Cleaning the Engine and its Bay

[goldstar]

Obviously, I don't know how dirty your engine and bay are, and perhaps more drastic methods are required to get them clean. I bought my car new so occasional cleaning of the engine and bay has been all I've needed to keep things sparkling and bright. I won't use water in the engine compartment so my cleaning materials of choice are VM&P Naphtha (available from Home Depot) and 91% Isopropyl Alcohol (available from some drug stores). The Naphtha is derived from petroleum distillates and is an excellent solvent for oil, grease, and grime. It's flammable, like all hydrocarbon solvents, and should be used in a well-ventilated area. No problem for me as my car sits in the driveway when I clean it. It is not carcinogenic, at least not in normal usage.

The Naphtha is excellent for cleaning the aluminum and cast iron of the engine and transmission; I pour a small amount into a can and apply it with a parts cleaning brush, or for more control, a cloth. More sensitive areas, including some painted ones, can be cleaned with a lightly dampened cloth. It dries fast and with no residue.

For electrical parts, and where less solvent action is required, I use 91% Isopropyl Alcohol. It's great for electrical parts and really shapes up rubber components such as the air hose between MAF sensor and TB, and the spark plug wires. The use of 70% Isopropyl Alcohol (rubbing alcohol) is not recommended here since it contains 30% water.

I then finish off by applying a coat of Meguiars wax to the yellow MP3 Strut Tower Bar which makes it gleam.

Finally, in Spring and Fall when leaves and other things fall off the trees, I vacuum the engine compartment.

Cleanliness is next to Godliness, it's been said.

Happy Motoring!

[Ace]

This is a topic of debate thats for sure. People like you who maintain it and keep it clean can easily get away with wiping it down. I'm sure others aren't so on-top of cleaning.
Personally for my simple engine bay here's my procedure.
Open hood, start car
let run for a minute
spray purple power all over everything except the distributor, air filter, and fuse box.
I generally use about 1/3 of a container
Don't forget to do under the hood first as it will drip
then I get my electric pressure washer and go to town
I dont spray much by the fuse box and air filter but anywhere else is pretty much fair game.
I like to spray the radiator good too to get all the dead bugs and other road debris out.

well thats my crude method, lol I wouldn't do it on a newer car but for something like mine it's fine.

[monoxidechild]

if anyone got near my engine with a power washer, id lose it. hell, even a hose id freak over. ive never had to use anything more then my old used soapy water thats left over after washing the exterior of the car. that and some rags are all thats needed.

[SgtRauksauff]

Drive to the car wash, wash the car. pop the hood, spray things down. rinse it off. voila!!

granted, this is with cars that have 150k+ miles on them, that have made nice crusty oily coatings on them that are really hard to remove otherwise....

--sarge

[monoxidechild]

my 89 probe lx with 280K miles. never used any chemicals, or hose/ pressure washer.




this is how it was when i got it.



same as my mazda6.



and im not even spending much time on them. the 6 bay took me about 20 minutes

[Ace]

the pressure washer really does a good job though, its fast and efficient. And it gets places that a rag and water aren't going to do anything.

[KaleoXtreme]

I agree, a pressure washer does a better job at cleaning the engine and bay. Especially for older cars. You may think your bay is clean untill you see it after a power wash. It's safe too, if done like mentioned above. A friend of mine works at an auto detail shop. They pressure wash 10 (new and old) engine bays a day, (almost) 365 days a year with no problems.

I use a hose/solvent on my engine/bay when it's really dirty. On a BP, the water tends to collect in the spark plug wells though, making it misfire and sound like a wrx. I just roll up some paper towels and soak it up.

[tireboy]

castrol superclean twice a year , and a hose with a garden sprayer.. but i bag the disty ..let it soak for 10 min..

[Mazda_Powered]

i usually power wash the engine bay with the engine top covered, then wash the oil pan and the front of the block from under the vehicle.

engine itself is usually laquer thinner, all purpose cleaner, tooth brush, small metal brush, q tips, and lots of rags! I find Turtle wax spray (green bottle) keeps everything nice and glossy mmm, i use it on my interior too haha.

[labeo]

Because I haven't water pipe near garage, I can't use electric pressure washer, I use manual way of cleaning instead, results aren't amazing, but it is better then dirty bay
Spray some cleaning liquid material, and then spray bay from bottle with water. The best and safe way to clean engine bay - remove engine from it , lol
Spray liquid like this:

[pumer1904]

Drive to the car wash, wash the car. pop the hood, spray things down. rinse it off. voila!!

granted, this is with cars that have 150k+ miles on them, that have made nice crusty oily coatings on them that are really hard to remove otherwise....

--sarge

yea try to do somethnig like this in CALI and your but will get a swift fine if not more / jail time lol

[SgtRauksauff]

yea try to do somethnig like this in CALI and your but will get a swift fine if not more / jail time lol

Why? The drains in the carwash floor have to be rated for oil/gasoline, as well as the chemicals they use in the water for the cleaning agents. degreaser, etc.

As a paying customer, THEY are the ones breaking the law if they don't have the proper drainage installed.

--sarge

[pumer1904]

lol laws are different by state sarge lol all drains or most of them in cali leed to the oceans so their for they have special enivormental agents they use at the car wash that its mandatory by state law

and even at the car wash it states in big red signs do not wash engine bay off violaters will be fined and prosecuted rofl

[tireboy]

holy ... you guy's have some strict laws even for cleaning /degreasing ...

[pumer1904]

yes we have strict laws over her in cali like one smogging your vechicles 2 no after market turbo kits can be bolted on a car that is not CAI certified even a cold or ram air intake has to have the serial number and cai certified or you will get a ticket + you wont pass smogg out here lol we have alot of laws / requirements alot of people back east dont have to deal with but one thing no state can compare in my opinion is the whether/ prop 215 cards