Assistance of engine bay cleaning - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

ebumdude · 03-22-2008, 01:58 AM

I am interested in cleaning my engine bay.

After about 30 minutes of searching, I found an old thread where someone stated this:

" as for engine bay cleaning, buy a can of "Motomaster Orange scented engine shampoo" and another can of "engine finish" both are found side by side at canadian tire. basically, with the motor off, spray the engine cleaner all over the engine bay, don't be shy, spray over any parts you wish. let soak in for 30 seconds to a minute, then hose off everything thoroughly with medium pressure hose (city pressure, not power washer). let everything dry on its own, hood up, in the sun. when dry, spray engine finish over every plastic cover and hose and parts you desire (engine finish gives it that armor all look to all your plastic and hoses).

your engine bay will look like new."

-------------------------

Nobody objected to the statement above, and I was curious if it was that easy. I don't want to fry anything.

Thanks in advance.

liquidi3ladz · 03-22-2008, 02:15 AM

Put a bag over your alternator.

gdanaher · 03-22-2008, 05:44 AM

I'm particularly fond of Spray and Wash, found in the laundry section of the local supermarket. It's designed to remove grease spots on clothing but does a great job of melting away grease and grime on engines and is pretty cheap. I use the spray can instead of the pump bottle. Let it sit for a few minutes and then hose off. Sometimes a 10 year gunl growth might need high pressure, but then you already knew that. After that, a can of spray on tire treatment on the plastic parts makes it all shine up pretty well. Yes, keep the water out of the alternator or if you get it soaked, let it sit for an hour or so to dry out before you crank the engine. Shorting the electrical system is a bad thing.

GeorgiaHybrid · 03-22-2008, 09:33 AM

Before going the route you described, try the following link. CD2 is hard to find (found 6 cans last week at AutoZone) but it's great under the hood. After reading this one, the last 5 engines that I have done looked like they did when built.

http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/t207527.html

ebumdude · 03-22-2008, 02:32 PM

Thx for the link and feedback.

I kind of forgot we had a "detailing" forum on here since I am so used to just coming straight to this one.

I think I will attempt this later today if I have the time. I plan on posting before and after shots.

Thanks again.

GeorgiaHybrid · 03-22-2008, 07:07 PM

One other thing that I started doing after cutting my APC (Simple Green) 1:1 with water is putting it into a cheap garden sprayer (for insecticide). The long wand allows you to get into tight spaces that can be seen but hard to reach. You will also get a nice spray pattern after just a few pumps that can be adjusted from a thin stream to a "fog".

CheapChic · 03-22-2008, 07:27 PM

Did you ever use cosmoline to give your engine bay shine. I don't know where to get it, but that is what the factory uses to keep it clean

GeorgiaHybrid · 03-22-2008, 08:02 PM

I have cleaned Cosmoline off of 100's of rifles in the service but I have never heard or seen anyone put that stuff on an engine. It is a heavy gease compound that gets as hard as a rock. Why would you put on (grease) the same thing you are trying to clean off the engine?

CheapChic · 03-22-2008, 08:06 PM

VW uses it on cars from Germany all the time.

GeorgiaHybrid · 03-22-2008, 09:27 PM

VW, MB, BMW and others used cosmoline during shipping. It prevents corrosion on steel and aluminum parts exposed to salt water. It is VERY good at doing that but there are not many solvents that will take it off (we used kerosene) and most of us would prefer to not have a "yellowed" engine after that stuff starts to age.

I used 303 for a long time until starting to use CD2 engine detailer. They both work very well without any worries on changing color after getting cooked in a hot engine compartment. If there are a lot of people using cosmoline to detail an engine, I would be interested in hearing from them. I not too old to try something new...

ebumdude · 03-22-2008, 09:27 PM

Man, that sh*t was easier than I thought. Took a bag and covered the alternator, sprayed with simple green, scrubbed, rinse and dried.

808YOTA · 03-23-2008, 01:05 AM

Josh,

Next time you can just purchase the Simple Green foaming wheel cleaner. Cover your alt and electrical parts. And foam away. WORKS GREAT!

Shane

ebumdude · 03-23-2008, 01:18 AM

That's funny you say that, I thought about the foam...but since I never used it before, I stuck with what I knew, just straight up simple green.

Thanks for the tip though, I will try it in about 4k miles...LoL

desentrix · 03-23-2008, 03:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by liquidi3ladz

Put a bag over your alternator.

And avoid getting your exposed wirings/connections too wet.

SILVERYOTASE · 04-06-2008, 09:09 PM

I detailed cars for over 10 years on/off. You can use pressure washer on engine bay-just don't spray near electrical or air box. The factory air box on 07 se has cold air vent on front. Avoid that and no worries. Spray any kind of degreaser while car is running and pressure wash off carefully. One out of 100 cars-no problems. Also spray the hood liner from a distance(so it won't tear)very delicate on most vehicles. Also don't spray degreaser on that...it's a bitch to rinse off if too concentrate.