Degreasing Engine

[Hardstylin]

Been wanting to do this for a few weeks but never got around to it, I got some Degreaser from Autobarn and want to clean up the engine bay a bit.

What exactly needs to be covered up as far as electrics etc?

Can/should the Degreaser be applied when the Engine is hot?

All help is appreciated, thanks!

[Car Care Products]

Cover up all electronic parts with glad wrap/plastic bags.

You should always work on a cool engine bay, especially when using cool water - kind of self explanatory really.

be careful with cheap aerosol degreasers, they can discolour the aluminum/chrome parts in the engine bay. IMO I would only use a mild degreaser such as Autoglym engine and machine cleaner or a mild mix of APC when cleaning.

[Ozzie]

One other thing... try not to use a high preasure hose (gourni)
and dont blast water onto seals, electronic components and near the air cleaner.

[Jo3_Blo]

Make sure ya cover the distributor and carby (or whatever you got). And your starter motor too (I think?)

Also, I got a couple of degreaser can for 99 cents from autobarn/supercheap etc. I'll post up pics of it after. Just to make sure, it won't damage any of my engine components or paint or anything like the bloke above said?

[Emackulation]

Its also a good idea to get compressed air and blow dry the bay so water dosnt seep into unwanted places.

[Car Care Products]

One other tip - use a long handled brush to agitate the dirt and grime. You want the degreaser to get in under the dirt and lift it off the paint/engine. Don’t rely on the degreaser to do all the work.

[Jo3_Blo]

Yeah, that's what I was thinking. My motor is pretty heavily caked (just certain areas) of oil/dirt/dust.

I was thinking you could probs use steel wool for some parts (manifold, carby, block) but if I use steel wool on my rocker cover, that will damage the paint won't it?

[coolvxss]

pfff, i wash was my engine bay every week or 2 for the past 3 n half years, i just spray some nifty spray n wipe stuff or Degreaser over engine and everything, wait a bit, then hose off. I have never covered any electricals or anything and havnt had a problem. I do it while engine is cold, But i hose off while engine in running, then take it for a quick drive to dry it off. This is with a old vn, some newer commies might have some more important electricals in engine bay i dono.

[Morton]

I personally wouldn't attack the whole motor at once.

Do small sections. Remove stuff that comes off easily, and clean that first. Then get in there with a couple of small wire brushes, and a toothbrush, and a pressure spray bottle + degreaser, and slowly work your way around from the top down.

It's a pain in the bum the first time, but after that it's easy every time after

Personally I would never hit my engine with a hose, gurney, or anything like that.

[davway]

pfff, i wash was my engine bay every week or 2 for the past 3 n half years, i just spray some nifty spray n wipe stuff or Degreaser over engine and everything, wait a bit, then hose off. I have never covered any electricals or anything and havnt had a problem. I do it while engine is cold, But i hose off while engine in running, then take it for a quick drive to dry it off. This is with a old vn, some newer commies might have some more important electricals in engine bay i dono.

Same here.
spray and hose - its that simple.
ive done this to cars from 1970 right through to 2008 models and never had a single issue with any of them.
i dont even hose off with the engine running, once im finished i will run the engine or go for a drive to get some heat through to dry everything.

Why try and make a simple task a hard task?

if its really caked on, degrease a couple of times, letting it soak right in for 10 minutes then hit that particular area with the hose.
if its still not 100%, out comes the tooth brush to knock it off.

[doms3]

Same here.
spray and hose - its that simple.
ive done this to cars from 1970 right through to 2008 models and never had a single issue with any of them.
i dont even hose off with the engine running, once im finished i will run the engine or go for a drive to get some heat through to dry everything.

Why try and make a simple task a hard task?

if its really caked on, degrease a couple of times, letting it soak right in for 10 minutes then hit that particular area with the hose.
if its still not 100%, out comes the tooth brush to knock it off.

Agreed I even seen merc do it this way on new cars so can't c the problem????

[Morton]

I've seen big companies do dozens of things I'd never do to my car

And let's face it, Mercedes are FAR from the benchmark of quality and customer service these days ^_^ lol

[TVR-190]

make sure u cover ur cruise control module, i ruined mine by degreasing the engine

[spd_dmn]

What about the injectors? Do they have to be covered?

[crazybiker]

I just hit my engine bay with the gourni once, then with a degreaser gun on the end of the compressor, which pretty much blew most of the crap of there and then. Then I finally hit it with the gourni again, and it came up perfectly spotless.

...and that was diluted down, 20-1

[AndyVKSSA]

i do about 4 engine bays a day at work with a high pressure cleaner amd we dont cover fuses, injectors, starter motors or anythin, u shouldnt have any problems with water getting in aslong as u dont sit there sprayn water onto the eletrical stuff. and yes a lot of degreasers will turn ur paint and plastic white.

[Dan@DMS]

Audi Pre Delivery have ruined many coil packs (Costing 8k ea) whilst using high pressure in the engine bay. It will take an extra 5 mins to cover electrical stuff, but days to get it back from the mechanic after things have been replaced

[sIIVY_tommy]

when it rains dosnt water get in your engine bay anyway?

[MikeCuzzy]

when it rains dosnt water get in your engine bay anyway?

Nice thread dig :P

When it rains, the amount that gets in is negligible, of course with the recent flooding muddy crappy water got thrown up through my engine bay. It's a bit different getting some water spray on the engine to someone watering it like a vegetable garden.

If you're gonna give your engine a big clean, cover all the electrics and just be careful, you'll be fine.

[Grennan]

when it rains dosnt water get in your engine bay anyway?

It does but theres a difference between slight rain and a high pressure gerni. Most likely youll just knock a plug out which you can easily reconnect but to be safe I usually cover the fuse box and other electrical connections.

[Sabbath']

when it rains dosnt water get in your engine bay anyway?

Depends. If you have large holes in your bonnet and large holes in your air intake, yes it does.

[mr calais 5.0]

Just spray most of the motor with degreaser and wait 10 min and hose off..

[mrflibbles]

i use crc as a degreaser, spray it on use a stiff bristle brush to attack the caked on stuff and hose off, gotta repeat a few times for heavily cacked on stuff but usually brings the engine bay up a treat (doesnt discolour alloy or anything else!). usually use compressed air to dry off after too!

[letthiswork1]

I want to clean my engine bay!!!! I would cover electronics just to be safe.. 2mins extra work could save you a lot of money

[sIIVY_tommy]

haha yeh its common sence but i have no grill and no front wheel tubs under front qtrs. i was keen on just spraying some degreaser on the valve covers , plenum etc just to give whats visible a clean up using garden hose pressure and a couple of rags but its always worth being safe then sorry :P