matty

iTrader: (54)

Ok during the week I'm finally goin to clean my engine...I'm going to pick up some Simple Green (good or not?) but I need a little help on the process I should take??
I know I should start off with a warm engine..not hot!!
and then after that I'm clueless...I think what comes next is hose off the engine with water...spray simple green on...let it sit (how long??)..well, Ill stop rambling on and someone can just explain the hole process...
and too, will this bring up the engine really nice and who does it and how often ??



I have the stock air box and I probably wont cover anything ?? Stuff I guess can get wet

BriGuyMax

iTrader: (1)

I used Gunk engine brite. It just sprays right on and then you let it sit for about 10 minutes and spray it off. It's amazing how clean everything gets, looks like it did when I got the car. I only covered my intake beuause I have a popcharger. You shouldn't have to cover anything.

TurDz

iTrader: (3)

For precautions (if you're a safe guy like me, hehe) cover the alternator (I'm not really sure where that is though, hehe), battery, w/ stock air box cover the ram air scoop, and yeah, basically, that's fine.

Run the car until it's warm. Spray the car with a hose (not too pressurized) and rinse the engine well. Spray Simple Green ALL OVER, if you get the smallest sized one with the hand pump spray, you'll probably use around 1/3 of the bottle, maybe more. Anyway, let it sit for at least 20 minutes (this step helps...), and then rinse away afterwards.

Drive the car (preferable on the freeway) for a few minutes, and let the excess water evaporate. If you want, spray some cheap Armor-All tire shine foam on the black areas of the engine, and it'll bring out a rich, deep, black, just like the cars at the dealers.

Have fun! Don't worry, all of the important components of the engine and electrical system are covered up. Hope that helps.

shirtboy

Hello there,

You can check it out at www.carcareonline.com .... there you can find how to clean the engine bay. Hope this could help. Warm Regards.

Big Tyme

I've got one kick *** solution to a dirty engine bay. CD-2 Engine Cleaner & Detailer. This stuff comes as a package deal for around $8 bucks. The cleaner is basically like a degreaser. You spray it on the engine, let it sit, then hose it off. Let the excess water dry by running your engine for about 15 minutes. Next wipe away whatever water is left over. Now your ready for the detail spray. I guess this spray is almost like an armor all type product in the fact that it shines and protects. Spray the detail spray on everything in the engine bay. Let it dry with the hood open for about twenty minutes. Wipe away the excess and BAM! A brand new look in about an hour. I cleaned my engine with this stuff about 3 weeks ago and it still looks brand new. This is just a shortened version of the procedure. Obviously the directions on the can go into further detail. One note: Just to be safe I covered up the fuse boxes and electrical connectors with saran wrap. This stuff is the bomb.

Pit5Bull

Muss agree with my bro on that one!

I've used CD-2 on my silver 89SE and it did a real number on the engine compartment. I was checking under the hood of my Max one day, and a guy pulled up next to me and thought my engine was brand new! This stuff really does what it says, and your engine will look like the pictures you see on the can(s).

My only suggestion is that you make sure to hit the greasiest parts of your engine compartment with the first can of CD-2. When I use it again, I'm going to make sure of it!

BTW, the other suggestion to visit carcarespecialties.com is a hit. They give really good advice on car maintenance. Check it out!

peace2u

Pit5Bull

Krash513

I bought the stuff about 2months ago, i havent used it yet cause i wasnt sure if it really would work and not harm anything but now that i know, i got a project for this week. THanks guys

97GreenMax

Cover your intake and batter post, spray engine with degreaser, scrub it needed, and then hose off and let dry. Make sure engine is cool first.

davis4004

Simple green doesn't work as good as degreaser. Get some degreaser go to the car wash spray it on rinse it off and don't get a lot of water on the distributor or air tubes. I just cleaned mine and degreaser is amazing. I alreasy tried simple green and it doesn't do much.

jargoone

WTF is up with resurrecting the old threads?

Vyrus

iTrader: (4)

Where do you buy it from? Would Advanced AutoParts have it?
-Cyrus

tifosiv122

iTrader: (2)

I know its a rash of searches...see people, this is what happens when people search...we get 3 month old topics back!

Erik

IndyMax77

Yeah...so don't use the search function!

IndyMax77

SuDZ

Meguires makes some good stuff too. It comes in a big purple bottle that you srpay it right on. We used it on a friends car that had been in the junkyard for a few years and works great. It's name is EXTRA.

SuDZ

Vyrus

iTrader: (4)

After reading this old thread I went out and bought CD-2. It works great, and best of all the 2-bottle pack is $7 from Advanced Autoparts.

euromaxima

iTrader: (1)

would the cleaner hurt the belts?

Vyrus

iTrader: (4)

The bottle says it prolongs belt and hose life. I think its a good product. Check these out:

http://www.geocities.com/cyrusmistry/Dsc00009.jpg
http://www.geocities.com/cyrusmistry/Dsc00006.jpg
http://www.geocities.com/cyrusmistry/Dsc00003.jpg

I think you'll have to copy and paste the addresses, but I know the pics are there.
-Cyrus

zagato27

Just got the kit from Advanced Auto Parts...... $6.99. Yes, it is the BOMB!!!! Had some trouble with the nozzle on the detail can so swapped it with the clean can. No problem. It works great. Course you see all those little spots that you missed but the engine looks super. Try it you'll love it.

Cheers

RBa

iTrader: (2)

Why should you clean the engine compartment? Rust prevention, early oil/fluid leak detection, early belt wear detection and cosmetics are among the prime reasons. (There is a rumor that certain series of German mid/rear engine cars have a factory designed engine oil leakage feature to assist in rust prevention for the non-galvanized rear quarter panels and trunk areas.)

To soften the grease and grunge collected on your engine compartment, start the engine, let it warm up for a few minutes and shut it off. The proper cleaning temperature of the engine is warm but not hot. If you can just hold your hand to the engine without burning it, then it is warm enough to clean. As the engine cools to proper temperature, use the time to cover the few openings on the motor that dislike ingesting water. The air intake/air filter, the distributor, the coil and the oil dipstick/breather are among the few sensitive areas.

Use plastic Baggies and rubber bands to cover the air intake/air filter(s) and the distributor/coil. Place a double layer of Baggies over the air intake and secure with a couple of rubber bands. Use a pair of two-gallon size Baggies to cover the distributor and plug wires around the distributor cap. This may be difficult to seal, but the idea is to prevent significant amounts of water possibly shorting out the distributor. If the cap is in good condition, it will be "waterproof", so this is only a preventative measure. The coil is also "waterproof", so Baggies are again a preventative measure. Check the tightness of the oil filler cap, the power steering filler cap, windshield washer fluid cap, oil dip stick, battery filler caps and all other engine compartment opening caps and secure baggies over them with rubber bands.

Now that your engine is warm and sealed, spray the entire engine/engine compartment with a quality non-petroleum based degreaser. Try to start from the bottom and work up. This way, you don't have the degreaser dropping on you as you clean the underside areas. My two favorite engine cleaners are P21S Total Auto Wash and Wurth Citrus Degreaser. I find that either of these two products will clean thoroughly, and not harm the paint or finish of the aluminum components. One note of caution, all degreasers will remove your nice coat of wax. If you get over spray on the waxed areas, plan on rewaxing. Allow the degreaser about 3-5 minutes to work and then use a 100% cotton towel or a "SOFT" brush to "GENTLY" brush the heavily soiled areas. Respray and rebrush any areas that need additional cleaning. Once the entire engine/engine compartment has been cleaned, rinse thoroughly with water. There is a debate as to the optimum force of spray to rinse the degreaser. Some say a gentle spray is all that is necessary, while others advocate the use of a high-pressure spray. Use your common sense, the stronger the spray, the more likely you will get water in sensitive parts. If all areas are properly protected, you should have no problems with a stronger spray. If any areas need additional cleaning, repeat as necessary.

Once the engine/engine compartment is clean, immediately remove all of your plastic baggies/rubber bands. Dry any "puddles" and aluminum parts with a soft 100% cotton towel. Use paper towels to thoroughly dry the battery (if it is in the engine compartment). Start the engine and allow it to warm up. This will dry the rest of the engine and evaporate any moisture that may have collected in sensitive components.

Once everything is dry and has completely cooled, you may wish to apply a coating of rubber protectant to the rubber hoses, rubber, plastic shields and rubber gaskets. Black Again, One Grand Exterior Rubber, Meguiar #40 Vinyl/Rubber Treatment, Sonax Rubber Maintenance or Wurth Rubber Care all work extremely well. I do not recommend treating the underside of the rubber belts, as this makes them reluctant to turn their respective pulleys, with somewhat interesting results. (This is somewhat like waxing brake pads)

The painted areas of your engine compartment should be waxed. If there are any areas that are difficult to reach, Sonax makes a spray wax that requires little buffing and offers excellent protection. Spray a light coat on these areas and buff as much as possible. Two thin coats are much better than one heavy coat.

If the aluminum areas are dull or have whitish corrosion, a mild metal polish will help restore the finish. My favorite is P21S Metal Finish Restorer Polish. Use a soft 100% cotton cloth and work a small amount into the surface and buff out with another cotton cloth. Sonax Engine Lacquer is designed to protect the uncoated or "raw" aluminum engine components against corrosion. Check the battery terminals, to insure that they are clean. If not, disconnect the cables and clean both the cable terminals and battery posts with a wire brush. Reconnect the terminals and retighten. Wurth makes a nifty Battery Terminal Spray that protects the terminals from corrosion and changes from yellow to pink if there is battery acid leakage.

All of the hinges, throttle cables, cruise control cables and hood shocks should receive a thin coating of non-silicone lubricant such as Wurth HHS-2000 Spray Lube. Lastly, check all fluid levels, remove any stray Baggies and you are finished!

If you have any questions or if you need any further information, please feel free to contact us.

© 1999 Car Care Specialties, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

I got his from the Car care specialties website... Incase some of you are lazy and don't like to search...

SuDZ

Not a bad price if it works well then.

SuDZ

dlee275

because one time after I cleaned my Maxima's engine the damn engine light came on and wouldn't go off. I got it checked and it was one of the oxygen sensors. Does anyone know why this got messed up? Like someone else said, I thought everything that shouldn't get wet should be protected. IDK but that is the only thing that has ever messed up on my car besides my damn Bose radio...that thing keeps not cutting on and I keep getting it repaired. I just take it back to the guy who fixed it the first time but his warranty is only 3 months and is almost up. I think he is trying to fix it long enough to get past the warranty and then sell me something else This is the 3rd time I have had him fix it.

Daryl

SuDZ

That Stinks.

SuDZ