Secondary Air Pump Valve Problem

Thanks for your post 540iman. After Christmas and after I speak with people at Sea Foam, I'm going to try and blast some carbon out of the SAS passages with Sea Foam. I really don't believe that I have the carbon buildup problems that the E39 M5s have with the I6 in my Touring. Spending $8K is out of the question. A Sea Foam blast is my first step-I've already bought 2 can for $20.

We shall see and I shall report back.

I treated the Secondary Air System (SAS) port 4 times this afternoon. I even got a small brush into the port and around the 90 degree turn for some extra help in moving/removing and carbon buildup after the Sea Foam had been in the port for about 7 minutes. I drove the car at 3K rpm plus for several miles after each treatment until the smoking stopped. I used a whole 12oz. can of Sea Foam so about 1/4 can for each treatment as this port is very short and using more Sea Foam would have been overkill.

I unbolted the SAS valve from the port for these treatments and left it off during my spirited drives (high revs, low gear, low speed). This caused the exhaust to back up through the SAS port so with my blast of compressed air and the exhaust backing through the port(s), the hole(s) for the SAS got high speed air both ways.

I had planned to use my leak down tester to set a base line for air moving through the port so I could see if the Sea Foam treatments worked. Unfortunately I was unable to do this as the air flow before I started the treatments was so large that it would not register on the leak down gauges.

I plan to bolt the SAS valve back on the car tomorrow AM, reset the fault codes and let the car tell me if the treatments worked-no CEL means success. I will monitor the fault codes and let you know the results. It will probably take at least a week before I know for sure.

Happy New Year to all ! ! !

I am updating this thread. Treated the (for lack of a better name) the SAS tube in the head (yes Fudman, it's in the head & not in the exhaust manifold) with 4 applications of Seafoam:

1. Got the engine to operating temperature.

2. Removed the SAS valve and sprayed about 1/4 can Seafoam into the opening pushing the red capillary tube around the 90 degree bend in the SAS tube. The car was running at idle during the Seafoam injection process. Let the car sit for about 6-7 minutes. Stuck a soft brush on a flexible wand into the SAS tube and did a little scrubbing. Then blasted the tube with compressed air.

3. Started the car and went for a 4 mile drive keeping the revs at about 4K. Lots for smoke from the exhaust. Did not reinstall the SAS valve during test drives so I got exhaust pressure backing up through the tube, blasting the SAS holes out the other way from the compressed air.

4. After the 4th application, went for a 20 mile highway drive with revs 4-5K. Reinstalled the SAS valve.

BTW: Also sprayed Seafoam into the intake through a vacuum port following the instructions on the can. However, I did not raise the idle speed when spraying into the intake as I wanted max vacuum. Raised idle for a few minutes after initial application to spread Seafoam around. Then went for another spirited drive.

Results: The car is running VERY smooth. I have not had any CEL since the treatments performed about a month ago. I think I have solved my SAS problem but will report back in another month.

Another month has passed and still no CEL for SAS low or no flow, or for any other reason. I am finally satisfied that my Sea Foam carbon cleaning of the SAS duct in the cylinder head has worked. Sea Foam is definitely my friend!

Originally Posted by johnstern

Another month has passed and still no CEL for SAS low or no flow, or for any other reason. I am finally satisfied that my Sea Foam carbon cleaning of the SAS duct in the cylinder head has worked. Sea Foam is definitely my friend!

Thanks for the update.

Does the op have a picture for us of the final solution for the purge valve hose?

Originally Posted by shaftdrive

Does the op have a picture for us of the final solution for the purge valve hose?

Never had a problem with either of the valve hoses-vacuum or air pump. This was a problem with carbon buildup in the duct (in the cylinder head) from the valve to the exhaust manifold.