Tech / General Engine Is your car making a strange sound or won't start? Thinking of adding power with a new combination? Need other technical information or engine specific advice? Don't see another board for your problem? Post it here!

Sea foaming L98 GTA

Thread Tools
 
Search this Thread
 
Old 02-25-2010, 09:43 PM
  #1  
Senior Member
Thread Starter
 
BigBadGTA's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
Posts: 586
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like on 1 Post
Car: 1988 Trans Am GTA
Engine: 350TPI
Transmission: 700R4
Axle/Gears: 3:27
Sea foaming L98 GTA

So guys, After receiving some advice from a GM certified mechanic I have decided to sea foam my car this week end. I will not be putting any of it into the oil. Only the intake, and maybe some in the gas tank. He pointed out to me a vacuum line to let the engine suck it up from, which I attached a picture of below. Is it OK to let it suck from here? How much should I be letting it suck up? And how fast? Just let it suck till its gone? He told me after this, I should let it sit for about 25 mins, then I should go and drive it hard for a bit to blow out all of the carbon. Could you guys give me any advice? Are there any risks involved? Thanks guys!
Attached Thumbnails Sea foaming L98 GTA-100_0596.jpg  

Last edited by BigBadGTA; 02-25-2010 at 10:08 PM.
Old 02-25-2010, 09:47 PM
  #2  
Junior Member

iTrader: (1)
 
SargeantSarkasm's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Foxboro, MA
Posts: 11
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Car: 1989 Pontiac Trans Am
Engine: 350 TPI L98
Transmission: 700R4
Axle/Gears: The ones with the teeth.
Re: Sea foaming L98 GTA

cool. let me know how it goes. i was thinking of doing the same to mine, i have 144K on the engine, you?
Old 02-25-2010, 10:06 PM
  #3  
Senior Member
Thread Starter
 
BigBadGTA's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
Posts: 586
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like on 1 Post
Car: 1988 Trans Am GTA
Engine: 350TPI
Transmission: 700R4
Axle/Gears: 3:27
Re: Sea foaming L98 GTA

I have 82 K, And of course I will report back. From what this guy told me the stuff is like god in a bottle. I just want to get the facts strait because I really dont want to mess up my car...
Old 02-25-2010, 10:11 PM
  #4  
Junior Member
 
bowtieboy42's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Posts: 74
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Car: 89 Camaro
Engine: LB9
Transmission: 700R4
Axle/Gears: ?
Re: Sea foaming L98 GTA

Seafoams good stuff. I run half a bottle through the brake booster line, and half in the gas tank. I imagine any vacuum like would work really.

When its sucking through the vacuum line, they car might stall. This is normal. Once it dies, I usually let it sit for half an hour or so. After the next start up it will POUR out smoke. So much so that driving it immediately might not be possible. But I like to rev it up, and drive it decently as soon as possible. Definitely don't run in it a garage though
Old 02-25-2010, 10:20 PM
  #5  
Senior Member
Thread Starter
 
BigBadGTA's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
Posts: 586
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like on 1 Post
Car: 1988 Trans Am GTA
Engine: 350TPI
Transmission: 700R4
Axle/Gears: 3:27
Re: Sea foaming L98 GTA

Awesome, so I think thats what I will do is 1/2 in the tank and 1/2 in the vacuum line. So should I have someone inside the car giving it gas so it doesn't stall so I can give it the whole 1/2 bottle? How much gas should I have in the tank when I add the foam? Thank you for you help!
Old 02-25-2010, 10:24 PM
  #6  
Junior Member
 
sweet85's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: st.louis mo
Posts: 18
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Car: 85 berlinetta LG4
Engine: original rebuilt 305 bored 30 over
Transmission: original rebuilt 700r4
Axle/Gears: rebuilt 10 bolt 3.08's
Re: Sea foaming L98 GTA

i always ran mine in the brake booster line it feeds all your cylinders to.seafoam works wonders iv'e got a 85 with a 4bbrl carb with choke problems and seafom makes it run like a dragster.here lately though ill run seafoam to clean and then about a week later i stop at the local hardware store and get a quart of denatured(pure)alcohol and run it in the tank with every fill up just to soak up any extra water and i can really tell a diffrence.runs 10 times better
Old 02-26-2010, 04:53 AM
  #7  
Supreme Member

iTrader: (5)
 
Viprklr's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2002
Location: N. Illinois
Posts: 3,461
Likes: 0
Received 2 Likes on 2 Posts
Car: 92 GTA/ 00 TA
Engine: 383/350
Transmission: 700R4/T-56
Re: Sea foaming L98 GTA

The brake booster line in a TPI will not feed all cylinders.
Use a vac line that's connected to your throttle body
Old 02-26-2010, 11:05 AM
  #8  
Junior Member
 
NeedMorePower's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Santee, CA
Posts: 7
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Car: 87 Z28
Engine: 305 TPI w/Vortec heads
Transmission: 700r4
Re: Sea foaming L98 GTA

Run ¾ can through the vacuum line slowly then when you near that ¾ area rev. it up and suck a bunch down tell the motor stalls or have someone turn off key. This helps it get in the cylinder unburned and also coats the tops of the valves better, for best results wait 24 hours... there will be tons of smoke!
10yrs ASE certified GM/Cadillac specialist. Sea Foam is the best! use it all the time on caddys, they have carbon like no other because they only get driven to the store and back at 20mph.
Old 02-26-2010, 07:53 PM
  #9  
Senior Member
Thread Starter
 
BigBadGTA's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
Posts: 586
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like on 1 Post
Car: 1988 Trans Am GTA
Engine: 350TPI
Transmission: 700R4
Axle/Gears: 3:27
Re: Sea foaming L98 GTA

Originally Posted by Viprklr
The brake booster line in a TPI will not feed all cylinders.
Use a vac line that's connected to your throttle body

First of all thanks guys for your help! I went out and bought the bottle of sea foam today, and its going to rain tomorrow so I will probably be doing it Sunday. So if the brake booster line doesn't feed all the cylinders, where exactly is the vacuum line on the throttle body that I should use? Thanks!
Old 02-26-2010, 08:26 PM
  #10  
Junior Member
 
bowtieboy42's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Posts: 74
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Car: 89 Camaro
Engine: LB9
Transmission: 700R4
Axle/Gears: ?
Re: Sea foaming L98 GTA

I believe the line in your picture would feed them all.. Theres a few vacuum lines on the plenum/throttle body, I'm sure theyre all fairly equal...
Old 02-26-2010, 08:51 PM
  #11  
Senior Member
Thread Starter
 
BigBadGTA's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
Posts: 586
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like on 1 Post
Car: 1988 Trans Am GTA
Engine: 350TPI
Transmission: 700R4
Axle/Gears: 3:27
Re: Sea foaming L98 GTA

Ok, that is the line that the mechanic pointed out to me to use so I will use that one. Thanks!
Old 02-28-2010, 07:27 PM
  #12  
Member

iTrader: (4)
 
Krik's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: Tulsa Oklahoma
Posts: 482
Likes: 0
Received 2 Likes on 2 Posts
Car: 1990 IROC-Z 1LE
Engine: 5.7 TPI
Transmission: 700R4
Axle/Gears: G92 3.23
Re: Sea foaming L98 GTA

i usually go the 2-can route. I put 1 can directly in the gas tank. The other can I buy in the aresol version (Deep Creep) and spray it into the vacuum line. This makes it alot cleaner, and simpler to do.

Trust me
Old 02-28-2010, 10:11 PM
  #13  
Member
iTrader: (2)
 
Tyrel2018's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Osceola IN
Posts: 113
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Car: 1989 Camaro RS
Engine: LO5 350
Transmission: 700r4
Axle/Gears: 3.42 posi
Re: Sea foaming L98 GTA

i was waiting for someone to say it, there is no such thing as "god" in a bottle nor a mechanic. im not trying to be mean or anything but there is just no such thing, its all just word of mouth. i personally have used it and i think that its the reason that my valve stem seals were rock hard when i took my motor apart. if you smell in the bottle it smells like alcohol and that because there is alcohol in it and when you put that in you tank you are running a much higher octane and that is not always good. again im not trying to be mean im just putting my input in on the subject.
Old 03-01-2010, 06:47 AM
  #14  
Senior Member
 
all4u's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Elk Grove Village
Posts: 637
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Car: Firechicken
Engine: 350 + 30 over, 400 crank
Transmission: autotragic, stalled
Axle/Gears: not a one tire fire, thank god!
Re: Sea foaming L98 GTA

That line that he pointed to is the same line I use. I would say, let the engine warm up to operating temp, run the whole can through, at idle, don't rev it. Slowly let it suck it up, and when you get to the last 1/4 of the bottle or so, stick the line all the way in to flood the engine. The engine should die at that point. Let the car sit at least 12 hours. Tell the wife to park her Honda POS elsewhere for the night. In the morning, start your car, it should be difficult to start, when it fires up, let it warm up to operating temp and then go for a spirited drive. You will notice your car idles smoother, you car accelerates faster, and that you mpg will slightly increase.

I wouldn't say seafoam is god in a bottle but it sure seems close to it.
Old 03-01-2010, 09:42 AM
  #15  
Senior Member
iTrader: (1)
 
88gta_hiflyer's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Raleigh, NC
Posts: 331
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like on 1 Post
Car: 1988 GTA
Engine: 305 tpi (LB9)
Transmission: WC T-5
Axle/Gears: 3.45 posi
Re: Sea foaming L98 GTA

Originally Posted by BigBadGTA
Ok, that is the line that the mechanic pointed out to me to use so I will use that one. Thanks!
So how did it go? I've been wanting to seafoam my engine too but I'm curious what your results were. I've never used it before.
Old 03-02-2010, 04:41 PM
  #16  
Junior Member
 
Ekso's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Michigan
Posts: 35
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Car: '91 Base model & '91 Trans Am
Engine: 3.4L & Gen1 SBC 350
Transmission: 700r4
Axle/Gears: 3.73 and 3.42
Re: Sea foaming L98 GTA

I dunno bout anyone elses experience, but I used this with my 3.4L v6 bird with great results. I poured half a can in my tank, half a can with some fresh oil. Ran her for bout 150 miles, and performed an oil change after... Cleared my sticky lifter, idled smoother, prolly gave me another 1MPG on average, and overall helped the car run better. From my understanding, seafoam is essential denatured alcohol + kerosene. Anyone confirm or deny this?
Old 04-06-2010, 01:26 PM
  #17  
Member
 
welchk85's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: New york
Posts: 122
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Car: 1990 camaro rs 3.1 v6
Engine: 3.1 v6
Re: Sea foaming L98 GTA

i used this the other day on my 90 camaro rs with a 3.1 of course i messed it up a little but it all ended up with great results i couldnt fit the brake booster line in the bottle so i could suck it up so i poured the stuff in a jar and went to start sucking it up slowly and it sucked up all of it in like half a second i couldnt help but laugh and of course it instantly stalled it out i let it sit for about 3 hours went back outside and started it up with no problem it pretty much smoked out my entire block lol it was great but im still having a low idle problem im going to change the Map this weekend and see what happens but i think this stuff works wonders

ps. its also alot cheaper than paying a garage 80 bucks to clean your injectors
Old 04-07-2010, 11:00 AM
  #18  
Member

 
danziger's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: Chesapeake, VA
Posts: 482
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Car: 1991 Formula Firebird
Engine: L98 with headers/exhaust
Transmission: 700R4
Axle/Gears: 3.23 10-bolt
Re: Sea foaming L98 GTA

I ran SeaFoam through my 90K L98 'Bird a few weeks ago. Poured 1/2 in the tank and sucked the other 1/2 through the vac line as mentioned above. Let it sit for a few hours before firing it up. Lots of initial smoke and even a few smoke-rings out the pipes! I can't give a quantifyable performance increase, but tip-in is much sharper and she feels a little stronger up top. MPG sure hasn't changed, but that could be driving habits...
Old 04-07-2010, 12:41 PM
  #19  
Supreme Member

iTrader: (5)
 
I H8 WWD's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Cleveland, Ohio
Posts: 2,491
Likes: 0
Received 5 Likes on 5 Posts
Car: 89' IROC-Z
Engine: LO3
Transmission: 700R4
Axle/Gears: 10-Bolt/2.73
Re: Sea foaming L98 GTA

Seafoam Product MSDS Page

Seafoam Motor Treatment Product Ingredients
Pale Oil
Naphtha
Isopropyl Alcohol
Old 04-07-2010, 01:05 PM
  #20  
Senior Member
iTrader: (1)
 
88gta_hiflyer's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Raleigh, NC
Posts: 331
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like on 1 Post
Car: 1988 GTA
Engine: 305 tpi (LB9)
Transmission: WC T-5
Axle/Gears: 3.45 posi
Re: Sea foaming L98 GTA

My biggest hesitation with seafoam is that it's got oil in it. Seems like that could fould the plugs by puting it in through the intake. Can anyone confirm this or am I worrying about nothing? I would like to clean my intake system but I really don't want to have to change my plugs again anytime soon lol.
Old 04-07-2010, 01:07 PM
  #21  
Supreme Member

iTrader: (5)
 
I H8 WWD's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Cleveland, Ohio
Posts: 2,491
Likes: 0
Received 5 Likes on 5 Posts
Car: 89' IROC-Z
Engine: LO3
Transmission: 700R4
Axle/Gears: 10-Bolt/2.73
Re: Sea foaming L98 GTA

This cleans the plugs, so oil yes, fouled plugs no. You'll be fine, or else others would report worse conditions and not better as far as starting and idling and such.
Related Topics
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
Prodigious
Theoretical and Street Racing
35
04-13-2021 02:37 PM
GeneralIesrussi
Carburetors
5
01-20-2020 01:06 PM
Tarizza
Tech / General Engine
13
09-24-2015 12:57 PM
Winchester1094
Engine/Drivetrain/Suspension Wanted
0
09-15-2015 09:48 AM
banksGTA
TPI
2
09-13-2015 11:56 AM



Quick Reply: Sea foaming L98 GTA



All times are GMT -5. The time now is 01:07 PM.