Sea Foam Problem - Engine won't turn over

[dben]

My son has a 2008 Chevy Aveo 1.6L I4 with over 100,000 miles. He and a friend decided to "tune it up" by replacing the ORIGINAL plugs (Boy, you should have seen those!) They started the car after they changed the plugs and it ran fine. Then they decided to use Sea Foam in the "vacuum line". Unfortunately, they didn't do something correctly. Now the car won't start. The engine won't even turn over. All it does is click... similar to a dead battery. To make sure we tried jumper cables and it didn't help. They disconnected the large hose in the picture below and poured the liquid in. The car was NOT running when they did this.

Below is a picture of the engine compartment (not his car) with an arrow indicating the hose they disconnected and where they poured in the Sea Foam. They actually attached another line and poured the Sea Foam into the "thing" on the LEFT which I believe is the intake manifold. Any ideas what he can do to fix this issue?

Thanks for your suggestions!

[petrified.rabbit]

I don't use sea foam. Never will.

If the click is the fact the starter is unable to turn the engine, hoping you didn't hydrolock it. I would suggest pulling all the spark plugs and try cranking it over again.

I would make sure the relay is good. I had this problem recently and ended up at the dealer after I already replaced the really once.

[red04fourdoor]

if they just poured it without it running then whatever cylinders intake valves were open just got all of it. probably hydrolocked. pull all the plugs and try starting again. hope it didn't bend anything.

[slayerized6]

DO NOT TRY TO TURN OVER ENGINE UNTIL YOU READ BELOW

You are supposed to "Seafoam" the engine with the engine running. Turning over the engine with a high amount of liquid in the combustion chambers, combustible or not, can lead to engine hydrolock (ie. bent rods, intake/exhaust valve, etc).

Best recommendation for now is to pull the spark plugs and turn the motor over a few times to expel whatever Seafoam maybe left in the combustion chambers. After that, spray WD-40 to displace any left over Seafoam. Replace plugs and try once more to turn over engine.

[bgoldstuff]

I don't use sea foam. Never will.

Why not Rabbit, Do you use something else or have different preventive maintenance practices ?

[thehunterooo]

Oh that's not good. I see not a single point why sea form should ever be used. Hope you can get it running.

[Thymeclock]

Oh that's not good. I see not a single point why sea form should ever be used. Hope you can get it running.

Someone probably suggested using it as a form of preventive maintenance. Or: "Use this, and your car will run better than ever." Some things in life are expensive to learn.

Learn from the experience and remember this: If it ain't broke, DON'T FIX IT!

[Pooh Man]

I do use sea foam, without any problems so far..., but I use it while the car is running, and pour it into the brake booster vacuum , while some one else keeps the engine at 2500-3000 RPM to prevent bogging, the pull is so strong u don't need a funnel, The tail pipe looks like an old school smoke bomb until it burns clean, then all goes back to normal. Ive done this at least once to every vehicle I ve owned. As for the OP , as stated above , they probably flooded the thing, hope it starts

[slayerized6]

In addition to my previous post, I usually Seafoam(ed) every vehicle i had every 1-2 years, usually before I change the spark plugs.

It is never a problem for me; it is only a problem for the drivers in back of me who get blinded by the huge cloud of white smoke emitting from my tail pipe . And yes, Seafoam does clean out the cylinder heads very nicely and restores some lost power.

[bgoldstuff]

Someone probably suggested using it as a form of preventive maintenance. Or: "Use this, and your car will run better than ever." Some things in life are expensive to learn.

Learn from the experience and remember this: If it ain't broke, DON'T FIX IT!

I agree with you 100% Thymeclock, I also believe there are additional preventive maintenance a person can do to their vehicle to prolong the inevitable repair.

IMO, There are a few good preventative additives out on the market that have survived the test of time with consumers.Most people, not all, wait until there is a problem then they decide to change the oil and or flush (Automatic transmission) and add a can of fix-it. Little late to be adding fix-it in a can when the damage has already been done.

Most times a person adds a can of internal engine cleaner to a high mileage engine or trans that has not had routine maintenance. That can of cleaner starts to loosen all the years of sludge and gunk build up in that engine or trans, then starts to move around with the oil. Now you have a bigger problem for when a oil port is plugged with that sludge and there is no lubrication to that high speed moving part.

I get asked to look at used vehicles for people who are interested in buying a vehicle with high mileage. A side from the obvious visual inspection, I then asks them about the maintenance history. If they don't know and the vehicle seems to run really good, I tell them to leave things alone and not to be flushing the engine and AT with any cans of cleaners, because they could possibly be opening the door to a whole new set of mechanical problems for themselves.

I am not trying to be long winded in my explaining this, I just don't like to see people have to go down this road if they don't have to. That cheap bottle of fix-it can get real expensive quick.