How to clean the engine bay
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Posting Guru
Joined: Mar 2003
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From: Quispamsis, N.B, Canada
How to clean the engine bay
I was just wondering how people clean their engine bay. All my hoses and tubes are very dirty and I was wondering what the best method fr cleaning them was? You can't spray them can you, because you might wreck stuff. It's hard to wipe the dirt off because the tubes have notches in them.
Any ideas?
Any ideas?
Senior User
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 164
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From: Cary, North Carolina
How to clean the engine bay
I just spray simple green on everything (except critical electronics) and then use a hose to rinse everything off. It works well and I haven't had any problems with this method. As an added benefit you car will smell minty clean!
Brad
Brad
Freshman User
Joined: Jul 2003
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How to clean the engine bay
what I do is exactly what brad said except after it is all dry I take a rag and dampen it with tire wet and wipe down all of the hoses. Dont use to much though it will collect dust if its not dry all the way. This will give it a bright shine.
Elder User
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 870
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From: Upstate NY Rochester
How to clean the engine bay
I have found that if there is heavy grease and oil build up, or just plain dust and dirt, to use oven cleaner. With the high voltage elements in the ovens, the spray doesn't harm them one bit. I finally tried it on my old Horizon and it did a great job. I have used it ever since. Just make sure that if you take it to the car wash, to cover all intake openings and primary ignition parts with zip-lock bags and duct tape. Good luck....
Elder User
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 870
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From: Upstate NY Rochester
How to clean the engine bay
It didn't affect the aluminum at all. There was some oxidizing on some parts of aluminum, but I used tomato juice to remove it and it cleaned up really nice. As with the paint, It didn't seem to affect it at all either. My engine bay is painted semi gloss black. I did take some paint off, but I don't think I did a good job of prepping.
I do use the fume-less spray, because I can leave it on over night and wash it off, first thing in the morning. Good luck....
I do use the fume-less spray, because I can leave it on over night and wash it off, first thing in the morning. Good luck....
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Thread Starter
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Posting Guru
Joined: Mar 2003
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From: Quispamsis, N.B, Canada
How to clean the engine bay
I tried to clean my engine this morning, with engine degreaser from Canadian Tire, and it did nothing. A big waste of time and money. Anyone know of any stuff that actually works??
Elder User
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 870
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From: Upstate NY Rochester
How to clean the engine bay
I love simple green!! I don't know the chemical make-up of the stuff, but I don't really care either. I just wish it was a bit cheaper. I'm sure the dilution rate is probably 50/50. I've used it to clean a vinyl and aluminum interior that hadn't been cleaned since 93' when the vehicle came off the assembly line and it turned out pretty good!
Elder User
Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 692
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From: Saratoga USA
How to clean the engine bay
I use Gunk in a spray can, works well for me. Just spray it on, wait for a few minutes to let it soak in, then hose off. Then I take an old towel and dry as much of the compartment and engine as possible. Also, I don't do this unless the engine is only slightly warm, not hot. One more peice of advice, to avoid problems, don't do it too often, and drive the truck after you clean the engine to help things dry out before you park it for an extended period.
New User
Joined: Jul 2003
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How to clean the engine bay
Best way to clean a filthy engine is to use simple green or any other engine degreaser. Cover up critical parts of your engine with garbage bags, refer to your owners manual.Warm the engine up. Spray the degreaser onto your engine, Let the degreaser soak into the engine for alittle while then take a steam cleaner and spray the dirtiest parts, the gunk and grease should come right off. After your done with the steam cleaner hose down your engine with water, dry up the wet engine with soft cloth then start the engine and let the excess water evaporate. after your engine is all dry you can go the extra mile and make it look new. I like to use trim shine on all the plastic parts and a rubber cleaner on all the hoses and wires. after all of that (roughly 5 hours of work) your engine should look new again.
New User
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 18
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How to clean the engine bay
I just replaced my motor, and when I had it out, I bought several cans of bedliner stuff in a spray can from wal-mart. I took out the fenders wells, prepped everything good, and sprayed the engine bay with the bedliner stuff. It came out very smooth, and everything basically sprays off. Only drawback is that I could only find it in black. Make sure to let it cure for 24 hours before assembling everything back!