Is there a substance that will eat through and completely dissolve carbon but not damage engine cylinder, piston nor rings?

Question

I'm afraid that when I was instructed to be specific in the title of my post, I kind of said it all... Here is the issue:

I have a 2001 Isuzu Rodeo. It has been going through excessive amounts of oil. No blue smoke, no drips whatsoever.

Through an Isuzu forum I find this is a common problem for model years up to and including mine as oil drain holes for the cylinders that were made in the pistons clog with carbon.

In that the vehicle is a 2001, I can well suspect those little holes are well caked and packed.

Though some folks state that they remove the spark plugs, pour a commercial internal auto engine cleaner called B12 into the cylinders and allow an over-nite soak, other auto-techs state that the only way to clear the drain holes is to tear apart the engine and drill the holes in the pistons out or replace them altogether.

Is there a chemical that will eat away and dissolve the carbon whereas after allowing whatever sufficient soak time is suggested I could then change the oil and have a hope for cleared out ports without damage to the metal engine parts?

Thank-you for your thoughts!

Answer 1

If it's pure carbon, then the only way to remove it I can think of is by rigorous oxidation (e.g. by burning in oxygen flow or by reaction with strong oxidants (e.g. conc. $\ce{H2SO4}$, $\ce{HNO3}$)), but this is going to damage the metal parts either, as Ivan said.

However, if the clog is caused by soot and resinous residue from the incompletely burnt fuel, then most likely hot toluene or xylene can dissolve the residue and liberate the carbon particles. Both are widely available solvents which won't damage the metal parts (but avoid contact with rubber tubing) and are also used to remove clogs caused by paraffin wax.

P. S. Both are highly flammable liquids, so do not warm them up using an open fire (e.g. use an improvised water bath)!