Intake Manifold Cleaning Wirral & Liverpool
What is the intake manifold?
The intake manifold is a set of tubes that deliver air to the engine’s cylinders. The air comes through a filtered intake which aims to keep the engine and components such as the inlet manifold clean, but over time deposits can form which start to clog it up. This can affect both petrol and diesel vehicles.
What causes an intake manifold to get clogged up?
In an attempt to make engines more efficient, and therefore more environmentally friendly, some exhaust gases are diverted back into the intake manifold to reduce combustion temperature and therefore the poisonous nitrous oxides gases that are emitted. However, some of carbon, oil, unspent fuel and other deposits present in the exhaust gases get left behind and start to coat the inside of the intake manifold, leading to a gradual build up.
Why do you have to clean the intake manifold?
For a car to be able to run, it needs air. A build of deposits in the air intake system, particularly the inlet manifold, restricts the air flow, meaning that the fuel and air cannot properly mix and the fuel doesn’t burn properly. Too much build up of deposits and the vehicle will start to experience problems including loss of performance and increased emissions. It potentially could even fail the emissions test during an MOT.
How do you know when you need an intake manifold cleaner service?
Usually the first sign of an issue is your vehicle sounding rough when idling, but there are many other indications that your intake manifold needs cleaning.
Signs and symptoms that may indicate that your vehicle needs a manifold clean include:
- Uneven and noisy or rough idling
- Vehicle stalling
- Vehicle misfiring, especially when the engine is cold
- Poor engine performance/lack of power
- Lowered fuel economy
- Engine management warning lights
- Limp-home-mode being activated which restricts performance
How is an intake manifold cleaned?
There are several ways that an intake manifold can be cleaned and these include either invasive or non-invasive methods. Invasive methods would include having to strip down the components in order to clean them, whereas a non-invasive method would include the use of specialised spray or liquid to run through the vehicle and clear any blockage.
We’ll use our diagnostics equipment to identify the problem and the extent of this. This will give us an indication of whether or not we need to remove the manifold for cleaning or it can be cleaned in situ. In some instances it may be necessary to replace with a new part.
Use of any air intake cleaning additives is intended to clean out the whole intake system by loosening all carbon deposits and burning them off in normal combustion process. A carbon cleaner may be used to break down stubborn carbon deposits and acts in a similar way to sand-blaster by using abrasion to remove the deposits without causing any damage to the components.
Can you clean an intake manifold yourself?
There are some DIY inlet manifold cleaner solutions out there, using spray or liquid, and these have limited success depending on the degree of carbon deposits. To ensure that the majority of carbon deposits are fully removed you should engage the services of a professional company like Edge Performance. It’s a mistake to believe that some cleaning solution you’ve picked up online or in a store will thoroughly clean a truly blocked intake manifold.
