Any luck using Sea Foam?

My Taco has 282,000 miles on it, 3.4 V6 Auto 4x4, and it's time to smog for registration. Check Engine light is on so I went to a smog tech to have him hook it up to a code reader to see if there is anything I could fix myself before smogging. Read 2 codes, P01300; faulty "igniter", a small electrical component mounted to the wheel well on the left side of engine compartment behind air filter, and P0171, fuel running too lean. He told me to unplug the igniter and clean both ends of plug assembly with electronic spray cleaner and pour some Sea Foam into the gas tank as well as the crank case.
After following instructions, now my Taco sounds like it's starved of fuel when I go up a steep hill. Level roads are fine and even short hills or freeway onramps seem fine, plenty of power. He also told me that , if the igniter is bad, it's a $400.00 part....ouch, California sucks....Any ideas??

 

to start. make sure that isn't code p1300. secondly, go to an open area away from civilization and put seafoam in your intake somewhere around the throttle body. you can see some videos about doing this online. this is another good way to clean out your intake, chambers, and exhaust.

 

but yes, you do want to try and clean your ignition control module before replacing it. second, check the wiring and make sure it isn't damaged.

 

Just about any search of Seafoam is going to come up with a 3 part cleaning method

Seafoam in throttlebody/intake (1/2 bottle)
Seafoam in gas tank (1/4 full)
Seafoam in crankcase

So some people are spraying it in the intake, others removing hose to PCV valve and pouring in, others using the vaccuum line on the brake booster.
After the 1/2 bottle is in, turn off ignition and let sit for 6 hours.
Then start it up, back away and watch the smoke show.

The seafoam in the crankcase is before an oil change, opinions vary on how far you drive it before changing oil (manufacturer says 200 miles).

 

ive done the gas tank and vacuum hose with seafoam on my old xterra but I was always wary of doing the oil since I had 170k on it. I always heard that buildup of gunk on the seals from that many miles is sometimes the only thing keeping the seals form leaking and seafoam would do its job and remove the gunk allowing oil to start leaking out. no personal experience though. my xterra seemed to run a little better after putting it through the vacuum hose though. also, I run a can through the gas tank every 30,000 miles on the taco just for shits and giggles.

 

I put seafoam into the intake of my high mileage Tacoma and it killed my compression. I have had noticeably less power ever since. Compression tests show that my rings don't seal as well since I seafoamed. I will NEVER put that shit in a motor again.

 

dude if seafoam cleaning your engine caused something like horrible compression, your engine had other bigger issues that needed to be fixed. don't blame it on a product that actually does what it says.

 

There are multiple reports of damage to high mileage motors from running seafoam through them. In my experience, if your rings are worn, you will get more out of your engine for longer if you don't use seafoam. The compression is not "horrible" now, but it's lower than it was before the seafoam. And it changed the day I used the stuff. The truck is still my daily driver almost 2 years later, but I wish I could go back and do it over and not seafoam it.

To the OP, a lean condition can mean a few things:

-You have air getting in (vacuum leak?), or MAF sensor is reading wrong.
-You have not enough fuel getting there.
-Your air/fuel O2 sensor has problems.

None of those issues will be solved by pouring snake oil into your intake.

 

How long have you been running it in your crankcase? Wouldn't go more than 100 miles without changing the oil and filter. You didn't add tons seafoam with low gas in the tank right? My experience with seafoam has been good on a few cars even my miata at 220k liked it. Seafoam isn't a cure all magic in a can and only really helps a car run smoother and get back some lost mpg imo.

 

DON'T DO THE SEAFOAM 'TRICK".

My truck was running like crap... so I tried the Sea Foam routine. It plugged up the sensors before & aft of the cats (I live in CA) and they were expensive to replace.

Never again.

 

I used it in two prior vehicles. 1997 Acura 2.2 CL with 288k miles. Did the three part, gas tank, oil and vacuum line in to intake. After wards, I did a full tune up with oil change. Car ran like a brand new car, no issues. Smoked like hell for around 50 miles but once it was all through the system is was good to go. Before the seafoam it was really down on power. Second was a 1999 Dodge Dakota Sport with around 120k miles. Same thing I did with the Acura. Truck ran much better. Not as noticeable difference as the Acura but still better.

 

This...... mmmmmmay not be exaggerated..... There's A LOT of shit that seafoam will purge from the intake and cylinders/chambers.

 

Also, your truck WILL run like SHIT while doing this. After the smoke stops, all will be great!

 

You re so correct with the smoke. Also, I didn't say it won't improve anything, it didn't do a thing for my truck, probably should've stated that prior. It did make my sensors fail, again, I live in CA and have 2. Pricey bastards to replace.

The end result was my TB was filthy. I cleaned that and the problems were solved.

Good luck OP.

 

make sure you clean the "mass air sensor" with a spray cleaner made just for cleaning them. If you have a CAI that uses oil on it's filter (K&N) as part of it's filtering it's very likely it's dirty too. Handle it carefully. == I've had good luck with sea foam. I think of it like a "flu shot" use it so your truck won't get sick, it doesn't help much after it gets sick. I spray it in my air intake every 20k - 25 k miles; my fuel every 2k-3k miles.

 

Be careful with pouring SeaFoam into the gas tank. I poured a full can into my beater and all the junk it dissolved in the gas tank clogged the fuel filter.

 

which is a good thing for peeps with 3.4s. not so much a good thing for 2.4s and 2.7s that have the filter in that shitty location and no relocation kit. fuel filters could easily be changeable

 

Good or bad is a matter of perspective


I'm just saying it's something to be aware of. It sucks having to bum a ride to the parts store for a new fuel filter because yours is too clogged for the truck to run

 

I heard that... I recently changed mine and it took an hour. The engineer that designed it in the location for the 2.7 motors ought to be shot.
I did not run it through a tank of fuel, ran it through the brake booster hose only.

Good luck OP.

 

I think that in the case where he lost compression, that there was buildup in his cylinders and when the seafoam did its job, it dissolved some of the gunk on the walls that were the only things keeping the compression as good as it was. i dont think i would put it through an engine that was really high mileage that had never had it done before. i did my vacuum hose and gas tank on my Xterra at 120k and yea it smoked like the damn thing was on fire, but it ran better afterwards. in my taco i put a can through the gas tank every 30k and i make sure i put it in on a full tank, drive it home from the gas station so that it has time to get into the engine parts and let it sit overnight, then i make sure i have a little road trip planned so that i burn through a tank of gas so that it doesnt sit in there too long and do any damage. im still pretty wary about putting anything but oil in my oil though. i would just worry about that too much.