What do you do to make your engine look pretty? :)
 

Ok, so I know that some aren't as concerned as others about the appearance of their engine bay... but I just am curious to see what ideas people have to make their engines look pretty :) For instance, NWP hardware tends to look good, many have FSTBs, which might have more of a "look" benefit than a performance benefit, and a good ol' SRI never hurts either hehe... I'm not toooo crazy with the aesthetics of my engine bay, but I have painted my engine cover, and put some red tape on a few of my wires/harnesses (ghetto, I know, but I like it... and there isn't tooooo much :D)... So just to be clear, this isn't JUST an engine cover thread... there've already been plenty of those. I was just curious as to what other bling/good stuff other people have done in this department (original ideas welcomed!).
Here's mine: (I know the pic is pretty huge...)
http://i452.photobucket.com/albums/q...eBaynewest.jpg

Battery tie-down. Inexpensive, clean little item.

http://www.johnclare.com/pics/cars/nissan_emblem.jpg

Oil cap... another inexpensive item.

http://www.johnclare.com/pics/cars/nismo_oil_cap2.jpg

I havent done anything to my maxima yet except a quick detail. But the key is simple touches here and there. a little bit of red or blue is nice but it can be easily over done. here is my sentra, Its my toy and i have spent alot of time tweeking over the years, this is how it sits now

http://specd-out.smugmug.com/Photogr...09_o87Hn-L.jpg
http://specd-out.smugmug.com/Photogr...15_8v2nT-L.jpg

Damnnn ^, very nice. Keep it up.

this...
http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/i...g?t=1280192404

no engine cover needed FTW:cool:

^ question, what do you use to keep the alumiun on the I/M so clean

NWP's Torque Link fills that space with nice, unintentional bling.

http://www.johnclare.com/pics/cars/nwp_torque_link2.jpg

i personally heart my AE engine cover

+1. How??

I pee on it..:laugh:

Ill take pics tomorrow, I've got the same I'M theme going like ur the previous picture, now ill be doing the lower manifold too :D

Just try to keep clean inside there.

http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/l...12-resized.jpg

Keep it clean and simple. No need for fancy colors. Parts of my engine are painted, but painted stock color just to make them look new. I like to use clear coat on the aluminum after i clean it to keep it from oxidizing.
http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_...0201_large.jpg

I like how you say "simple" when you have a friggin turbo beautifying your engine bay :D No need for fancy colors when you've got a blower like that drawing all attention haha

http://forums.maxima.org/picture.php...ictureid=18531
Powdercoated ssim+fstb+nwp blockoff+Stillen batts tie down+fgate batts terminals

Nismo radiator and oil cap from Dave b

Nwp torque link

Wrapped ceramic coated Cattmans
Polished lines...etc...I get into trying to get mine as clean as Rochester's. Respect due.

agreed lol

I like the black piping and compressor housing. and the turbo blanket does a nice job keeping the rusty exhaust housing out of site. The bay is very clean too. Nice.
I kind of wish nissan didn't hide the 3.5s under such a large engine cover on the 5.5 gens. I like seeing the valve covers on motors.

Yikes! That's nice of you, but mine is just clean with bolt-on's. Yours, on the other hand, is clean and customized. From what I can see in this picture, your bay is the one more deserving of respect, not mine.

Your UIM... it looks like you polished, painted, put on the NWP decal and then clear coated, yes?

My number 1 rule is clean it all the time. lol

do you take pictures for a living? all your pics are professional quality

B

No, I'm a Software Consultant. But thank you. :) That kind of made my day.

All you need for quality pictures is to introduce indirect lighting with a good external flash. Bounce the light, don't slam it.

i love photography. took it in high school just never thought i had the talent to make a career of it.

i am looking in to buying a used SLR though. i think it would be a cool hobby to have.

B

Polished then coated to lose the texture. Hate when paint chips. But thanks. But with the lighter colors your bay stands out hands down. Nice and clean. I'm waiting on tech flex to cover all my wiring that will show after I begin tucking the extra.

I honestly don't clean it.. I don't really care.
It's how it's maintained inside that matters.
I mainly don't bother because using any strong cleaning agents and water can often lead to problems, so just leaving it be is all I do.

I particularly like seeing the NWP decal centered on the UIM. Seems the perfect place for it. If my car were toy-only, and I had all the time in the world, I'd love to have the UIM and Intake Plenum polished... so I'm a little jealous of that.

Trying to think of who else is known for entering threads only to dismiss the topic at hand. Can't think of his name right now, but it should come to me sooner or later...

Here's an engine bay dress-up idea you don't see much of: paint the strut mounts.

When I had my replaced, I left them black, but the idea did cross my mind.

http://www.johnclare.com/pics/cars/moog_mounts.jpg

I didn't mean "how do you clean it"... if you read the topic, it's more about "what do you put in the engine bay and what do you do to it/put in it to make it look good".

Fair enough. All my take is on that is, to remove anything that is unnecessary.

I like cold air intakes or air intakes because of removes other plastic and metal bits that just add clutter.

I think removing the VIAS setup on 5.5gen and up engines looks good (more simple)

Most definitely.

http://www.johnclare.com/pics/cars/nwp_block_plate3.jpg

this will make you engine bay look pretty :D


B

The upper radiator supports... they rust like there's no tomorrow.

Take them off, grind them down and paint them. They start out with body-color paint, but look just fine in black.

Headers? :gotme:

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y12...g?t=1280258084

Haha yep. Got those. Hey, mine have gone all brownish (oxidized). How do you prevent that? Or don't you?

Here's another simple bling: engine cover bolts. Clean them up with a wire wheel on the grinder, then prime and paint. I used a dark gray stove paint. They look great.

Here's another: reservoir caps. There are like 4 or 5 of them throughout. Just take them off, and clean them in the sink with 409 and a brush. Think about it... you know as you're reading this that your plastic caps are all gunked up with dirt.

Here's another: use stainless steel M6 bolts for all the pieces along the front frame. Replace them every year if you have to, they only cost pennies at Home Depot.

I'd really like to hear more simple and inexpensive engine detailing ideas. (Ahem... headers, NmexMAX?)

that is one nice *** FSTB!

B

keep everything clean...paint reservoir caps...etc

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y22...a/DSC01644.jpg

i want your engine cover

B

Whenever I take anything out of the car to work on it it always get cleaned and painted before i put it back. It takes twice as long for me to get anything done, but its well worth it when you can pop your hood with pride.
http://memimage.cardomain.com/member...24_52_full.jpg
wheel paint works well for dressing up aluminum parts and its very durable. ^
My GF laughed her *** off at me when she found me lovingly giving my transmission a sponge bath.
I Couldn't see putting anything back under the hood looking like this:Puke:
http://memimage.cardomain.com/member...2668324_32.jpg

http://a.imageshack.us/img196/793/img1263x.jpg

This is pre-turbo and custom engine cover of course. I will have some updated photos soon...

Damn right!!!