You do not need to put it in that often. I use it twice a year and I put a lot of miles on my cars. BG44K is a great product and does the job. Yes it is pricey but for $40.00 a year is not a concern for me. Once you use it you will understand why I use and recommend it.

 

I have heard nothing but good things about BG 44K and I even used it one time in an F150 I had. It is pricey so I would say use it twice a year just due to cost. Avoid any cheapo crap injector cleaner with popular names, found at places like Walmart or auto parts chains.

 

The Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) for all these products are easily found online, so it's a simple matter to confirm that those popular named, cheapo brands at Walmart contain essentially the same, mostly common, mostly inexpensive solvents used in BG 44K, Seafoam, and others. The percentages of each solvent vary somewhat, but these products all contain mostly kerosene, naptha, and/or mineral spirits, with a few other solvents and other compounds added in very small quantities (typically just 1% or 2% of the total solution). Perhaps to disguise how common the contents are, the companies list the ingredients by industrial chemical names rather than their more common consumer names. But if you'll do a little research you'll see what I mean.

I'm not disputing the potential effectiveness of any of these treatments. I use them myself. The fuel tank additives do have to be used periodically and repeatedly to have much effect, but some have warnings not to use them too often. See the borescope videos on YouTube that show how little effect they have after just one use.

I like the products that are injected directly into the air intake (CRC, Seafoam and plain old distilled water), and I successfully used undiluted Techron fuel injector cleaner in my home-brew fuel injector pressure cleaner (see photos in the link in my signature).

I haven't found a reason to believe that BG's products are inherently better than products sold directly to consumers based on chemistry alone. Products such as Techron, STP, Lucas, Seafoam, CRC, GUNK and others are chemically very similar. No doubt all of these products are based on valid science, even if their claims are often exaggerated. But based on their chemical compositions, it's hard to believe any of them are significantly better than the others. I'm more inclined to believe there may be demonstrable differences between products diluted in the fuel tank or crankcase and those injected directly into the air intake.

Cheers,

Don

 

The next thing I'm looking to tackle from my codes on page 1 is P0128. I have experienced some coolant leaking. Anyone have experience with this one?

 

Yes, the header tank. There is a thread running here on coolant leaks. This is the commonest leak, but the supercharged cars can also suffer the "valley hose" problem that is expensive to fix due to the labour involved in getting to the hose. The hose costs peanuts in comparison. Header tank about £50 here in the UK.

 

Fraser,

Thanks for this. Yeah, I'm hoping it's not that hose that requires days of labor to fix from having to remove the super charger. I see the XJR also has a different reservoir tank. While it's in the shop I'm gonna see if they can locate Where it's coming from.

If it means anything, last time the mechanic said it's coming from above the water pump

 

Sorry but I do not agree with your opinion on solvents introduced into the fuel or that it is less effective than that introduced into the intake. At no time will intake solvents get into the injectors where it is also needed as well as in the chamber.

I am no expert on fuel additives nor do I claim to be but when searching for BG44K you will find it at most car dealerships and that includes Jaguar and any good local repair shops. You will not find it at your AutoZones or Advance auto parts stores.

I get nothing for recommending BG products I just know that it does its job the first time.

 

Hi Gus,

I have nothing against solvents introduced into the fuel, but when 11 ounces of mineral spirits, naptha and kerosene (the principal ingredients of BG 44K) are diluted in 20 gallons (2560 ounces) of gasoline, the resulting dilution is 0.43%, or less than one half of one percent. The effectiveness of those solvents at that dilution is obviously minimal on a per-tank basis. Over time, through multiple uses, they may have some beneficial effect on the injectors and other parts of the fuel delivery system. I've used them myself from time to time.

From my own experience, using Techron concentrate undiluted to clean the fuel injectors of our '93 XJ6, the solvent visibly worked to help clean gunk out of the injectors and restore their spray pattern and atomization of fuel. But that was undiluted Techron forced directly through each injector under 20 psi of air pressure. Here's the setup I used:

Welcome to Jag-lovers - Members Photo Viewing Page
Welcome to Jag-lovers - Members Photo Viewing Page

The fact that you find BG products at auto dealerships and mechanic shops and not at AutoZone has everything to do with the company's marketing and pricing strategy and nothing to do with the chemical composition of its products. As I mentioned earlier, by studying the MSDS's for these products it is easy to prove for yourself that BG's products are composed of common compounds that are identical to, or from the same families as, compounds used by Lucas, CRC, Techron, STP, Gunk and others. Limiting the availability or distribution channels of a product is a long-established marketing strategy for creating the appearance of exclusivity and superiority in order to charge a higher price. I certainly don't hold that against BG - it's great marketing. Just do your own homework on the chemistry of their products to decide for yourself whether you're really getting something superior to other products that are more widely available at lower prices.

By the way, many auto dealerships in our area use Techron products in their service departments (e.g. Toyota, Honda, GM and others), and Techron is included as an additive in Chevron gasoline. But similar Techron products are also available at Walmart, AutoZone and many other retailers. Techron's marketing strategy is obviously different than BG's. The fact that auto dealers carry BG and Techron products cannot be construed as proof that their products are superior to those from other companies, especially when you compare the ingredients and see that they are almost entirely common paint thinners and camp stove fuel.

My statement about liking the products that are injected directly into the air intake is based on the fact that I can see black carbon deposits erupting from the exhaust, indicating the product is actually doing something tangible. But as I mentioned, even distilled water will produce similar results.

I wasn't directly comparing fuel tank additives to air intake additives. They are intended to address somewhat different issues and that's how I use them.

Cheers,

Don

 

Well I can see that we do not agree on this so I will leave it at that.

 

​​​​​​I love the way a leaking head gasket will totally clean a head and piston. How to do this in a controlled manner for all cylinders?

 

After smoke test, mechanic told me that there is a leak in the solenoid air cleaner, a part which he quoted me at for $630, just for the part (which seems pretty high). He then informed me once that is fixed, there is still a chance for leaks in other spots. Anyone have experience with this?

 

Maybe my brain is foggy, but I can't think of a "solenoid air cleaner." I wonder if he meant the control flap solenoid on the air cleaner housing? On the supercharged cars, there is a small flap on the side of the air cleaner housing. At higher engine speeds and loads the flap is opened to provide additional air as required. The flap is opened via a solenoid that is controlled by the ECM. In the diagram below, the flap is Part 2 and the solenoid is Part 3:




The only thing that wouldn't make sense to me is that several owners have removed the flap entirely to provide more air at all times, so I don't think a leak at the solenoid would trigger lean DTCs.

One thing worth checking would be the air pipe with all the Helmholtz resonators, or "branches." It's unnumbered but visible in the above diagram. On the underside is a cylindrical resonator. Check for cracks around that cylinder where it mounts to the main pipe, as well as in other places on that pipe and around the other resonators.

Cheers,

Don

 

Don,

I had read the same thing from other owners. I'm going to go in tomorrow, and take some pictures. Looking online, the entire air cleaner assembly, OEM, I can find for $380. What I don't get is, the way it was explained to me, is that even if THAT is fixed, there may be other leaks that can't be detected, until that one is fixed? Does that sound right?

 

Don, if such additives are used when the tank is almost empty, shouldn't we get a more effective cleaning because of a smaller dilution, without having to use the kind of system you did?

 

Theoretically, yes. But if you read the labels on some of these products, they warn against using them in smaller quantities of gasoline, or against using them too frequently. Presumably there may be parts of the fuel system that are sensitive to those particular solvents. I really don't know.

If I recall the instructions for BG 44K, the 11 oz. can is to be added to a full tank of gas (up to 20 gallons), then when the tank is about 1/2 full you are instructed to fill the tank again "to keep the BG 44K in the fuel system as long as possible," or somesuch.

I can say with absolute certainty that the Techron concentrate worked great to clean our XJ40's injectors - I could literally watch the spray pattern go from a dribble to a nice atomization.

Cheers,

Don

 

This doesn't sound right at all. The air volume is not metered until it reaches the MAFS, so a "leak" in the air cleaner doesn't matter to the ECM and cannot trigger a DTC. When P0171 and P0174 appear together, a common cause is an air leak somewhere between the MAFS, where the air volume is measured, and the throttle body gasket, or somewhere in the crankcase breathing system. A leak at one intake or exhaust manifold gasket will trigger only one of the DTCs, since only one bank is affected.

I think you need some clarification from the mechanic about his theory and the part he suspects.

Cheers,

Don

 

Don, That would explain the splotches of brown epoxy on the intake of my 06 SV8 that is apparently sealing cracks in the various parts. Just wondering if all this labyrinth design is for intake efficiency or has more to do with intake noise.

Not shown in that diagram is the stub on the aft side near the MAF where the PCV valve hose connects - the car lot where I bought my SV8 had left it disconnected causing the lean codes for both banks.

Oh yes, thanks for the links to your injector cleaning photos - I have an 83 Supra that will definitely need that info when its number comes up on the project list.

 

It is for noise reduction rather than efficiency so a compromise.

The PCV is on the passenger side where the high load breather is. The low load breather is on the driver's side on SC cars.

 

Yes, I would say also noise reduction only.
A single ss tube such as the Caldoofy's one can be mounted in place of the complex one with all these resonators. Purpose being to enhance the noise!

 

As jackra_1 and paydase have already confirmed, according to the Jaguar X350 Dealer Training manual or Technical Introduction, a primary design consideration for the intake was noise reduction. The resonators help smooth out the air pressure variations in the intake due to the movement of the pistons while the intake valves are open vs. the sudden increase in intake pressure when the valves close. In normally-aspirated engines, resonators are tuned to improve volumetric efficiency, which is the ratio of the volume of air fuel mixture (or air) inhaled into the combustion cylinder to the volume of the cylinder when the piston is at bottom dead center. Volumetric efficiency is directly related to the torque output of the engine.

This is of little or no concern in supercharged and turbocharged engines which can achieve volumetric efficiency greater than 100%, so in an XJR the primary purpose of the resonators is to control and tune the air induction noise.

Cheers,

Don