Ok, I have a fairly old Peugeot 205 GTi car (only Europeans will probably recognise the name) that is simply not as quick at accelerating as it used to be. In fact, it is getting to be an embarrassment chugging along in my once nippy car.
A friend of mine has suggested I need to get the injection cleaned or tuned (or something), and should get it “Krypton tuned”.
What is Krypton injection, and is it really something that will restore the car to its former glory? My friend seemed to suggest it would simply unclog everything and tune it up electronically. He also mentioned something about timings but I’d stopped listening by then… I’m not a car person! 
Don’t worry, I’m not under any illusion that this one thing would cure all problems with the car, but really I just want to know if it is worth getting done? Would I see a performance improvement?
Any advice would be appreciated!
What I have found is this:
http://www.kryptontune.co.uk/serv01.htm
From all I can tell it is simply a car shop in West Lothian, SCOTLAND. It appears that “krypton tuning” is just a marketing phrase for their self proclaimed excellent service.
The implications that this is something special, over and above what a person should be able to expect from a competent diagnostic and repair job, concerns me. This could be very misleading to someone who knows little to nothing about the way a car/engine works.
My advice:
- Find a shop that you trust and let them take care of it. The problem with knowing next to nothing about cars is that it makes it difficult to pick a shop you trust.
- Or replace the car.
scotth has the right idea. loss of power could be due to a failure of any component or combination of components in one of many (or a combination of many) systems. The fuel injectors are only one part of the fuel system. it could also be other parts of the fuel system, compression loss, exhaust, ignition, etc…
so let the experts tell you what needs to be done, rather than telling them what to do.
to find a good garage is the tougher part. I’d say call a bunch of different garages and ask about your problem. how they treat customers on the phone should tell you something. then bring it in. they should be able to diagnose the car free or for relatively little cash.
if they try to fix anything or charge you for anything without asking first, get out quick. but make sure you’ve told them up front you want an estimate before any work is done.
I would suggest that an injection of kryptonite would be more useful; it would definitely keep Superman ® off your back.
My experience with loss of power in a car has been
- compression loss (worn rings).
or
- timing is off normal setting.
There could be other things causing the loss of power, but I am unaware of them.
Engines need just a few things to perform properly.
- Free flow of air into and out of the engine.
- Mixing of fuel at the proper ratio to the air.
- Good atomization of that fuel.
- Sufficent spark to reliably ignite the fuel/air mixture
- That spark comes at the correct time
- Good compression within the cylinders
- Reasonably low friction and little slop of the moving parts.
Anything that compromises any of the above will reduce performance or prevent the engine from running completely.
Thanks for your help everyone!
I called up an uncle who used to be a mechanic and asked him about it. I probably should have called him in the first place, but I haven’t seen him for ages so I didn’t think of it until I posted.
Anyway, he’d heard of the Krypton tuning thing (I may well be spelling it wrong, but that is how it’s pronounced). Apparently, it is just a machine that electronically tunes the car… getting the timings sorted out etc. He didn’t actually dismiss the idea, but said it was an old method that had been around since the 60s.
As you’ve all been telling me, he said the loss of performance could be down to anything and I need to get it checked over by a professional. He gave me the details of a friend of his that specialises in these things, so I’ll give him a call and see what he finds.
Thanks again!
P.S. Hari Seldon, don’t worry my car has been certified as Superman free for the last 10 years. Now if only I could get rid of that waster Batman! 