Engine/Transmission (1994 - 1998) Fuel Additives and Get Up and Go Improved!

[guldam]

Haven't had this truck very long and have only put in four tanks of diesel so far.



First tank of diesel took me from Santa Barbara to Vallejo or a distance of 343 miles. As far as I know there were no diesel additives other than anti fungal treatment. I thought the truck seemed to lack throttle response on taking off from a stop, and climbing hills it seemed rather pokey also. I'm talking pedal to the floor.



Second tank of diesel I added a bottle of Power Service injector cleaner and cetane booster. I swear the truck had more throttle response.



Third tank of diesel I added a bottle of Power Service injector cleaner and cetane booster and I swear the truck seemed even happier.



Fourt tank of diesel I added a full bottle of Stanadyne injector cleaner and cetane booster to the remaining quarter of a tank of diesel, and then drove a few miles to the Chevron that has diesel.



Whoa nelly. The truck was much, much snappier and happy.



Filling up the tank with diesel the truck was a little less snappier.



Do I have a clogged up fuel filter? Dirty injectors or something else? Or am I just getting crappy diesel?



Some observations.



1. Truck has much more power once the Cummins has reached normal operating temperature.



2. Easing on the throttle seems to make the truck more responsive versus pushing the pedal to the floor. (???)



3. I much prefer the get up and go that the truck had on that quarter tank of diesel, and a whole bottle of Stanadyne that will treat 60 gallons. Am I gonna break something with this much concentrated injector cleaner?



GulDam

 

[hsmith]

I would venture that all the additives you added to a decreasing volume of fuel made for a more voliatle mixture.

 

[Missouri Mule]

I would think that the concentratred cleaner isn't good for the cylinders!



It is always good idea to change to filter when you a antifungal treatment in the tank unless you have done it recently ( Was there a problem with the fuel? Since you were running using a fungus treatment.



Have a fuel pressure test done on it. After filter no less 20psi should be 25 psi, max difference between inlet and outlet of fliter is 5 psi.

 

[mickeyblueyes]

You did add about 300 hundred pounds of fuel. You may feel this a little. I know sometimes when I am on fumes the truck feels light and fast then I fill up and it feels a tad bit slower.

 

[GAmes]

With absolutely no additives I get over 600 miles from a tank of fuel, highway driving. I don't use additives and doubt that there are any that will really give you more power and/or mileage. If you only got 343 miles you have a problem that additives won't cure. Since there are a variety of things that will cause poor mileage I suggest you do a search, but changing the filter won't hurt anything. Also, only buy fuel from high volume dealers like truck stops. The corner Chevron my be pumping fuel that is 2 or 3 years old.



Easing into the throttle works better because of the way the turbo spools up. When you jab the pedal to the floor you will get turbo lag for awhile, thus no response. Install some gauges and you can watch it all happen.

 

[guldam]

That 343 miles was my first tank of diesel and I got 18mpg going 65-75mph and I had a lot of diesel left.



In town I have been getting about 13mpg. My Dakota with 4. 7 v8 gas doesn't do that well.



I'm still finding where all the stations are that carry diesel. The Chevron I go to almost always has a diesel pickup fueling up. But I suppose a truck stop will see a lot more turn over.



I'm trying to decide on which gauges to get. I'm committed to doing this soon. First I have front end parts to install and new shocks.



GulDam

With absolutely no additives I get over 600 miles from a tank of fuel, highway driving. I don't use additives and doubt that there are any that will really give you more power and/or mileage. If you only got 343 miles you have a problem that additives won't cure. Since there are a variety of things that will cause poor mileage I suggest you do a search, but changing the filter won't hurt anything. Also, only buy fuel from high volume dealers like truck stops. The corner Chevron my be pumping fuel that is 2 or 3 years old.



Easing into the throttle works better because of the way the turbo spools up. When you jab the pedal to the floor you will get turbo lag for awhile, thus no response. Install some gauges and you can watch it all happen.

 

[guldam]

Hmmm, I neglected to take that into account.



GulDam

You did add about 300 hundred pounds of fuel. You may feel this a little. I know sometimes when I am on fumes the truck feels light and fast then I fill up and it feels a tad bit slower.

 

[Doubleclutch]

Did the Santa Barbara to Vallejo trip many times in the '70s going to Nuclear Power School at Mare Island.

Since you're new to this truck, I'm curious about the trucks recent history. Has it been sitting? Old fuel? As you burn some out, and add fresh, your improvements mentioned would make sense. I know that adding cetane will give performance increase as well as noise decrease, but if the truck has been sitting for a while, other stuff previously mentioned might be the dominant issue. (No flat spots on the tires? LOL)

As with all additives, if a little is good... a lot ISN'T!

my $. 02

Greg

 

[guldam]

According to Stanadyne:

Add Stanadyne Additives to fuel tank before filling with diesel fuel to ensure thorough mixing. Tighten additive bottle cap securely after use and store upright. Store above 32°F (0°C).
All Stanadyne Diesel Fuel Additives can be blended with each other and “double-dosing” is not damaging — although it may not provide twice the benefit.
Where engine and vehicle Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) have approved Stanadyne, most of them recommend Stanadyne Performance Formula, which should be used at every refueling year-round to ensure protection against fuel related problems and to maximize performance.
For further information or to request a Material Safety Data Sheet call Stanadyne Corporation 1-800-842-2496 or visit www.stanadyne.com

 

[guldam]

Also, according to their literature:

#ad


Could be an explanation for my seat of the pants perception of increased power.

Or could be snake oil.

This is the first bottle of Stanadyne. Have run a couple of bottles of Power Service previously and I notice increased umph with it also, though not as much as the double dose of Stanadyne I just ran.

I think the truck hasn't been run so much since December of last year, and perhaps things got gummed up. A little before that the previous owner had a bout of fungus in the system and it cost him a pretty penny to get it all cleaned out.

I started running the Stanadyne and Power Service thinking that it couldn't hurt to clean out the fuel system. And I think it's been worth the extra cash to use this stuff.

I have a 4 stroke Yamaha kicker on my boat that absolutely hates modern gas with ethanol in it. Carbs get gummed up if I don't run Techron in the gas, and stabilizer, and even then it's still not enough sometimes. On those occasions I run a shock treatment of Techron through the gas, and it usually clears up the nasties.

GulDam

 

[RWalker]

I am a custom blender and those numbers on HP sound extremely high, but it is possible if you have the right situation. Anything is possible if you find vehicles in rough shape or find a high responsive fuel. To give you an idea, I have customers who say they have gotten a mile more per gallon using one of our premium products in there semi. Whether or not that's true, I don't know, but I do know they keep coming back to buy more.

Is this typical NO! and I am not going to tell you that it is. Most of our customers do typically see a 4% increase in fuel economy. It might not sound like a lot but if you saved 4% on your fuel comsumption that adds up to be 11 cents per gallon savings based on diesel at $2. 89 per gallon.

The biggest response I get back from our customers is that they notice the HP increase. The TDR-S additive has been Dyno tested and showed a 3% HP increase.

My recommendation though is find a good additive that works good for you and keep with it, because nobody but you are looking to protect your investment.