ATF in the gas tank

I have heard of putting a little ATF in the gas tank to clean out the engine , but had never tried it until Saturday. After changing my ATF I poured about a pint in my tank. The service engine light that was coming and going has not flickered since and it seems to be using less gas. Yesterday , I poured another pint in. Anybody else had similar results?

Of couse you're using less gas... You replaced a pint of gasoline with a pint of atf in the tank.

I think there's hundreds of story's about someone, some where, dumping just about anything in their fuel tank to remove the gremlins plaguing their car.

Seriously though. I've heard of it, but never tried it myself. What trouble code did your car have to start with?

All hail the mighty...[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

I know it has been used to "clean up" clogged lifters or oil passages. I would recommend not putting to much in. There comes a point where to much is not good...

Have no idea what vintage your car is but if it runs better with the ATF in it that would be indicative of something else going south. I am only speculating, but my first thought would be gummed up fuel injector(s), especially if you are getting an intermittent SEL.

While I can't think a couple of pints would do any lasting damage, using additives that are not tested for compatibility with O2 sensors and cats may not be advisable. Even the afore mentioned Seafoam has been known to take out O2s. Could of been coincidental but have heard it on a number of occasions. Probably they were on their way out anyways and the Seafoam just pushed them over the edge.

If you were getting an SEL previously, might be worth your while scanning the puter. The codes should still be in memory. Might help in tracking down the real problem.

Bill

Search the internet for marine outboard two-stroke oil, TCW-3 spec, one ounce for every 2.5 gallons I think. It noticeably improved my LT1's idle quality and slightly improved gas mileage, but it got to be a hassle to put it in at every fill-up so I stopped doing that.

We have a local dealership that recommends when changing oil to put in a quart of ATF instead of the last quart of OIL.............

The owner swears by it...............I haven't got up the nerve to try it - yet!!

Put some Lucas Injector cleaner in her (in the fuel).  It is a cylinder top lube.  You can also use Marvel Mystery Oil.

My dad used to put a bit of Kerosene in the oil a few minutes/miles before an oil change. Be careful you don't knock loose a big chunk of carbon/sludge and end up clogging oil passages.

This thread is going to be an "opinions are like bungholes" thread. Not that anyone can discredit what the other guy does, because if it works and doesn't damage anything, then hey, go for it. Personally putting any sort of oil in the fuel sounds like a bad idea.

Personally, I do a quart of marvel mystery oil twice a year during regular oil changes.

Cadet57 wrote:

Personally putting any sort of oil in the fuel sounds like a bad idea.

Personally, I do a quart of marvel mystery oil twice a year during regular oil changes.

Huh? Which is it?

200OZ wrote:

Cadet57 wrote:

Personally putting any sort of oil in the fuel sounds like a bad idea.

Personally, I do a quart of marvel mystery oil twice a year during regular oil changes.

Huh? Which is it?

Oil in the engine you jerk.

Personally I adhere to the philosophy of keeping fluids in their respective places. Fuel in the fuel tank, oil in the engine, transmission fluid in the transmission, etc. Unless there is a proven reason to do otherwise, it's bunk or snake oil.

MalibuSSwagon wrote:

Personally I adhere to the philosophy of keeping fluids in their respective places. Fuel in the fuel tank, oil in the engine, transmission fluid in the transmission, etc. Unless there is a proven reason to do otherwise, it's bunk or snake oil.

What he said^^^^^. Unless you live in Mass and your name is Justin!

I have heard the ATF compared to Marvell Mystery Oil, as referenced by BeaSST above, in this odd gas additive application. Owners of old aircraft seem loyal to MMO.
That is just one of those things some "Old Timers" swear by, but nobody can explain, let alone verify.
I think that is the "Mystery."

You can run all the funhouse oil you want through your fuel system, but...

The real issue is that the stock GM LT1 fuel injectors are not ethanol resistant and their spray pattern is 23 years old. Send a batch to an injector place and close to 50% of them won't even be salvageable.  It is well worth the time and effort to figure out how to swap in newer injectors and retune the PCM for their flowrate and low voltage / low pulsewidth behavior.  There are some posts out there on how to do it.  

Whatever you do, do NOT buy ANY injector from a place that provides only flow rate.   There are THREE tables you must adjust in the LT1 PCM when altering injectors.  You must properly set all three if you want any semblance of part-throttle drivability. And ignore min pulsewidth at your own peril. On one setup I helped spec out, the owner was better off going with 80lb/hr injectors rather than 60lb/hr injectors due to this. If none of this makes sense to you, search "Greg Banish" on Amazon and start reading.

Boy these "snake oil" threads have some legs on them sometimes,.

The atf in the fuel worked in older diesel motors,.

oil in gasoline lowers the octane rating,.

I would wonder what repeated use of atf mixed with ethanol would do to an engine,. O2's cats' etc,.