What is the best way to clean the engine??

i would like to clean it out, and start to spice it up a bit.

 

Soak the engine with Degreaser, then use a pressure washer on it. It'll look brand new

 

Like Maxikal said, degreaser then use a pressure washer. When you're done, take an air gun and blow out excess water. Then take a can of silicone and spray the hoses and black accessories. Your engine will look 100X better than before- dont forget to wax the strut towers- Good Luck cleaning!

 

degreaser and a garden hose will do. no need for high pressure washer. you CAN use it, but i don't like the idea of the high pressure water hitting the electrical parts of the engine.

 

You have to change the valve to allow less pressure when spraying around the electrical system. For the firewall, strut towers, and underbody, high pressure is needed.

 

you could always take the whole engine out and clean it all up that way, so you could clean the engine bay as well, might be more work, but if you want it sparkly all over........

 

I have been using the Orange Blast by greased lightning. With engine cold I start engine and let warm for about 5 minutes. This helps the cleaning and drying process. Spray on the orange blast (big bottle at Wal-Mart for like $3.50) with a good soaking. Let stand for about 5 more minutes and hose off. You might need a second coat depending on buildup. Make sure to rinse off paint real well and you will need to rewax any exterior paint that spray might have hit. I put down the hood and start car and let heat dry it off. Apply dressing to all plastics and rubber (Stay away from belts) and wipe off excess. It will look like new. Best part is that it will smell like orange instead of the chemical degreaser.

Hope this helps!

 

don't you need to cover electrical bits? (battery, fuse box, etc?)

das

 

When you spray on the degreaser would it help to take a stiff brush and scrub the engine down? Also how can i get my Strut bar shiney again?? And on the plastic and rubber could i use like a armor all wipe on them??

 

Yes, absolutely...

 

I wouldn't use a brush unless all else fails, but I have found that a second dose usually will get most if not all off. If you do have that kind of build up try to stay away from painted surfaces.

As for the Strut bar goes a good aluminum cleaner/polish will do a great job.

Here is an engine I did a week or so ago.

 

Damn that is a hott lookin engine. What degreaser did you use. Also what type of aluminum polish/clean should i pick up??

 

Orange Blast degreaser (check up a few posts) as far as an aluminum polish goes I use P21S Multi-Surface high gloss Finish Restorer (Amazing stuff). It works great on restoring alloy and wire wheels, clouded plastics (headlights) and even dull paint trouble spots. Any aluminum polish should also work well.

It was brought to my attention that Orange Blast says to use diluted strength for aluminum (full strength for engines). I have not had any problems at full strengh on aluminum on the max engines, but I will be doing some tests and making a few calls to get an answer.

 

Well i went and bought some orange blast and im hoping to try in this weekend. Will defiently post some pics!!
thanks guys

 

I'm about to do engine detail this weekend. It's been a long time since I have done one, and it was on another car. I'm kinda concerned about the coil packs. I'm afraid water will lead down into the spark plug holes and stay there. I'm also concerned about the bazillion sensors in the engine bay. Is it ok for those to get a little wet? My engine is dirty!!!