Random guy at the auto parts store told me to add sea foam to my oil every 3k miles

This older dude in line behind me at O'Reilly's last year said I should dump a bottle of Sea Foam in my crankcase 100 miles before every oil change. I thought he was full of it, but I tried it on my 2012 F-150 with 180k miles. Now the ticking from the lifters is gone and it actually runs smoother. Has anyone else had good luck with this stuff or did I just get lucky? I'm wondering if it's worth doing on my wife's newer car too.

3 comments

3 Comments

river_allen29d ago

Man that's wild because it feels like old timers just know stuff that gets proven right years later. I had a similar thing happen with my grandpa's trick of putting a bit of ATF in the gas tank to clean injectors, and it actually worked. Sea Foam's been around forever for a reason though, it's basically just a solvent that breaks down gunk. On your wife's newer car I'd probably be careful though because modern engines are way tighter and the computer might not like it. Either way it's funny how the car community is full of these passed down tips that sound crazy but somehow hold up.

harpery4729d ago

Wait, is that actually true about ATF in the gas tank? I always heard transmission fluid has friction modifiers that can mess with the fuel system, not clean it.

elliot_patel29d ago

Wait hold on, you're telling me ATF has friction modifiers? That's wild. I always heard it was just a detergent thing, but if there's extra stuff in there that could mess with the fuel system, that changes everything. Makes me wonder if the old timers just got lucky or something.