my misfire for a few weeks!! I ended up replacing my coil packs and my engine runs a lot better now!! It feels all of its claimed bhp and is good on fuel!! I nearly had the terraclean. Glad I didn't now.
Injector cleaner cures mine for a few weeks and then it comes pack. Mine is worse on cold mornings, suspicion is on sticking valve or coil packs. Mine has had the coil pack recall but that was 60k ago. Will shelve the Terraclean for now.Do you know if there is a way to diagnose a coil pack? My misfire rarely throws an EML and when it does the fault moves amongst cylinders.
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