All you need to know about diesel fuel injectors and how to clean them

The injector cleaner for diesel engines is added to the diesel tank before refueling and ensures the optimal formation of the fuel mixture. Thanks to the high percentage of detergent additives, it releases injectors, injection nozzles, and high-pressure pumps from untreated fuel residues that form over time and lead to an increase in fuel consumption. The injectors allow the passage of the right amount of petrol to the engine and therefore it is correctly functioning. Unfortunately, due to the impurities inevitably present in petrol and above all in diesel fuel, the injectors can get dirty compromising the engine performance and the machine’s consumption. Just like woodward fuel shut off solenoid ensures that supply of fuel is cut to stop te vehicle, an injector, on the other hand, ensures that right mix of fuel is reaching the engine.

When do you need to clean them?

Gasoline, but above all, diesel is never clean mixtures: they can deposit various impurities which, in the long run, can dirty the injectors and compromise the performance of the engine.

Usually, it is necessary to evaluate a cleaning of the injectors every 20/25 thousand km traveled, practically at each coupon (usually it is a practice performed by default by the workshops).

How do you know that the time has come to clean the injectors?

Generally, the symptoms are as follows:

• Difficulty starting the car
• Increase in fuel consumption
• Decreased performance
• Stopping the engine at low revs
• Black exhaust gases

How to make an effective injector cleaning?

There are various methods to clean the injectors, methods that we recommend to put into practice before all the symptoms listed in the previous paragraph begin to appear:

1. Fill up with petrol already additives: each petrol station has, among its assortment of products, mixtures already added with substances that help clean the injectors; by filling up with these every 5/10 thousand km, you can be quite sure of having clean injectors and a performing engine. It is the most economical solution, but not always sufficient to eliminate the problem.
2. Add specific additives for the cleaning of the injectors to the tank of petrol: there are additives for petrol or diesel which you can easily find in specialized auto parts stores where you will be advised of the one best suited to the characteristics of your machine. Using them is very simple: with the tank almost empty, add the additive, then fill up and you are done.
3. Entrust manual cleaning to a trusted mechanic: the last way to go (but also the only one that guarantees 100% certain results) is the intervention of a specialized workshop able to disassemble the engine, manually remove the injectors and perform cleaning manually.

Thanks to proper maintenance and cleaning, your injectors will have a long life, but this does not mean that they are not eternal: they usually need to be replaced before the 150,000 km traveled. Other than these steps, there is also special diesel fuel injector cleaner available for different vehicles made specifically for a particular vehicle.