Cleaning My Intake Valves (Semi DIY)

[ViRtUaLheretic]

Fixed. I am convinced, 100%, after seeing, feeling, and cleaning this carbon off, there is no chemical in the world that will get this off once it has already built up.

With what you know now, would you still reccomend using sefoam? If so at what intervals?
I just hit 20k miles on my TSI and have only had the BSH Race Can on for maybe 600 miles.

 

[Akatsuki...]

Staulkor, what milleage did you put the VTA catch can on?

With what you know now, would you still reccomend using sefoam? If so at what intervals?
I just hit 20k miles on my TSI and have only had the BSH Race Can on for maybe 600 miles.

+1 i am interested to know this as well. I just hit 32k KM on my car, and I was pretty set up getting seafoam done.

I'm also interested to see a vehicle with a Recirc Catch can. Want to see how different the intake valves would be on a car with a recirc catch can vs. one on a VTA catch can.

 

[saucer]

I'm also interested to see a vehicle with a Recirc Catch can. Want to see how different the intake valves would be on a car with a recirc catch can vs. one on a VTA catch can.

x2

I read somewhere it was negligible, but I wanna make sure after seeing this gunk

Awesome writeup man. Aside from it being some serious work... how would you rate it on a scale of technicality? Looks pretty straightforward, but I'm no mechanic and would be very timid about actually getting elbow deep in my engine.

 

[vernbak]

So,how does your car feel now? Is it running better? Smoother?

 

[s4mt3k]

3 Things:

1- Great DIY, Great Pix and detail

2- Can you add a link to the metalnerd bit in your OP so that I'll be able to find it when I come back to this project?

3- Looks like I need to take a day (or maybe even 2) to tackle this job...

Thanks for documenting this!

 

[Akatsuki...]

x2

I read somewhere it was negligible, but I wanna make sure after seeing this gunk

Awesome writeup man. Aside from it being some serious work... how would you rate it on a scale of technicality? Looks pretty straightforward, but I'm no mechanic and would be very timid about actually getting elbow deep in my engine.

See, I was talking to a friend last night, and i wanted to go VTA because it eliminates this completely. But I recall reading somewhere that our engines are designed to be a closed system, and it supposidly isn't good for our engines over time....

As far as the difference being negligible, i think that comes down to the type of catch can you have. Carbing and the 42 DD catch can have multiple layers, so it should be good. the BSH Large can uses 1 baffle and a 120 degree rotation, so I don't know how well it will fair compared to the multi layer ones..

Any comments?

 

[staulkor]

Having first hand experience with the valve gunk, I believe there is no chemical that can get it off once it is already there. That stuff is nasty. The shiny black parts are really goopy and the rest is rock hard. That shit needs to be scraped off.

Ive only had the VTA can on for a few thousand miles. The damage was already done, but the VTA can will probably stop it from coming back as bad. Some is still inevitable.

Now for me rating this job, I am no mechanic, I learned everything I know on this car by installing my own parts and parts on friends cars, but I would say I am mechanically inclined and can usually figure stuff out. I only broke one thing doing this, and that was the clip for the stupi MAP sensor...I HATE the clips on these motors. With that being said, from 1 to 10 where 1 is adding washer fluid and 10 is building your motor with rods, pistons, turbo, valvetrain, etc. I would say this is a 6. Nothing is terribly difficult, but you need to pay close attention to what goes where. You need to have good management of bolts so you know where they all go afterwards. I have never tackled a job as large as this so organizing all the pieces I took off was a bit difficult.

I think if you have installed all the parts on your car with no trouble, people come to you to get things installed, and you feel confident you can do it, I would give it a shot. Worst case is if you cant get the manifold off, all you have to do to reverse what you did is plugging in sensor and putting your mods back on, lol.

Just read up on everything you can about taking off the manifold. Look at pictures and ask a lot of questions. That is what I did and it seemed to work out pretty well

 

[Akatsuki...]

Having first hand experience with the valve gunk, I believe there is no chemical that can get it off once it is already there. That stuff is nasty. The shiny black parts are really goopy and the rest is rock hard. That shit needs to be scraped off.

Ive only had the VTA can on for a few thousand miles. The damage was already done, but the VTA can will probably stop it from coming back as bad. Some is still inevitable.

Now for me rating this job, I am no mechanic, I learned everything I know on this car by installing my own parts and parts on friends cars, but I would say I am mechanically inclined and can usually figure stuff out. I only broke one thing doing this, and that was the clip for the stupi MAP sensor...I HATE the clips on these motors. With that being said, from 1 to 10 where 1 is adding washer fluid and 10 is building your motor with rods, pistons, turbo, valvetrain, etc. I would say this is a 6. Nothing is terribly difficult, but you need to pay close attention to what goes where. You need to have good management of bolts so you know where they all go afterwards. I have never tackled a job as large as this so organizing all the pieces I took off was a bit difficult.

I think if you have installed all the parts on your car with no trouble, people come to you to get things installed, and you feel confident you can do it, I would give it a shot. Worst case is if you cant get the manifold off, all you have to do to reverse what you did is plugging in sensor and putting your mods back on, lol.

Just read up on everything you can about taking off the manifold. Look at pictures and ask a lot of questions. That is what I did and it seemed to work out pretty well

Staulkor, i thought VTA elminates build up completely cause nothing gets rerouted back into the intake tract?

 

[staulkor]

Staulkor, i thought VTA elminates build up completely cause nothing gets rerouted back into the intake tract?

Yea, but there will still be a very small amount of shit that will build up. It is unavoidable. There is NOTHING cleaning those valves, so stuff will build up.

 

[gizmo]

so, VTA + WM = win?

 

[staulkor]

so, VTA + WM = win?

I hope so! We will find out in another 50k miles, lol.

 

[dbduke]

Staulkor, I was just reading a thread of yours from 2007 where you were asking about intakes. In that thread, you claimed to know nothing about modding cars.

Then I read this. Wow. You've come a long way. Great write up.

 

[staulkor]

Staulkor, I was just reading a thread of yours from 2007 where you were asking about intakes. In that thread, you claimed to know nothing about modding cars.

Then I read this. Wow. You've come a long way. Great write up.

:thumbsup:

Well this is my first car, so back in ye olde day, I knew nothing. I like learning stuff like this. It just fascinates me. I want others to appreciate this stuff as well...that is why I make threads like this :wink:

 

[dbduke]

I'm in the same boat. I knew nothing about modding cars before this. Now I'm obsessed.

 

[JaySki]

You can seafoam till you are blue in the face.. But once it's built up.. Som cleaner cruising past the hot intake valves will just mostly burn off upon contact.

this is why the build up happens in the first place. If you don;t get the whole PCV system, how it works, and why.. I would do a little digging to learn that. With the blow by and vapors fro mthe Crankcase, etc. . And it coming back around to the Intake, where that is the only 'liquid'(Remember. It mostly Oil, lil bit of water vapor..) (along with air) to come in contact on the back side of the INTAKE valves.. As soon as that crap hits them.. It's just cooking on.. builds up. Engines that are NOT direct Injection(Where the air/fuel mixture runs through the Intake valves) The gas and detergents work in keeping the intake valves from building up like that.

The exhaust side won;t see much build up other than the typical carbon from exhaust because most everything that is running past the exhaust valves is burned up already.. No liquid.. no oil, etc.. It's just exhaust gases.

Awesome write up.. AWESOME to see what is happening on our engines.. If there isn;t a more compelling reason to add a catch can to your car.. Here it is.. This WILL happen to your car.. not a MAYBE.. But WILL! Recirc will greatly reduce the build up. You will still have some as you are still recirculating the vapors. VTA Can is going to be the best solution as it VENTS TO ATMOSPHERE. None of the Blow by is going back around to the intake any longer.

Nice job man.. Nice Job.