Cataclean

poose

poose

Events Co-Ordinator
Club Moderator
Jun 19, 2012
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Haydock
I had read a lot about Cataclean in motoring mags and it seemed to good to be true but as I had some Halfrauds vouchers for my birthday I thought why not. Since I have used it the car has become more responsive and a cough and splutter it used to have in 5th gear at 30 mph has now gone. Average mpg has gone from 27.5 to 28.6, not much of a gain but suppose its not to bad. Will be using this again in a few months as recommended. Seems to be worth the £15.00 I spent, thumbs up from me, has anyone else tried it ? :)
 
Im slowly getting my car sorted, its got full service history but I never trust them so for price I paid for the Cataclean Im happy with the re(y)sults but its no substitute for a good servicing.
 
suggested to my on this site, as I was getting a cat smell on acceleration, it worked very well, plus I keep away from Tesco petrol now.
 
I haven't tried it Poose, but from the description it sounds very similar to Forte (which is what my lot get), but a darned sight easier to get hold of...
 
I remember Cataclean on it's initial release being marketed at independent retailers, and was backed up by some aggressive marketing in magazines and also commercials staring none other than ex-Anglia TV & QVC presenter Paul Lavers.

I've never used it, I've heard wonderful things about it.

But, like all things, there is a rub.

Should a catalytic converter "gunge-up", well, not really... That is to say that if a car is reaching operating temperature and given long good runs that the temperatures reached by a catalytic converter (ha) should make the whole thing pretty much self-cleaning to an extent. Not all cars get this treatment, infact I remember discussing this at the time as the aforementioned informercial as Mr. Lavers and a 'mechanic' took a rather tidy looking Rover 216 convertible (mk1) with average miles on it and did a before and after BET test as a comparison....

I believed the results on face value, but was this car being used on "around town" trips and never warmed up, I have no idea but my gut feeling was that this was the case.

Similarly the injector cleaners, Forté (which is marketed in a similar way, often direct to garage) and its counterparts have a great reputation and x-mpg improvement/quicker 0-60/more torque/less knock/improved windscreen visability is apportioned to them; I'm not disputing that but I don't think that for a lot of individual vehicles they prove a lot. An old sage of a mechanic I once worked with reckoned a cup of paraffin and some xylene cleaner in the fuel tank once a year worked best for his old Belmont....

**I'll once again be accused of being a witch or similar, but..**

I'm a firm believer in....

"A red-line a day keeps the mechanic away....."

A warm, thrashed engine with clean oil will last as long as the owner lets it.....

My 1p is always on 10k Boost, I've found this works wonders as an air-system cleaner on old diesels by the way....
As the old caveat goes 'your mileage may vary....'

Regards,
Andy
 
If we distil that down to...

"Engines need to be looked after, but they also need to be worked and experience their full range of conditions."

...and...

"These additives will have a varied effect depending on the duty cycle of your engine/exhaust."

...then I am in 100% agreement with you Andy.

In fact I use Forte in the Coupe once a year because it does 20 miles a day and gets beaten up for 10 of them, which isn't enough. Nor are the miles it does to club meets.

I use Forte (and carb cleaner) in my Cougars every year because screw you, hypothetical person who might suggest it's a waste of my money. Both my Zetec and Duratec run so clean that they might as well be 3 years old.
 
Mako said:
If we distil that down to...

"Engines need to be looked after, but they also need to be worked and experience their full range of conditions."

...and...

"These additives will have a varied effect depending on the duty cycle of your engine/exhaust."

...then I am in 100% agreement with you Andy.

In fact I use Forte in the Coupe once a year because it does 20 miles a day and gets beaten up for 10 of them, which isn't enough. Nor are the miles it does to club meets.

I use Forte (and carb cleaner) in my Cougars every year because screw you, hypothetical person who might suggest it's a waste of my money. Both my Zetec and Duratec run so clean that they might as well be 3 years old.
Click to expand...
I rarely manage such brevity. ;)

Regards,
Andy
 
I've used Cataclean - no problems and always passes emmisions fine

As for 10k Boost - very similar - but each car I have used it on has had some component failure after (water pump was last one on my XR4x4)...just coincidence perhaps
 
tiff said:
I've used Cataclean - no problems and always passes emmisions fine

As for 10k Boost - very similar - but each car I have used it on has had some component failure after (water pump was last one on my XR4x4)...just coincidence perhaps
Click to expand...

Might not be coincidence depending on what it was. Almost certainly not a water pump/gasket, but maybe an oil seal.

I've always been aware that some of these things might decoke a seal and expose an incipient leak. Though I've never personally seen that happen. ;)
 
Ive just bought a bottle of this but currently have just under half a tank of fuel, so as per instructions I will run it down to maybe a quarter of a tank before making the old girl spit crap outa her tails :thumbup:
 
localloon said:
Ive just bought a bottle of this but currently have just under half a tank of fuel, so as per instructions I will run it down to maybe a quarter of a tank before making the old girl spit crap outa her tails :thumbup:
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That's exactly what I was told. With 50 miles or so left in the tank, dump in the additive and then unleash hell on the car for 20 miles.
 
It actually says best to mix with approx 15 litres of fuel and drive normaly for 10 to 15 miles, is the way I normaly drive suitable though? :eek:
 
localloon said:
It actually says best to mix with approx 15 litres of fuel and drive normaly for 10 to 15 miles, is the way I normaly drive suitable though? :eek:
Click to expand...

You know what - I've only been in a car with you once when you were driving, and that was when you gave Mako a test run over here. Given we were in a 30MPH zone and there's two cylinders missing from that engine, I'm not sure I got a fair example! ;)
 
I have found the best way to keep the cats clean is; get rid of them.

My catalytic converter does about 12 miles a year. On two cars. :D
 
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