# Warning against induction service ruining turbo's on Ford Eco-Boost engines



## Pierre Louis (Oct 23, 2011)

Herehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0irwbwpuEbQis a video that discusses the intake carbon buildup in Ford gasoline direct injection turbocharged motors. Interestingly, some cars get it early and need to have a head pulled and/or replaced as early as 20,000 miles. Also, PCV oil vapors are said to contribute.

Specifically, the author was warned by Ford not to use induction cleaning services as it overheats the turbo and/or brings a lot of carbon into it, causing a failure.

Food for thought.


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## FredoinSF (Nov 29, 2009)

Dude is from Babble On. 8 minutes of blah blah blah to say be careful with how you clean up your carbon cuz ford says it could hose your turbo and / or your cat. Ford says proper fix is replace head. If you're in warranty, come see me. If you're out of warranty, your next stop is the Toyota showroom.


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## Pierre Louis (Oct 23, 2011)

FredoinSF said:


> Dude is from Babble On. 8 minutes of blah blah blah to say be careful with how you clean up your carbon cuz ford says it could hose your turbo and / or your cat. Ford says proper fix is replace head. If you're in warranty, come see me. If you're out of warranty, your next stop is the Toyota showroom.


I think he is talking about the chemical induction cleaning service, not the one that most of the posts on this board adhere to, nor the one at BMW.


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## Michael47 (May 9, 2014)

In the US, the VW TDI forum as well as the Jeep CRD forum both have expressed a consensus that CBU is a function of EGR soot being rerouted to the intake and oil vapors from the CCV system. Both forums have lots of folks eliminating the CBU issue by stopping either the EGR or the oil vapor. Dry soot blows right on through, no problem. Soot-free oil does the same. But both together will clog up the intake with a hard (and hard to remove) carbon crust that builds up over time and depends on a number of factors, driving style among them.

It should be noted that shutting off either CCV or EGR is illegal, as it tampers with the federally mandated emissions control systems. It should also be noted that one might expect any vehicles with both systems are likely to suffer the same fate, although obviously not equally. Clearly some engines, due to better removal of either soot or oil from the intake stream, fare better than others.

One might theorize that direct injection engines might create more soot, as they vaporize and combust fuel at the same place, whereas indirectly injected gas engines, which fully vaporize the fuel before setting it ablaze, might create less. But that's just my theory. In any case, the point that these other vehicles also have this issue is reassuring, at least in the sense that it is not BMW's problem alone.


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## Pierre Louis (Oct 23, 2011)

Michael47 said:


> In the US, the VW TDI forum as well as the Jeep CRD forum both have expressed a consensus that CBU is a function of EGR soot being rerouted to the intake and oil vapors from the CCV system. Both forums have lots of folks eliminating the CBU issue by stopping either the EGR or the oil vapor. Dry soot blows right on through, no problem. Soot-free oil does the same. But both together will clog up the intake with a hard (and hard to remove) carbon crust that builds up over time and depends on a number of factors, driving style among them.
> 
> It should be noted that shutting off either CCV or EGR is illegal, as it tampers with the federally mandated emissions control systems. It should also be noted that one might expect any vehicles with both systems are likely to suffer the same fate, although obviously not equally. Clearly some engines, due to better removal of either soot or oil from the intake stream, fare better than others.
> 
> One might theorize that direct injection engines might create more soot, as they vaporize and combust fuel at the same place, whereas indirectly injected gas engines, which fully vaporize the fuel before setting it ablaze, might create less. But that's just my theory. In any case, the point that these other vehicles also have this issue is reassuring, at least in the sense that it is not BMW's problem alone.


Yes, agreed. But the elephant in the room is that many engines don't get it, even in cars that are known to have a problem like the 335d. Seems that fuel quality as well as the DDE/engine software also have something to do with it. BMW as you know seems to have solved some of the problem by updating the electronics/computer, and recommends 51 cetane fuel. There are studies/papers that imply fuel quality variables contribute to more CBU, and its not just cetane. Anecdotes about CBU are difficult to interpret - very few owners have removed EGR, and there are other sources for "oil contamination" in the engine as also mentioned in other threads.

Here is another discussion of Ford eco-boost engines which seems to mirror those with the 335d.

BTW, my "seat of the pants evaluation" seems to show that the "Italian tune-up" also helps!

Cheers,

PL


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## fsd350 (Aug 1, 2006)

FredoinSF said:


> Dude is from Babble On. 8 minutes of blah blah blah to say be careful with how you clean up your carbon cuz ford says it could hose your turbo and / or your cat. Ford says proper fix is replace head. If you're in warranty, come see me. If you're out of warranty, your next stop is the Toyota showroom.


Toyota? For a cheap imitation with the weakest frame in the business? HaHa


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