by Garrett McKinnon
VehicleMD Staff Writer
Originally published in Fall 2010 Issue

Memory fails to recall exactly when or why it started, but one of my four-year-old son’s favorite bedtime songs is the U.S. Air Force Hymn. You know, “Off we go, into the wild blue yonder…” His favorite part is later on in that first stanza, a reprise that goes “Give ’er the gun, now,” and always seems to crack him up. He’s even taken to singing that when it’s time to merge onto the freeway, a rather apropos use of the term, I have to admit.

After all, merging on to a packed freeway can be an experience in white-knuckle driving these days. The gap between cars and trucks zooming at high speeds down narrow lanes of concrete might be razor thin, but miss that gap and you might have to wait a while before the next one. Which is why today’s cars need every bit of horsepower they can muster.

Unfortunately, the very same high-speed, hard-acceleration driving many of us have to endure is the very same type of driving that can lead to major carbon buildup.

“Carbon deposits build up over time. Depending on the grade of fuel you use, and the conditions and way in which you drive, they can form rapidly,” said Steve Farr, vice president of Smart Blend Synthetics. “For instance, you’ll probably have a quick buildup of deposits if you are in stop-and-go driving. Carbon buildup is a byproduct of unused or unburned fuel. When you let off the accelerator—especially if you do so quickly—fuel drips out and burns, forming carbon.”

This carbon can coat your engine’s valves and even clog the fuel injectors, robbing the engine of precious horsepower—horsepower that you use to bring you and your family safely to freeway speed.

“If you have a vehicle loaded down with kids, and your vehicle has 60,000 miles on it and you’ve never cleaned your fuel system, you can dart into traffic and give the vehicle some throttle, but it hesitates,” Farr said. “If the throttle responsiveness isn’t there, it affects your safety.”

Fortunately, most auto service facilities can perform a thorough fuel system cleaning service. Just what is thorough? In most cases, it’s described as a multi-step fuel system cleaning service.

“A multi-stage fuel system cleaning generally consists of an intake system cleaner that will clean the upper engine and combustion chamber by removing carbonaceous deposits and improving fuel system operation,” Farr said. “The second stage is generally going to be a fuel tank additive that normally treats 18 to 24 gallons of fuel. It’s generally a one-tank cleanup process that is going to promote cleaning through the fuel lines, fuel pump and what we call ‘through-cleaning’ for the fuel injectors. Combined, the products can create a third stage, which cleans the fuel injector tips.”

Not only can this service improve throttle responsiveness, allowing you to get on the freeway that half-second quicker, but it can also improve fuel economy.

“One fuel system cleaning every 15,000 miles can more than pay for itself in improved fuel economy,” Farr said.

So the next time you’re poised at the start of an on-ramp, facing what seems like a never-ending wave of traffic, remember that a complete fuel system cleaning can provide tangible benefits when you “give ’er the gun.”