('91) Fuel Injector(s)--replace Or Rehab.?!

[Anon.II]

Here's the situation. 1991 Legacy L+ auto. wagon at 181k miles.

 

In Dec., an intended long trip was aborted after 40mi with a CEL and badly

running engine; limped back okay. Diagnosis was for O2 & knock sensors

AND injector #1, all replaced. (not cheap!)

 

Now, some only 600+mi later, similar symptoms are diagnosed as #2 injector

bad; at my urging (!), #3 & 4 were examined & pulsed, and deemed okay.

 

Shop rec's replacing #2 ONLY; "wait 'til they go bad" for others (!). --not my

idea of treating the problem.

 

I saw here some recommendation for witchhunter.com cleaning treatment;

but shop believes injector life is much dictated by internals which it seems

that the witchhunter treatment really doesn't address.

 

What to do?

Would it be not much more than superficial treatment to engage the witchhunter

treatment on #s 2 (bad, no pulsing) - 3- 4 injectors? --maybe it can't

redeem #2, and won't much forestall the dying of 3 & 4?

 

Or is their treatment more worthwhile than this?

(I thought I'd read something about treating internals, but don't see that

on the http://www.witchhunter.com site; maybe it was elsewhere.)

 

---------

Shop's part price comes in at a hefty $170 for what I see online adv'd

@$120 MSRP disc'd $85 or so. Local dealer quotes $140.

 

Reliable on-line supplier recommendations?

 

Thanks much,

(-;

[Anon.II]

I should add an additional option to replacing vs. cleaning (rehab?),

and that is buying rehab'd injectors such as offered by the site

http://www.FiveoMotorsport.com (4 for $200). What is the reputation

for this source?

 

--Anon., II

[Legacy777]

There's a distinction between the elctronics going on the injector and the nozzle just needing cleaning. If they just need cleaning, get them "rehabed" If it's the electronics, you have to replace them.

 

If you have one injector that has bad electronics replace it with a used one, have them sent off to be cleaned and slap them back in.

[bulwnkl]

Ahh, here's the original post you were talking about!

 

I've not used witchhunter, but I know some of the XT-6 guys have and have been pleased with their service. I've used local fuel injection shops for mine (often found in industrial areas and you'd think they only did diesel stuff, but they do gasoline as well).

 

I expect that if you're getting no pulsing at all in one of them, the electricals may need replacing, and that will essentially be a replacement injector. Still, for me personally I'd take them all out and to the shop. They'll tell you immediately if one needs to be completely replaced or not. Even if you have to replace one, a cleaning/rebuild of the others will assure proper pattern and even flow from all your injectors, which will yield best performance and economy.

[Anon.II]

There's a distinction between the elctronics going on the injector and the nozzle just needing cleaning. If they just need cleaning, get them "rehabed" If it's the electronics, you have to replace them.

If you have one injector that has bad electronics replace it with a used one, have them sent off to be cleaned and slap them back in.

 

Okay, latest update re this turmoil:

 

Since 2007-11, approx. 180k miles, I've had #1, and now #2 injectors go bad.

(Btw, these are the CYCLINDER #s, coincidentally matching sequence!)

 

1) Why sit with similarly used/aged #3 & #4 until failure, vs. replacing

the lot? --because running 3 cylinders (assuming 3&4 wouldn't depart both

at once!) isn't a lot of fun, and can happen who-knows-where/when. #2

has gone at about 625mi after #1, fortunately, not 45mi en route T-day.

 

2) HOW KEY IS THE **RIGHT** INJECTOR?

 

Seems to me from seeing RockAuto.com's rec'd set, where the two rec'd parts

for >>AUTO. trans, non-turbo<< have (a) extended tips & ( narrow fuel-entry

windows (filter screening), that the Standard Motor Part FJ521 that

the repair shop installed in December is THE WRONG PART (to some degree).

SMP--part maker--says it's for a 1991 Turbo.

 

This wknd I got to see an actual part for MY 1991 >>automatic<< at a dealer

(#16611AA090 (vs. #-120 for manual)), and also found the recommended

part & images from another maker, Beck/Arnley, too (RockAuto shows

just one of these, for man.trans.; but B/A's for-automatic one matches, found

(image) elsewhere (and part # give to me by B/A online rep.) matches the

look of Airtex & Standard Motor in appearances). Except for the info got by

the SMP info guy, which swaps recommendations of their FJ386 & 446 (which

I gotta believe is some mix-up on their info sheet), the distinction in appearance

of the auto vs. man.(&turbo) '91 injectors is consistent as noted.

(rockauto's pics are great to compare--see:

http://info.rockauto.com/SMP/SMPDetail3.html?FJ446.html

http://info.rockauto.com/SMP/SMPDetail3.html?FJ521.html

FJ446 is exactly like the Sub. part (heck, maybe SMP makes if for Sub).

 

Elsewhere I just read a remark that caught my attention--to wit:

could be a fuel injector too.

i'd pull the connector on each injector, one at a time. if it's a noisy injector it should go away when you unplug that one.

Why? Because a couple (I've noted 2, could be a little more) of times since

the Dec. fuel-injector replacement (also knock & O2 sensors, per codes),

I noticed some tapping from the engine (argh). Could putting a Turbo injector

into the non-turbo auto engine do that? --never heard it pre-repair.

 

--Anon.II

[Anon.II]

Bump, for I need to get to the shop and do something re my lame Legacy,

and would like to have some sense of the community re the issues stated

above, before I have to argue/plead my case (about possibly redressing the

installation of a wrong part), and maybe limp away to another shop.

(And I see that the December "R&R #1 injector" cost me $118; part, $170.)

 

the distinction in appearance

of the auto vs. man.(&turbo) '91 injectors is consistent as noted.

(rockauto's pics are great to compare--see:

http://info.rockauto.com/SMP/SMPDetail3.html?FJ446.html

http://info.rockauto.com/SMP/SMPDetail3.html?FJ521.html

FJ446 is exactly like the Sub. part (heck, maybe SMP makes if for Sub).

 

--Anon.II