How to Clean a Fuel System

When you drive your car or truck, the fuel in the fuel system begins to leave burn deposits and gummy gas buildup over time. This buildup can block the fuel flow to your engine and make pistons miss during firing because of a lack of gas; this can drastically lower your engine performance and slowly wear on your motor. Add a fuel system cleaner to clean your vehicle's fuel system every time you change the oil in your car--every 3,000 to 7,500 miles. The fuel system cleaner removes deposits from the fuel injectors, carburetor, intake valves, combustion chambers and piston heads.

Things You'll Need

  • Fuel system cleaner
  • Gasoline
  • Run your engine or drive your vehicle until you are almost out of gas.

  • Open the gas tank door on your vehicle. Then unscrew the gas tank cap and pour a fuel system cleaner into your gas tank, according to the instructions on the bottle.

  • Fill your gas tank full of gas as you normally do, or add diesel if your vehicle has a diesel engine. Screw the gas tank cap back on, and close the gas tank door. Drive the vehicle as you normally drive; the fuel cleaner works while you drive.