What is the best way to flush the engine before changing the oil?
Engine oil needs to be changed regularly as it becomes inoperable over time.
Determining the moment of replacement is quite simple by a number of signs:
- when measuring the oil level, you find that it has turned black, with traces of soot;
- the engine starts to overheat and consume too much fuel;
- filters are clogged.
In addition, the oil mixes with fuel and coolant over time, causing its viscosity to increase dramatically. Also, with the onset of winter, you need to switch to a lubricant with a lower viscosity to make it easier to start the engine at low temperatures.
We previously considered all these questions on our website Vodi.su. In the same article, we will talk about how to flush the engine before replacing it.
Flushing
If you have a new car that you follow and follow all the operating rules, then flushing before replacement is not required, however, there are main points when flushing is not only recommended, but highly desirable:
- when switching from one type of oil to another (synthetic-semi-synthetic, summer-winter, 5w30-10w40, and so on);
- if you buy a used car - in this case, it is better to entrust the flushing to specialists after the diagnosis;
- intensive operation - if a car winds hundreds and thousands of kilometers every day, then the more often you change lubricants and technical fluids, the better;
- turbocharged engines - the turbine can quickly break down if a lot of dirt and foreign particles have accumulated in the oil.
We also wrote on Vodi.su that, according to the instructions, replacement is carried out every 10-50 thousand km, depending on operating conditions.
Cleaning methods
The main washing methods are as follows:
- flushing oil (Flush Oil) - the old one is drained instead of it, this flushing liquid is poured, after which the car must drive from 50 to 500 km before filling in new oil;
- "five minutes" (Engine Flush) - are poured instead of the drained liquid or added to it, the engine is turned on for a while at idle, so that it is completely cleared;
- cleaning additives to regular oil - a few days before the replacement, they are poured into the engine and, according to manufacturers, penetrate into all cavities of the engine, cleaning it from slag, sludge (white low-temperature plaque).
Often service stations offer express methods such as vacuum cleaning of the engine or ultrasonic washing. There is no consensus on their effectiveness.
It is worth saying that there is no consensus regarding the methods listed above. From our own experience, we can say that pouring cleaning additives or using five minutes does not have a special effect. Think logically, what kind of aggressive formula should such a composition have so that it cleans all the deposits that have accumulated in it for years in five minutes?
If you drained the old oil, and instead filled in the flush, then you need to adhere to a gentle driving mode. In addition, serious engine damage is not ruled out, when all old contaminants begin to peel off and clog the system, including oil filters. At one point, the engine may simply jam, it will have to be transported on a tow truck to the service station.
The most efficient way to clean
In principle, any mechanic who really understands the operation of the engine, and does not want to sell you another “miracle cure”, will confirm that engine oil contains all the necessary types of additives, including cleaning ones. Accordingly, if you take good care of your car - go through maintenance on time, replace filters and technical fluids, fill in high-quality gasoline - then there should not be any special pollution.
Thus, stick to a simple algorithm:
- drain the old oil as much as possible;
- fill in a new one (of the same brand), change the fuel and oil filters, run the engine in for several days without overloading it;
- drain again as much as possible and fill in oil of the same brand and manufacturer, change the filter again.
Well, clean the engine with the help of flushes only in cases of switching to a new type of fluid. At the same time, try to choose not the cheapest flushing oil, but from well-known manufacturers - LiquiMoly, Mannol, Castrol, Mobil.
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