I’m sure you would have guessed that I’m no automotive expert nor do I claim to know better. But I do want the best for my car and do drive rather frequently. In fact, I’m the unofficial chauffer for my entire family especially my grandparents.
But even someone (like me) who can’t recognize the different parts under the car hood knows that maintaining the engine efficiency of a car is crucial to its performance.
Whenever the engine in your car is running, the fuel it burns to make power and propels the car leaves behind harmful, power-robbing carbon deposits inside your engine. This is an unavoidable deposit that is a by-product of the fuel burning process. However, over time, if these fuel-related carbon deposits are not properly managed, they will cause a gradual loss of engine power, fuel economy and drivability. The power loss and drivability symptoms that these deposits cause often occur so gradually that you may not even notice it, but if you had taken note of the efficiency of your car when it was brand new vs after driving often over years, the statistics would usually tell you otherwise.
The concept of engine cleaning is actually quite simple – once the carbon deposits are cleaned from your engine, it should perform like it did when it was new.
However, traditional methods of engine cleaning means the car specialist would need to remove the engine from the car and manually clean it up. This is extremely costly (couple of thousands) and time consuming (at least 3 days). Of course this is by far one of the better methods if you want to make sure that your engine is cleaned and have any wear and tear parts replaced.
However, Klear Karbon has brought a brand new technology to help ease this problem. Instead of an engine overhaul, KlearKarbon is able to harness the power of hydrogen to attract and break down the carbon deposits in your car engine without having to physically remove it out of your car. This also means that the time needed to clean is faster (about an hour) and also much cheaper (carbon cleaning for my car model is only S$128).
Klear Karbon is the first and only workshop in Singapore has this unique hydrogen cleaning service. I won’t be going through the technicalities of how it works as you can always find the details at their Klear Karbon website. All you need to know is that this USA patented technology comes in rather portable sized machines from Taiwan. It is mess free, fast and works well.
I’ve learnt a lot about how carbon build up in engines can affect the performance of cars from the owner of KlearKarbon as well as from some automotive enthusiasts. It has given me more insight into the car that I’m driving and I think such knowledge should be shared in an easily digestible format.
Here are 6 key points why carbon is bad for your engine.
1. Carbon deposits can build up on the piston rings, causing them to stick in the piston grooves, which can lead to a loss in engine compression and cause the engine to burn oil.
2. Carbon build up can interfere with normal combustion is several ways. It can alter the engines operating temperature, compression ratio, and several other important factors involved with combustion and sensor readings.
3. The deposits that build up on the intake valves and in the ports can cause a loss in engine power because these deposits will restrict the flow of the air/fuel mixture as it flows into the engine’s cylinders.
4. The deposits that build up in the combustion chamber can cause an engine to knock or ping because these deposits can create a hot spot in the combustion chamber thus increasing the engine’s need for higher-octane fuel.
5. The build-up of these various fuel related deposits will also cause an increase in the engine’s exhaust emissions.
6. Carbon deposits can also cause cold start and driveability problems as the engine warms up because they can actually act as a sponge by momentarily absorbing some of the fuel that is need for proper combustion.
The process of using Klear Karbon hydrogen technology to clean my car engine was simple. They just attached 2 cables and let the machine do all the work while I got to chat and learn more about the system. I felt as if my car was going for a detox session and after all the ‘stress’ I’ve brought upon it through the years, I guess I owe her one.
I can almost imagine the hydrogen molecules rushing into the grooves of my engine and dancing happily as it attracts all the carbon, sludge and yucky stuff to it, clearing the heart of my car. If only this machine works on fats as well, I wouldn’t mind a purging session.
The walls of the Klear Karbon Workshop are filled with testimonials from car owners of all walks of life. It’s amazing how many cars Klear Karbon has helped and improved even though they’ve only just brought this technology to Singapore. At the affordable price and efficiency of the cleaning, it’s no wonder word of Klear Karbon is spreading like wild fire. If you want to read even more testimonials, just check out Klear Karbon’s FaceBook Page.
At the last 5 minutes of the preset cleaning schedule, one of the staff came to inform us that slight water condensation can be seen on my exhaust. This is good news as it shows that my engine is burning fuel efficiently and water can be seen the by-product of a clean combustion. I was told that water condensation in the exhaust is a common phenomena in brand new cars but as carbon builds up internally, most cars no longer burn fuel efficiently enough for this to happen.
Now for the most important part of my review. How was my car performance after this little machine performed their magic?
Well, for starters, my car was a lot more responsive and my acceleration was faster. However, the biggest and most significant visible improvement I had after the carbon cleaning was the improvement of my fuel consumption. My car was doing about 11.6km for every liter of fuel. But now, it’s doing about 12.5km per liter of fuel. This means that my 55 liter fuel tank in my 1.8 Honda Stream is able to go for an additional 49.5 km with each full tank. It also means that I can even do an additional trip from Changi Airport to Tuas Checkpoint with fuel to spare!
I think the fuel savings I gained was worth several times more than the S$128 it cost for the carbon cleaning. Of course different car models, maintenance level and driving habits would yield different individual results as well. But at least personally, it worked really well for my car and I’m pleased with the results. It has solidified my belief that a clean, deposit-free engine will provide its driver with the best power, drivability and fuel economy; plus a clean engine will provide its owner with the maximum engine reliability and lower exhaust emissions.
Klear Karbon
50, Serangoon North Avenue 4,
#01-08, First Centre, Singapore (555856)
Website