I have a 2001 Camry and I was chatting with a buddy (he's a mechanic) and he said that he has had lots of Camrys in the past around the year my camry was made where the engine would just shut down and not start due to carbon buildup....and most people thought it was the starter gone bad when it was just the understandable effects of a combustion engine...

so two questions to get another opinion and see what people think cause I asked him the following:

1. Do those engine cleaner products actually work?
2. Will putting high quality 93 octane V-Power from Shell prevent carbon buildup?

I did both...my buddy/mechanic said it was overkill ...

I just put this engine cleaner in my Camry and topped it off with 93-Vpower by Shell....and if you agree, how often should I do this?

thanks!!

 

How does the engine run? If too much carbon the valves will not fully close causing performance issues.

These chemicals work over time.

Toyota used Techron by Chevron. Redline, Lucas, Royal Purple and others make products. Also BG44K .

These products have polyetheramine (PEA) in them which is a cleaner.

The higher octane is supposed to reduce carbon build up.

Suggest Techron. Use it every other oil change.

Using a synthetic oil and changing it on schedule, will also result in lower carbon build up.

Use the money saved by NOT using a higher octane fuel on better oil and one of the cleaning products.

 

wow! that is great advice, especially the part where I should save money with the higher octane...

also, I totally forgot about Techron! are you referring to the engine cleaner they sell or the fuel they sell, or both? Sometimes I need gas and a Chevron isnt along the path, but yea I like their gas, I have read up extensively on different types of fuel, supposedly alternating fuel brands helps, but I am not an expert, just based on what I read....

Also synthetic oil sounds like a good idea, I looked up my engine # thinking about either this synthetic oil or this synthetic oil
and if I use either synthetic oil, what about mixing Lucas oil treatment (see link) to synthetic oil? I have a friend who swears by this stuff, his old Lexus from 1992 is still running!!

 

All fuels have some kind of cleaner, Techron is what Chevron uses.

Suggest the Techron gas tank additive or similar.

For oil, any full synthetic is good enough. A 5W-30 is a good weight. My two cents is synthetic oil is adequate without additives.

 

I even use full synthetic, Mobile 1, in my lawn mowers! It's about as good as synthetic gets. I'm somewhat of an oil guru... Oh, and another product I found for valve stem, rear main seal, etc., leaks: AT-205 Reseal. This stuff really works! Old Scotty Kilmer put me on to that. Only place I've found it is Amazon though.