best way to clean engine bay?

novabortion · 04-02-2007, 04:19 PM

anyone know whats the best and easiest way to clean the engine and engine bay. i heard u can spray it with a hose, but dont i have to cover up some things? or can everything get wet in there. or is it safer using a rag. its an 04 ion qc. any help would be appriciated thanks

PurdueGuy · 04-02-2007, 04:31 PM

if it's really dirty, start with just water & rags. It'll look pretty good just with that being done. After that, a lot of people like to use simple green for greasy stuff, and some like to use armorall on plastics & such to make them shine. Personally, I just use soapy water, and it looks pretty darn good.

Code Warrior · 04-02-2007, 05:02 PM

409 Seems to cut through it pretty well (and its cheap).. Just make sure your washing a cold engine.

armorall will just make it dirtier next time you look at it.. it attracts dust pretty badly, and this is definately a bad place for that. (Some people will disagree, this is just speaking from personal experience)

SL2 Cruiser · 04-03-2007, 05:56 AM

When I first got my SL2 it looked like someone backed a dump truck up to the engine bay. I took it down to the car wash and (enigne running) pressure washed it good. Brought it back home and after the engine cooled off, went to town with citrus orange degreaser, tons of rags, and a long handle soft bristle brush. After a good rinsing (engine running) it looked probably the best its ever looked since leaving the dealer's lot new.

Of course that was when it was bone stock, with a header and cold air intake you pretty much have to do it by hand.

psychlopath · 07-19-2007, 03:00 AM

The car wash idea is great. I've used this on my old Bronco when I first got it. Most of the DIY carwashes I've seen have an "Engine Scrub" option for some sort of hefty soap.

I use Purple Power, as it seems to be the best budget de-greaser that I've found.

All the parts in my engine bay have been under a hose and no ill effects.

Try to avoid any sort of shiny stuff, like Armorall, on the belts. It can make them squeak as they slip after being lubed by the stuff and you'll wind up replacing belts way before you really need to.

Artificialist · 07-27-2007, 12:13 AM

I used whatever old junk was sitting in Grandma's garage in order to clean under the hood of her van. It worked out quite well, and it was cheap too.

That in mind, I prefer to buy some Simple Green, some brand name plastic cleaner, and a paste aluminum polish.

JustinH · 10-11-2007, 10:08 PM

do it with a steam gun.

You don't want to soak the bay with water, trust me on this one.

barristo · 10-12-2007, 04:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JustinH

do it with a steam gun.

You don't want to soak the bay with water, trust me on this one.

As long as you aren't retarded about it, spraying off the engine will not hurt it. Get some foamy aerosol engine shampoo stuff, spray everything down, let it sit, hose it off.