has any one ever heard of using Automatic Transmission fluid for flushing out their engine. a friend of mine from my automotive class said something to me one day about doing it and i wasn't sure if any one else has ever tried it???


he said to add a half quart - to one quart of ATF to your engine oil and run it for 5 to 10 minutes then do an oil change.


Any inputs would be nice, Thanks.... Isaac-

 

Most ATF has detergents in it, which is the basis for this concept. I haven't done the ATF in the crankcase, but I have done ATF through the intake manifold, which is something people have been doing for a long time. This is actually something you do to clean out deposits in the intake manifold, and carbon build-up in the combustion chamber. I have since stopped using ATF for this, since Seafoam is readily available nowadays, and is actually designed for this purpose. Seafoam can also be used in the fuel tank, and in the crankcase. While using ATF is perfectly sound in theory, there are better alternatives available(ie Seafoam), and the price difference isn't very much.

 

yeah i've heard of seafoam but i've heard good and bad things from it. I'm not trying to clean out the manifold or the combustion chamber. I just wanted to clean out the engine (crankcase) I have also tried the engine flushes in the past on another motor i had in my car and i think it led to the spun bearing that i had..... that is why i was asking about the ATF in with the motor oil, cause i think the AFT would keep up the density of the oil than thin it down with an engine flush. Please corect me if i am wrong.

Isaac...

 

What are you trying to flush out.If it's a blown head gasket and your flushing the milkshake out than atf will work fine.If the engine is sludge up do not try and clean it by running anything through the engine.What ever loosens up will plug the oil pickup screen and destroy the engine.I have seen this done many times.

 

just trying to do a light cleaning on the motor there is no sludge and the head gasket isn't blown....

 

I HAVE DONE THIS BEFORE. I HAD A 00 GSR SWAP IN A 4-DOOR CIVIC THAT USED TO BURN A LOT OF OIL. WHAT I DID WAS DRAINED ALL THE AND REPLACED THE OIL FILTER AND FILLED IT WITH HONDA TRANS FLUID BECAUSE I WORK AT A HONDA DEALER THATS WHAT I HAD TO USE. I RAN THE CAR LIKE THIS FOR ABOUT A WEEK THEN DRAIN THE OIL AND REPLACED THE FILTER AND FILLED WITH OIL. MADE IT BETTER BUT STILL BURN OIL NOT AS BAD.

 

Get a can of sea foam.. pour it into engine.. let it run for like 15 minutes.. drain it out..

I once worked at a shop.. a old chevy van came in. i changed the oil, checked the dip stick.. and the oil was just as black as when i drained it..

I ran a sea foam through it.. drained the oil, refilled her.. Oil was Crystal clear. could barley tell it was on the dipstick

 

Go to Autozone, buy a can of "Engine Flush" use it, done.

 

As someone else said, if you are trying to get rid of any sludge or build up in the motor, don't do it...

I had an S13 with an SR20 swap in it, and upon removing the valve cover I noticed that the engine was CAKED in burned oil sludge... Like, I can't even explain how severe it was...

So, I figure what the hell, I'll just run a few quarts of clean oil through the motor, then shut it down, change the filter, and fill her up with some Royal Purple...

2 days later my motor was gone.

The nice fresh Royal Purple had loosened up all of the gunk (I hadn't owned the car for more than a few weeks, so the previous owner was an idiot apparently) that had built up, and it clogged oil passages... My bearings were starved of fresh oil, and they went bye bye...

Im not really sure if there is a good way to get sludge build-up out of a motor short of pulling it apart... Maybe something involving removal of the oil pan and an air compressor??? I really don't know, but be careful...