My mom took her van in for service and they told her she needed an injector flush at the cost of $140. I never heard of such a thing Sounds suspicious to me, like they'll just toss a $5 bottle of injector cleaner in the tank, charge her $140 and call it a flush. Is there such a thing as a flush, something more substantial than a bottle of cleaner or are they just ripping her off?

 

There is a kit that hooks into the fuel rails, it is a pressurized can and hose. The engine is started and the car runs off the can of cleaner. I don't know if the fuel pump fuse is taken out or what the story is with that situation, but I've seen this done before on cars. I don't know the actual cost, my guess is $50, plus then you'll need hoses and probably guages and stuff. I'm sure that is what the mechanic is talking about.

http://www.fcsdchemicalsandlubricant...nce%20Products

 

Well it was all but confirmed by the dealer that it's a ripoff. My mom called the dealer and asked for a few good reasons why the injectors needed a flush. The woman stumbled and stammered with her answer, saying "We have a machine from BP and they recommend a flush every 30k miles".

Since the charge for the job is $140 and the shop's labor rate is $105/hr it would take a good bit longer than 1.33 hrs to do the job for the $140 they're getting. And with the vehicle being FWD, they'd have to drop the engine just to reach the bank of injectors that can't be reached through the hood. Then they'd have to remove them, flow test them before the cleaning, clean them, flow test them after cleaning and reinstall them. Scam revealed...and averted.

 

Almost certainly BS. Unless you took the injectors out to look at them I don't see this working. My old Toyota had 185,000 miles on it when I pulled the head. The injectors were fine.

 

Isn't this what Sea Foam is for? Just buy a bottle of that. $20.

Without opening and looking at the engine, its just a play for your cash, but there is merit to internal engine cleaning. That said, it is nothing you can't do yourself.

 

I've heard of an injector company that sells a placement/relocation kit that's supposed to net some performance and drivability gains by angling the injectors differently. The company is called Hellaflush Injectors, Inc.

 

Unless there was reason to suspect foreign material in the injector system I cannot see a need for "injector cleaner." You already are shoving pressurized gasoline through there, what more could you do?

 

6.95 at your local auto parts store

 

Doesn't seam foam go into the intake and not the fuel system?

 

You can put it through:
Crankcase (dont recommend this unless you're changing oil very shortly)
Vacuum lines
or gas tank.