some people just dont car about whats going on under the hood. those retards. this job took me more than a week to clean up and replace worn hoses, screws, clamps and assorted pieces. but... the new VE is fierce, and i'm loving it. the sound is so different from the VG, so much more aggressive. my vg is almost silent, just purrs. this is definitely a roar




Tom

 

Nice job dude, care to share some of your secrets?

 

Ya, I'd like to know too. I need to do that to mine.

 

i cleaned mine with goo gone, i think thats the most magical stuff i have ever used

 

Can't see your pics.

 

So was it buried in a pile of gravel before or what ? It looks good, did you use pressurized water at the carwash or what?

 

It looks like you followed a salt truck with you hood open for 50 miles! what is that stuff? but great job took awesome, how long did it take?

 

thanks guys! haha, actually the last time it was driven WAS right after that big snow storm in the northeast. (i bought it as the first snow flakes fell) but i saw it before that it was just as dirty, good god. i dont know what it is, dust and grime? whatever those things are anyway... the car had been in NYC for 3 years after california, and the air there... is not clean, to say the least.

as for cleaning, it took about 10 hours of work, i did it in between other projects:

-i remove the wipers, then the plastic guard under them.
-i remove the coolant tank, battery(set aside) and battery tray
-i remove the air intake from the throttle body out (bag the MAF in plastic and block the TB)
---i wash all that stuff in basement sink. then i use tire foam and a rag to rub down all the rubber and plastic, works great and lasts. i stuff a small rag in the coolant tank with a little bit of hot water and bleach and shake shake shake. that gets it back to new, as the picture shows by the blinding white glow. i turn upside down and pull the rag out the way it went in.

-i use a vacuum and rags to clean out under the windshield, and wipers, now that you can get at those pesky areas that collect leaves and dirt and are totally inaccessible otherwise.

-then i get a few cans of engine degreaser (1.50$ each) real cheap and a bunch of rags and go to work, spraying down everything dirty that isnt an electrical connection or electrical component. its okay if it splashes on the coils, plugs or injectors, just wait a few hours for it to evaporate. its best to spray then rub before it runs all over or dries up again, work as you go - dont just blast blast and blast then wait.

-i also use a good old fashion stick to scrape away and accumulated dirt spots in corners - and then blast them with the degreaser, then rag.

-i get two cans of electrical part cleaner and blast all the electrical connections, ac compressor, alternator and rub them off lightly with another rag.

-i take out all the rusty screws and clamps and replace them with new ones. i also repainted a few small things like the brake master cylinder where it had a rust spot, battery tray and handle, and the radiator clips.

-i rub down any plastic or rubber with tire foam and a clean rag.

-i remove the rear coils and throttle cables, then use a 1" wire cup brush in a drill to brush down the intake plenum. it shines up very fast. (i keep rags over the holes to prevent anything from falling by the plugs.) dont touch the valve covers, they are painted.

-i remove old dry cracking electrical tape and replace with fresh.

-i devote a whole can of degreaser to the engine block, then rub down, brush with the 1" cup and recoat the block with black engine enamel.

-i hit any unpainted rusty bolts or studs with the wire brush.

-the ABS unit is a huge pain, but hitting it with degreaser, then pushing a rag though all the loops and nooks with a stick works.

-i also use a vacuum with a narrow extension to get in those areas between the struts and firewall that trap leaves, sand and dirt.

---------------------
in this case i went much further, removing the AC compressor, radiator, fan shroud, exhaust manifolds, and much more while i was working, it allowed me to reach virtually every part of the engine bay.

basically engine degreaser, electrical degreaser, throttle body cleaner and a whole lotta rags are you best friends here - and ventilation is a must.
tom

 

Dude...your sig is huge, it fills up my whole computer screen.

 

haha yea mine too!

 

yep - me three. 92graymax needs to resize his sig pic!!!

 

sorry all i was messing w/ my website. its fixed now.

 

Very nice and clean.. Your brake fluid looks a bit low!

So how would you rate the difference in performance from the VG to the VE on a 1-10 scale?

 

Nice job! Looks great!

Neat trick with the rag in the coolant bottle.. I used to have one like that, but couldn't remember what it was last time I detailed the engine bay.. I'll remember that one for next time.

 

I think my bay is dirtier

 

damn dude. props.

 

looks 100x better