[COgator95]

Hello,

Anyone in the Denver/Boulder area know of a good shop that offers walnut shell blasting?

Thanks-

[Patrick719]

I contacted Avalon Motorsports in Denver about carbon cleaning. They quoted me $590 for labor + another $266 for gaskets, oil, filter, and BG fuel/air induction/throttle body cleaners.

This seems a bit expensive compared to the prices I'm reading in other threads. Anyone find a cheaper price locally??

[raceyBMW]

Ouch, that seems pricey...I bet even the dealer could get it done for that.

[DenverE92]

Have you called Blast-Tech in Englewood? They have a large shop and do good work for a fair price, but I don't know if they offer walnut shell blasting.

[SAM67]

Schomp walnut blasted the intake valves on my 2008 335i under warranty at 45,000 miles, so not sure what they normally charge. My service adviser told me it was the first one they had done, which surprised me. I can confirm that it made a huge improvement in power delivery at highway speeds. Smooth and strong, just like new. I suspect this will become routine maintenance on all cars with direct injection, so I'd be curious to know what the indie shops charge. Good luck with your search.

[mattsfeir]

I think Schomp quoted me $800 ish out of warranty. Too much IMO so I did it myself with that Harbor Freight blaster. Took me the better part of a day, but I did injectors also.

[Xiaofeng]

Murray recently quoted me $632.90 plus any extra fees, etc. for the walnut blast. I was half tempted to have them do it, but started researching the DIY route as well.

Bentley Manual for E9x 2006-2008 @ $62.81

2.5 HP 10 Gallon Air Compressor @ $179.99

Portable Abrasive Blaster @ $39.99

25 lbs. Coarse Grade Walnut Media @ $24.99

It would cost around $310 in parts for the compressor, blaster, walnut media, and Bentley manual, and even less when you find the tools on sale (which HFT is always holding). I'm seriously considering this route.


Matt, any tips, tricks, or gotchas that you came across while doing your cleaning? What did you use to seal off the port so you weren't blasting your own face? How did you turn the engine to seal the valves?

[mattsfeir]

It's a PITA to get to 3 torx screws that attached a large black box of electric connectors, I used a stubby ratchet with a torx socket. A few other wires and stuff to remove to get the intake manifold off.

I used a small piece of plywood to cover the port, had 2 holes in it, one for the blaster nozzle and another for the shop vac. The valves in a few cylinders are closed at the same time, so you can do a few cylinders before you have to turn the engine. I turned the engine by putting a socket on the crank.

It would be great to have a longer nozzle to reach further into the head, the HF nozzle works, but you still have to do some work with a pick or something to get them really clean, especially the backs of the valves.

[King mode]

Let's get a group buy going. Maybe AR could do it for a good price. I doubt they've done it but I'm sure they can.

[mkPOTO]

Originally Posted by Patrick719

I contacted Avalon Motorsports in Denver about carbon cleaning. They quoted me $590 for labor + another $266 for gaskets, oil, filter, and BG fuel/air induction/throttle body cleaners.

This seems a bit expensive compared to the prices I'm reading in other threads. Anyone find a cheaper price locally??

That doesn't seem right, vs only removes intake, intake manifold. So I don't know why you need all that stuff

[Dackz]

I had mine done at CO's for I think $500ish? I found a coupon on the forums from another dealer and they price matched it. I think after tax it was around $550 out the door.

The cars power delivery is much more smooth, as others have noted. I have also had a return in MPG a tick too, about 1-2MPG highway. Seems to be a nice improvement, just wish the price was cheaper.