I've been using STP Fuel Injector cleaner after the last 3 oil changes. Change my oil. Fill up on gas. And then add the cleaner to a full tank. I know I won't really notice a difference or anything from my engine but I am wondering if I am wasting my money on it or not. It's not really expensive but if I'm wasting my money I'd rather save the couple bucks. Thanks ahead of time.

 

I noticed you have a 3.0 ...
does yours PING sometimes?
The best stuff i have ever used ,that you can buy at the parts house,as a mechanic is Lucus Fuel system treatment ...I use it every oil change...
NO MORE PING... I have used all of those additives and this is the best by far!
its only $3.50 or so

 

The gas companies all claim that they've been adding fuel injector cleaner to their gas for years. However, to be safe and to help keep the injectors clean I add a bottle of cheap cleaner, such as STP, to the gas every few thousand miles.

 

The only bad thing it can do besides waste your money, is foul the plugs sooner. I have no opinion as to whether there are any benefits, I never use any of that stuff. Then again, I can run a fuel injector flow test on my truck any time.

We could do an injector flow A/B comparison on two trucks, one that has used fuel injector cleaner regularly and one that hasn't ever and see if there is a difference in flow.

 

That would be VERY instructive. I wish I was out your way -- we could start with mine!

 

I'm not sure what the "ping" is exactly. But I don't think my truck "pings." I was just wondering if they were just scamming me out of some money and if it was really worth it.

 

I can tell you now that all I have ran in this truck is Lucus and when i did my tune up @ 75K the plugs still looked like new! You must be running the cheap sh**... I havent had any problems with this product..It has cleaned out a clogged injector may times for me...
I was working on a 97 Montero a month ago and the #2 injector wasn't spraying at all...pulsing but not sparying ...put 8oz in a full tank and let it idle for 30 min and rechecked it and it was back to fogging!!
That saved the lady $150 just for the injector W/o labor to install it!....
call it what you want ...this is my job and I deal with this stuff everyday!!
I know it works!

 

It depends. I don't use them often, but I have reason to believe they can be beneficial if you are careful.

The other day I went by a BP and filled the truck up. When I pulled out it started pinging horribly, especially on hills. I got some Prestone 0-60 Octane Boost (they claim it cleans injectors and all that, but it's not their actual cleaner...that would be their "Syntheic Injector Cleaner" or something like that). It cleared the truck right up in a couple of miles and it has not been pinging since. The truck seems to like the stuff too...it only added about 1 octane (10 points), but it ran damn good with that stuff in the tank. The next day I read in the owner's manual that the engine was not designed to have MMT (I think that is what it was called) added to it...they did not specifically say "do not use it," but they definately cover their asses about it in the owner's manual. The truck seems to like the stuff though.

 

Go < 5 miles an hour, and put it into 3rd and floor it. You'll know what ping is soon ater that. I never heard it on my old 3.0l, except when I bogged it with the wrong gear.

Injector cleaners are only needed when there is something to clean. Any microscopic particles that may clog your injectors will not really mess up the spraying pattern in the grand scheme of things. I mean, if your fuel squirts a tiny bit differently, it'll still combust, just maybe 0.02% less efficiently.

So I would only use that stuff if you see performance, or gas milage suffering, or if you suspect you have some bad gas in the tank. Now higher milage vehicles could probably use a bottle once or twice a year, and I would go with something designed to remove carbon buildup.

Best thing to do is to save that cash, and buy more air, oil and fuel filters, and more often.

Another bit of advice, never fill up at a gas station that just got it's daily/weekly delivery of gas. For the next several hours any particles or contaminents in the tank get mixed up as the fuel gets dumped in ( or just come with the fuel). Waiting a few hours after that truck leaves will give it a chance to settle back down to the bottom. They have inline pump filters, but still something to be aware of.