Auto-Rx Customers Questions & Answers

http://yotarepair.com/Sludge_Zone.html

You have one of the sludge beasts and you should not touch your vehicle with Autorx or anything else for that matter. Take it to Toyota first and see what they are going to do, if they do nothing take all your evidence to a lemon law lawyer. If you self help yourself you will lsoe your rights, 1996 Avalone is on the list, see link above. If all that get's nowhere, i'd do a couple Autorx treatments with cheap dino, and then switch to M1 and do 4k OCI's.

Agreed, check with Toyota first. If no satisfaction through the legal system, ARX can definitely make a big difference in this motor. You are going to need to do at least two applications, with the standard OCI's on dino oil. That is 1500 mile cleaning applications, followed by 2000 mile flushes, with new filters at each stage.

Bitog has no vested interest in your car. When you buy Auto-Rx it becomes my responsibility & yours to use it responsibly. Button this engine up and go change oil to a non synthetic WalMart comes to mind buy some cheap oil filters. Add 1 complete bottle of Auto-Rx in the non synthetic oil drive a total of 2000 miles (at 1000 miles put on new filter top off oil and finish the last 1000 miles) Now keep using Walmart your in rinse mode drive 1500 miles and replace filter top off oil and finish rinse mode, YOU HAVE COMPLETED FIRST APPLICATION hopefully we have also cleaned out all the "flushes-kerosene you have used also.
LET ME MAKE THIS CLEAR IF YOU HAVE A CHUNK OF SLUDGE FLOATING AROUND AND IT STOPS UP YOUR ENGINE THIS IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY AS IT WAS YOUR DECISION TO USE SOLVENTS. AUTO-RX IS NOT LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES DONE TO YOUR ENGINE AND OUR GUARANTEE IS NOT IN FORCE FOR YOUR PURCHASE OF AUTO-RX AND YOUR USE OF AUTO-RX. IF THIS IS ACCEPTABLE TO YOU POST YOUR ACCEPTANCE AND I WILL TRY AND GET YOU OUT OF THIS MESS.

You said, "YOU HAVE COMPLETED FIRST APPLICATION hopefully we have also cleaned out all the "flushes-kerosene you have used also."

I want to make it clear that I never ran kerosene in this engine (i.e. a tradtional kerosene flush). I put a half gallon of kerosene in the engine and allowed it to sit in the oil pan overnight without running the car (the full cleaning methodology is detailed in my post at BITOG). There is quite a difference between putting kerosene in an engine and running it and putting kerosene in an engine and not running it. The methodology I used is recommended by a well-known and highly respected Toyota Factory Service Manager, and this is the methodology that Toyota uses when you take the 1MZ sludged engines in for repair. I realize that you probably disagree with this methodology, but please understand that I worked on this engine just prior to discovering auto-rx. However it is important to note, before following the advice of the Toyota guru, I had to add a quart of oil everytime I filled the gas tank. Also the engine emitted huge clouds of smoke upon cold startup. I am happy to report that the engine is now cured of its bad symtoms. In fact, I put 1500 miles on the engine since the last oil change, and nearest I can tell, it does not burn a drop of oil. Also gone is the huge cloud of smoke upon cold startup. In short, it runs like a brand-new engine. I believe this is because the breather vents were blocked under the valve covers, and when I pressure washed them clean, it allowed the engine to breath for the first time in a long time. My feeling is that when those vents become blocked, the 1MZ engines can no longer breath and start pushing oil down the intake manifold where it is burned in the combustion process. No matter how frequently you change the oil after that, unless you use a cleaner like auto-rx or remove the valve covers and physically clean or replace them, the sludge will just continue to pile up.

To be perfectly clear, I changed the oil in this engine perhaps 6 or 7 times before adding the auto-rx; thus, there is no kerosene left in this engine for the auto-rx to clean out. The only reason I am now using the auto-rx is because I would like to clean out the remaining sludge that I was unable to get at using the Factory Service Manager's recommendations. I guess Totota just leaves the stuff in there when they restore these engines, but that is not good enough for me. I want my entire engine clean, not just the parts that were causing the increased oil consumption. From what I have read and have had recommended to me, auto-rx can clean the entire engine, so that is what I am after. I am running a detailed account of this restoration at BITOG, thus anyone who wants to follow my progress is welcome to follow along.

I do not hold auto-rx liable for the previous work I have done, but also, it is important to note that the almost miraculous curing of my symptoms has been due to the recommendations of the Toyota mechanic and not the auto-rx, so it is important that nobody gets that confused. I am using the auto-rx only to clean the parts that were not cleaned with the previous methodology. I am keeping a detailed photo documentary of this process. So far, I am 1500 miles into my first cleaning phase, and I believe the auto-rx has caused the oil to become slightly darker than usual and has also resulted in decreased valve train noise. Note that the cleaning I did prior to adding auto-rx had no effect on the valve train because I did not attempt to clean those parts, so I attribute the reduction in noise entirely to the auto-rx.

So I currently believe the auto-rx is doing its job, but I have a long ways to go before finishing my 3 complete cleaning and rinse phases. It is important to note that I will continue to pull my oil pan and physically clean the oil pickup tube between oil drains as the pickup tubes in these engines are very poorly designed and clog extremely easily. It is better to be safe than sorry. I also change my filters more frequently than I change the oil, and I cut the filters open so I have a detailed understanding of exactly how much stuff is being deposited there. As Frank alluded to, my methodology of physically cleaning the engine is dangerous, and is not advised. It worked for me, but I am very mechanically inclined and work in a detailed and meticulous manner. Had this not been the case, I would have surely allowed the pickup tube to clog and ruined this engine.

Brent: Thanks for posting. I have 1500 miles on the first clean phase and have changed the filter every 750 miles. So far this has been a good interval. I was thinking of letting my filter go a little longer as Frank has recommended above, but I suppose one is better safe than sorry. Especially when they have disturbed the oil layers in the engine like I have. I guess the good part about that is I took perhaps two pop cans full of heavy crusty sludge out of this engine before adding the auto-rx, so I won't have to hold that in suspension while I finish cleaning out the engine.

Also, my work is 50 miles from my house, so I don't do many short trips on the car. Since I cleaned the breather ports under the valve covers and changed the pcv valve, this engine has become like a new engine and burns absolutely no oil. It is like a miracle. I think the previous owner sold the car to me cheap because he knew about the sludge problem, but it has turned out to be a really good deal after all.

I'm glad I stumbled onto the auto-rx site before I totally finished my cleaning because I had it in mind to do a hot chemical flush or use a flush machine after I completed the Toyota recommended repair. Also, I'm under the impression that the Totota recommended repair is not always successful. I think that is because it can result in a clogged pickup screen; thus, I was pretty obsessive-compulsive about pulling my oil pan and changing my filter between very short interval changes until I saw the debris stabilize. Had I not done that, I believe I would have lost this engine. Interestingly, Toyota does not do that as part of the repair. I'm guessing their method leads to losing a fair amount of these engines.

Frank: Toyota didn't do anything for me for sludge removal compensation. They will only repair the engine if it is within 8 years of the date the vehicle was manufactured. The Factory Service Rep that gave me the advice no longer works in that capacity and now strictly works as a consultant to individual dealerships. So the advice did not come from Toyota per say, it came from a guy who worked for them for several decades and has seen a ton of these sludged up engines come through the shop. It is not in Toyota's best financial interest to immediately replace the sludged engines, so first they attempt to clean them. If this fails, they replace the engine (as long as it falls within the 8-year range and you can prove you changed the oil at regular intervals).

Depending on which shop you choose, they will either do the cleaning with or without removing the heads. I have seen one case of an engine burning up even after Toyota did the full head removal. So even using their best methodology, they still lose some of these engines and end up having to replace them.

Thus, whoever ends up having a sludged Toyota engine that has went past the 8-year Toyota repair limit would be well-advised to try auto-rx as a first repair attempt. I strongly recommend against hot kerosene flushes with the heavily sludged engines because this will almost certainly result in a clogged pickup screen and a burned up engine.

Jonness

Did you read this post ? by Lonnie? Do you think not a drop of kerosene stayed in the block ?



Another thought that I'd like to bring up. Solvents that I've used in the past attack the carrier oil as well as the deposits while its running thru your engine. Solvents reduce the viscosity and remain behind after being drained. Strong solvents may remain in very small amounts in areas that do not drain well. This may be behavior that is not useful to the life of the engine. Solvents can remove the surface from seals and o-rings and leave behind a rough surface. For the average owner this behavior constitutes a risk. The use of solvents requires knowledge of the condition of the engine and the progress encountered during the process. Wear and damage caused by the use of solvents is difficult to detect or separate from existing problems. When Auto-Rx is used you can concentrate on evaluating the results without the worry of leaving it in to long or having problems because small amounts were left behind. When my 23 year old Civic wagon failed California smog I paid the fees and took the time to do a double treatment. The day of the test I cut the rinse phase short, changed the oil and passed the test, with no other changes. I did not see a lot of black crud or dramatic visual results from the treatment but it went from fail to pass. I have no other explanation than Auto-Rx. This car is like my little blue blanket (my woobie if you watched Mr. Mom), and I was not going to pour a dose of engine flush in it. No white papers needed for me.

Lonnie



-- Edited by Frank Miller at 00:39, 2007-08-28

-- Edited by Frank Miller at 00:40, 2007-08-28