How to Remove and Prevent Carbon Deposits?

[DelParker]

You can use the walnut shell blasting method to remove carbon deposits. This method is quite effective, but car owners cannot perform it themselves; professional services are required for carbon deposit removal. The following methods can help prevent or reduce carbon deposits: 1. Regular maintenance and cleaning. During routine car maintenance, use specialized cleaning equipment to perform non-dismantling cleaning on parts prone to carbon deposits, such as intake manifolds and oil passages. 2. Use higher-grade gasoline whenever possible. The wax and gum impurities in gasoline are the main components of engine carbon deposits. Higher-grade gasoline has relatively fewer tendencies to form carbon deposits because it has a higher octane rating, burns more completely, and is cleaner, significantly reducing the likelihood of carbon deposit formation. 3. Use appropriate fuel additives. Choose fuel additives from reputable brands with good after-sales service or those specified by the car manufacturer. Common fuel additives on the market generally fall into two categories: one is maintenance-type additives that focus on aiding combustion, and the other is cleaning-type additives designed to remove carbon deposits. 4. For manual transmission cars, try to increase the shift RPM. Shifting at higher RPMs and driving at high speeds help prevent and reduce carbon deposit buildup by using large amounts of incoming air to flush the intake passages, thereby improving the car's power performance. It is generally recommended to shift between 2500 and 3000 RPM.

[StCameron]

There are many ways to remove carbon deposits, and the most hassle-free method I've tried is using fuel additives. Every 5,000 kilometers, I pour a bottle of cleaning additive into the fuel tank, and after driving 200-300 kilometers, it dissolves some of the carbon deposits. Additionally, when driving on the highway, I intentionally keep the RPM above 4,000 for half an hour to use the high-temperature exhaust to clean the carbon deposits in the intake tract. For prevention, I've developed the habit of not stomping on the accelerator when the engine is cold, turning off the engine if idling for more than two minutes, and only using low-ash full synthetic oil during oil changes. I replace the air filter annually and only use Sinopec's 98-octane fuel at gas stations. After sticking to these practices for three years, the engine sound has remained consistently clean.

[MacPaislee]

The key to preventing carbon buildup lies in daily maintenance. I always avoid prolonged idling, turning off the engine if stopped at a red light for over a minute. I only use 95-octane or higher gasoline from reputable gas stations, and insist on low-ash full synthetic oil with dexos certification, changing it every 8,000 kilometers without fail. For cleaning, I remove and clean the throttle body myself every six months, using throttle body cleaner bought online and wiping it with cotton swabs—a five-minute job. When carbon buildup is severe, I have the repair shop perform walnut blasting to clean the intake ports with walnut shell media. Though it costs 600 yuan, the results are immediate. With this regular maintenance routine, my car still delivers strong performance after five years of use.

[LeIsabella]

My experience with carbon deposits is three parts cleaning and seven parts prevention. For cleaning, buy a reputable fuel additive and add it to the fuel tank; running three full tanks of gas on the highway yields better results. Prevention is simpler: avoid cheap gas from small stations, change the air filter every time you change the oil, and don’t warm up the car for more than thirty seconds in winter. I installed an OBD gauge to monitor the air-fuel ratio in real-time and check the spark plugs if any abnormalities are detected. After five years of this routine, my engine runs better than my neighbor’s.