Grease Fiesta!

[toyotafan113]

Grease Fiesta!


There are several greases or sprays I found for the car: WD-40, Walmart's all purpose grease, white grease, and copper grease.


As a preventive measure and smoother operation, is it safe to spray WD-40, the most available, on the following parts?

• serpentine belt
• belt tensioner
• alternator and through its coiled silts
• starter
• struts and their springs
• wheels and their rotors and drums
• 4-doors and trunk joints (WD-40 reduced squeaking noise, but is there a thicker grease?)
• car body surface near the tires, or the site where mud or splash guards sit (WD-40 can prevent rust from rain, right?)

Serpentine belt has its own spray, $5, at Walmart to prevent cracks. Is this spray worth it, or should I rely more on periodic replacement after every 12K miles?


I am worried that the brake systems, drums and rotors, should not be greased, but some thread postings say copper grease prevents rust formation. What grease do you recommend on which parts?


Thanks in advance.

[fishexpo101]

Short answer for the items to be sprayed with WD-40 is NO. It would not be a good idea to spray those parts with this solvent. Many of the cases, more damage will be caused in the process. Worse place to spray that would be on:
- Serpentine belt (eat the belt, cause it to slip)
- Belt tensioner (will drip onto belt)
- Alternator coils (may short out coils, could eat varnish on the coils)
- Starter, starter contacts maybe OK (but there are better stuff out there)
- Struts and Springs (won't do anything and would be dangerous if they dripped onto the brakes)
- Wheels (OK to remove tar, otherwise, NO)
- Rotors and Drums (DO NOT spray them, really bad idea)
- Door hinges and what not (works, but will wash off the old (heavier) grease - squeaks could get worse)
- Car body (only to clean off tar, displaces water to prevent surface rust - but you should use products intended for paint first - WD-40 is a temporary spray solution).

As for dressing, conditioning sprays, etc. - generally don't need them. Car has a 6 year/unlimited mile corrosion warranty on the body panel. As long as you routinely clean and protect the car's finish - rust will not be an issue. In cases of surface rust starting to form (prior damage to paint) - then treat appropriately.

If you use any grease or spray on the interior - example door hinges and lock/latch mechanisms - use what the manufacturer used, lithium spray/grease. Only put it on areas that had that grease on it before. Do NOT hit areas that use a different grease or spray - many times, this will cause the former solvent to dissolve and remove what it had before. That's why WD-40 is a bad idea for maintenance - as it tends to wash away any grease that was on there before. WD-40 is great for displacing water or moisture, cleaning up tar off of painted surfaces, and as a rust remover (soak bolts and nuts in WD-40 and rust helps loosen up that scale).

Serpentine belt spray is a bad idea - the serpentine belt will not need any type of dressing, same goes to radiator hoses and what not. All those sprays carry a little bit of solvent which soften the material in preparation for the additives. Doesn't sound bad, unless you realize that it does this by dissolving the material in the first place. Over time, you'll weaken and damage the part you are trying to protect. If the belt and hoses get to a point where they are cracked and damaged - then you should replace them as needed.

For brakes - use only high temperature grease. The copper grease or other anti-seize greases are there to help prevent metal to metal corrosion and to prevent seized lugs. For the brakes system, grease is applied to only certain areas of the system, adding too much grease in those areas or in the wrong spots will cause brake failure. If you don't know where to add the grease, do not attempt it yourself on something as critical as the brakes.

[toyotafan113]

@fishexpo101: Thank you for a quick, detail reply. Then, I will use WD-40 for a better use, such as morning egg scrambles.

I shall hunt down specialized auto shops for these grease spray-cans, since I doubt Walmart would stock these specific sprays.

The End.

[fishexpo101]

Should be able to find them in WallyWorld. At least the one locally to me has lithium grease/spray available. Otherwise, hit up the dealership - even at $6-$7 or so a can, it lasts quite a while.

Yeah, not knocking WD-40 - just that there are much better products out there to use. For loosening corroded fasteners, I use PB Blaster or AreoKroil. But I still use WD-40 (acronym stands for Water Displacement - 40th version) - on crayon, tar, gum, adhesive, and grease stains, a rust preventative on garden tools, and fish lure attractant (for some reason it just works).