The fuel system is made up of the fuel tank, pump, filter, and injectors or carburettor, and is responsible for delivering fuel to the engine as needed. Each component must perform flawlessly to achieve expected vehicle performance and reliability.
Over time, an engine’s performance can slowly diminish because of a build-up of deposits, which clogs vital parts of the fuel system and causes reduced fuel efficiency and power.
The valve opens to allow the air/fuel mixture to be drawn into the combustion chamber. Deposits on intake valves can restrict or change the flow of the air/fuel mixture into the combustion chamber. Fuel can stick to deposits on the intake valve and not enter the combustion chamber when needed. The right fuel additive, such as STP® Petrol or Diesel Treatment can help keep the fuel intake system clean of harmful deposits.
Fuel injectors are valves responsible for emitting fuel into the engine’s intake manifold which in turn delivers this to the combustion chamber. They are designed to deliver a precisely measured mist of fuel and the smallest deposit/dirt can disrupt the spray pattern resulting in numerous performance issues (poor starting, rough idling, engine hesitation staling). Clean fuel injectors are critical to vehicle performance. STP® products undergo rigorous independent testing to ensure all to ensure STP® Fuel Injector Cleaners restore 95% of the original performance. Carburettors were the usual method of fuel delivery for most vehicles up until the late 1980s. Most carburettors are manual non-electric devices that are used for mixing vaporised fuel with air to produce a combustible or explosive mixture for internal combustion engines. Carburettors have been mostly supplanted by electronic fuel injection.
The piston travels up and down, and converts the pressure from combustion into movement. Clean- up additives such as STP® Complete Fuel System Cleaner has been shown to be effective in reducing or controlling deposit-related drivability and performance loss.
This is where burning of the air/fuel mixture happens. Deposits in the combustion chamber can affect heat transfer and air/fuel compression. Excess heat can cause premature ignition and knocking.
Some vehicles contain knock sensors that are used to determine engine knock or pre- or post-detonation. With these sensors, the computer will detune the engine to eliminate this symptom, which has an adverse effect on performance. Fuel system deposits will cause knocking, which is why it is so important to keep your fuel system clean using products, such as STP® Ultra 5-In-1 Fuel System Cleaner.
Detergent additives vary by type and concentration. See below to find out which STP® products help prevent, remove or deep-clean deposits.