So, I finally tackled that injector cleaner machine sitting in the corner of the garage. Been meaning to do it for ages. The old pickup felt like it was dragging its feet a bit, you know? Figured it was time to see if the injectors were clogged up or just tired.

Getting Started

First off, had to pull the machine out and actually figure out how it worked. Looked simple enough, lots of tubes and wires. Spent a bit sorting through the adapters to find the ones that fit my injectors. That was step one. Then poured in that special cleaning fluid. Whew, that stuff's got a kick to it, make sure you got some air moving when you use it.

Next came the part I wasn't looking forward to – pulling the injectors off the engine. Always feels like surgery you're not qualified for. Managed to get the fuel rail off without spraying gas everywhere, which is always a win. The injectors themselves looked pretty grimy once I got them out. Definitely seen better days.

The Cleaning Process

Okay, onto the machine. Clipped the injectors onto the rail thingy on the machine. Hooked up the little wires to make 'em click. Felt kinda like a mad scientist for a minute there.

First up was the ultrasonic bath. Popped the injectors into this little tub on the machine filled with more cleaning fluid. Turned it on and let it buzz away for maybe 20 minutes? Supposed to shake all the nasty stuff loose inside the injectors. Couldn't really see anything happening, just had to trust the buzzing.

After the bath, I put them back on the machine's test rail. This is the cool part. The machine squirts fuel (well, test fluid actually) through the injectors into these glass tubes so you can see what's going on.

• Leak Test: First checked if they leaked when they were supposed to be closed. All good there, thankfully. No drips.
• Spray Pattern: Then I ran them to watch the spray. Most looked okay, kind of a misty cone shape. But one, yeah, one was definitely off. Sprayed kinda weak and uneven. Not good.
• Flow Test: The machine also measures how much fluid each injector sprays over a set time. Ran this test, and sure enough, the glass tubes showed that wonky injector wasn't keeping up with the others. Flowed less fuel. Makes sense why the truck felt rough.

So, I ran the main cleaning cycle. The machine pulses the injectors open and shut real fast while pumping cleaner through them. Let that run for a good while. Gave that lazy injector an extra blast just for good measure.

Did it Work?

After all that cleaning, I ran the tests again. Big difference! Seriously, that weak injector was now spraying a nice cone, just like the others. And the flow test? All the glass tubes filled up almost exactly the same. Pretty satisfying to see that, honestly. Proof it wasn't just wishful thinking.

Cleaned 'em up, put new little rubber o-rings on them – learned that lesson the hard way before, always change the o-rings. Then wrestled the fuel rail and injectors back onto the engine. Buttoned everything up.

Fired up the engine. It definitely sounded smoother at idle. Took it for a drive, and yeah, it felt better. More responsive, less grumpy when I hit the gas pedal. So, yeah, the machine worked. It wasn't exactly a fun afternoon, wrestling with greasy parts, but seeing the difference in the spray patterns and then feeling it drive better? Worth it. Probably saved me the cost of a new injector, maybe more.