Automotive snake oil alive and well?

[Ghoste]

I saw a blurb on fuel catalysts lately and while I openly and freely admit I haven't tried the product, I also see no reason to waste my money on an experiment.  The company is Fitch Fuel Catalysts and not unlike air cleaner vortex generators or fuel line magnets, this stuff is gonna make your car a whole new vehicle.

http://www.fitchfuelcatalyst.com/index.cfm

What's worse (to me) is that Hemmings Musclecar published a paragraph on this stuff in their new tech products catalog.  I wonder how many of their staff use it?
Am I the only one who thinks this is BS?

[miller]

Anything in print must be true...

[oldgold69]

that kind of thing has been around since the seventys  if it was that good the auto manufactors would have used them to get their cars higher than  the cafe standards

[64dartgt]

Sounds like bunk to me...and I survived about ten years of chemistry classes (BS chemistry, MS Analytical chemistry).  There is a pretty good analysis in the review done by the boating magazine which involved some scientists...who said it was essentially bunk. 

[Magnumcharger]

I'm still waiting to see how that 100 mpg carburetor is working out.

My pet peeve: people who drain the oil in their cars, then add some "miracle" additive...and nothing else....then RACE the car or something stupid like that.
And of course, the engine doesn't overheat OR SIEZE!!
Carroll Shelby was flogging something of this sort not long ago.

On a Similar but disrelated RANT: I hear Mopar Collector's Guide (MCG) is soon to be changing it's name to "Z-ALT"!!!

[rt green]

thought this was funny

[Bob T]

thought this was funny

They sell that stuff here, Ive seen it at Repco.

how about FuelStar? did that do the rounds in the U.S.A. ?, its a tin additive I seem to remember, mount a cannister in the engine bay and fuel line through it? A Bit vague on the details, it was a few years ago, like 15 realistically

[Old Moparz]

I bet there are a lot of products that "help" in cleaning & smoothing out the way an engine runs, but how many of us know someone that has some high mile, POS, that's only had the oil changed twice in 100,000 miles, & they add something to the fuel thinking they'll have a brand new car again? 

[Topher]

I coulda used some of that starter fluid this morning. I work in a fleet shop for a very large company who's name I won't put out there(but their initials are P E P S I) and we do oil sampling on our city and over the road trucks to "extend" oil change intervals. One leg of the big company is running synthetic oil and running 80,000 miles between oil changes. We're running almost 30,000 on conventional oil. I don't like it, and no matter what kind of hokus pokus magic potion lotion you throw at your vehicle-routine maintenance goes a looooooooong way in keeping your car in your driveway rather than in a shop.

[Iron Chef]

Any of y'all remember Slick 50?     

[oldgold69]

if you change oil at 80000 how thick is that oil  when it comes out. how much soot is there be cause of all the new emission garbage on these trucks. what about all the acids from combustion  i change ours every 500 hours

[Bob T]

I coulda used some of that starter fluid this morning. I work in a fleet shop for a very large company who's name I won't put out there(but their initials are P E P S I) and we do oil sampling on our city and over the road trucks to "extend" oil change intervals. One leg of the big company is running synthetic oil and running 80,000 miles between oil changes. We're running almost 30,000 on conventional oil. I don't like it, and no matter what kind of hokus pokus magic potion lotion you throw at your vehicle-routine maintenance goes a looooooooong way in keeping your car in your driveway rather than in a shop.

A friend of mine is the head grease monkey for their Trucking firm, they have around 11 B trains , 16 ton hoists, and lots of smaller hoists and a few other utes and company vehicles. They use this Canadian stuff in all their plant  called LubeTec Powertrain Oil conditioner, they've been using it for 8 or 9 years and never had an engine teardown year, but they do complete their regular servicing requirements on the dot.

I used it in my Charger on their behest, seemed to be a bit smoother I guess but man, its thin and made those old seals weep a bit. Pretty pricy too, around $100 a pack