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Cleaning the Engine

B

Beau

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I am going to be putting my intake, headers, and some other little goodies on here in a few weeks, and was planning on cleaning my engine compartment while I was at it. What does everyone use, and if anyone has any neat little tips or tricks, I would greatly appreciate it.. Thanks

Beau :)
 
Whatever you do, don't power wash it. Use a damp cloth to wipe the engine and components down. You can also use a cloth dampened with Simple Green, but make sure you go over those areas that you used SG on with a damp cloth soaked in water. Simple Green can react with various types of metals when those metals become heated. To dress up the engine compartment, you can use variout types of aluminum/metal polishes on some of the aluminum hoses and suspension components. You can also use a good quality vinyl and rubber cleaner/conditioner product on the hoses and misc. parts in there. One product I recommend is Meguiars Vinyl and Rubber Cleaner and Conditioner. Good luck!
 
Don't Do This!!!

Whatever you do DO NOT USE ANY OVEN CLEANERS!!!! They react BADLY with most alloys and ALL ALUMINUM...

and don't ask me how I know... :(

BudD
:w
 
I agree with Rob.....Simple Green is great, just don't let it sit unattended......wipe it off shortly:)

Jay
 
Thanks for the help everyone, I think I am going to try some of that simple green. :gap

Beau
 
Engine compartment cleaning

A good cleaner for stubborn road gook is wheel cleaner. I have one of the little steam buggy cleaners that I use to rinse the parts with to be sure that no residue is left behind. You need to experiment with any and all solvents available. Some areas are cleaned better with enamel reducer, some with denatured alcohol and some with the citrus stuff. Don't get me wrong, I like Simple Green very much, but we need to expand our toolbox and simplify the process. We are expected to have the cleanest cars on the street and we need to maintain that image......[:D) :w
 
Always clean a cold engine.

A warm engine will dry your cleaners before you can rinse them off. I use, among other things, Westley's Bleach White whitewall tire cleaner. It cuts grease and road dirt well and cleans the painted areas. I use it on frame and suspension also. Use a soft tire brush for large areas and a narrower soft brush for tighter areas.

Tom
 

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