matts6887

How often; if at all; should the cylinders have decarbonization done to them to remove carbon deposits? I ask because my dad just had to have that done to his car cause it was running very poorly and apparently that was the cause of it and i dont think anything like that has ever been done to my rx.

mnewxcv

typically not needed in the life of a car, though occasionally it happens. What kind of car does he have?

Also, are you sure he had the 'cylinders' cleaned? Carbon buildup that affects performance often occurs in the intake manifold/cylinder head.

edwardh11

or throttle body

matts6887

yes most likely thats what it was i meant in the cylinder head/manifold. So if its the manifold/head should it be done to a rx at all? dads car is a 09 saab 9-3

mnewxcv

I haven't heard of anyone with an rx needing to do that. I would say it isn't needed unless you are having issues. If there is carbon blocking passages in the manifold you will likely get a check engine light. That being said, I just haven't heard of anyone needing this, which makes me think these engines are not prone to carbon buildup.

BlackLexRX

There's lots of talk about carbon buildup on the forums of 'direct injection' models. They seem to gunk up much more often. 09 Saabs are direct injection; 2nd gen RX is not

matts6887

I see! thanks for the info. Yes thats what happened to his. It was buildup in the head/manifold because my dad had told me his service advisor told him they injected cleaner into it; ran it and this huge giant cloud of smoke along with a really foul odor came out and apparently its allegedly because of costco gas. Anyone have issues in their rx using costco gas because of the additives they use?

Audiqv8

From the description "huge giant cloud of smoke" sound like Seafoam was used as the cleaner. There is a lot of Youtube video on people using Seafoam on their engine. I use Costco gas with no problems.

ukrkoz

GDI engine, that you do not have, I believe, builds up carbon deposits on intake valve heads and seats, as they are not flushed away by petrol stream, as in conventional engine. This is why my NX200T with GDI engine has 2 injectors per cylinder, with auxiliary one being in intake manifold.
Unless that SAAB was GDI engine - did they even have those in 2009? - something else happened there.
Some engines are straight prone to carbon build up and RX engines are none of them.
That said:
DON'T FIX IT IF IT AIN'T BROK.

astowell

My Rx330 has 230k on it. I replaced the Intake valve gaskets and with the cover off I could see some deposits on the valves that could be wiped off with a cleaner. I also looked in the cylinder through the spark plug hole and noted the same. I would call what I saw soft carbon deposits. So I did run Seafoam in the tank and next tank I put in Liqui Moly Valve cleaner. Valve cleaner is more for the direct injection issues with some Euro vehicles...

Car ran great before and seems to run better now, but I have done a lot to the Rx... So I think the money I spent on the cleaners bought me more peace of mind than anything else and thats ok with me..

I think paying some one to decarbonize the RX cylinders is a waste of money. Especially since we all know Scottsdale Premium gas is the best .. ;-)

matts6887

cdnewton

On your RX that would be a wallet flush.
If you want, run a bottle of Techron or Seafoam through the gas tank, although since you are using a Top Tier gasoline, you don't likely need it. Costco meets the Top Tier standard.