I was always wondering about how dealers clean the engine compartments of used cars they sell to make them look so nice. My car is clean under teh hood, but i want it to shine. Can anyone please tell me how i can do that? Thanks.

 

Check in the detailing forum.

 

If it's clean you can make it shin by wip9ing all the parts down with WD-40. Not only does that give it a nice subtle shine, it helps protect against corrosion! This is my kinda cheapo way, but I am very satisfied with it.

 

If you do this the "Pros" point is.. the shine is great.. you will like it.. the "Cons" is the engine will look dusty after a while and the dirt will stick to it....... your choice....

 

There's a detailing forum for this.

 

thats a bad idea. WD40 will attract all the dirt so it will get dirtier.

here is the best way
spray engine down with foaming degreaser.
leave for 10 minutes
hose off
spray entire engine bay with the foaming wheel cleaner
leave for 30 minutes
start car and let run for a few minutes to dry everything off

the wheel cleaner gets the rest of the dirt off and leaves a shine when it dries. plus it is a protective layer to repel dirt

 

Damn, that's a good idea!!!!!

 

Well i know from experiance:

Leave engine running while doing this!

-Spray it down with a power washer
-spray every part down with a all purpose cleaner
-Wash it all down
-Spray armor all so all the parts can shine


You can do this at any local self serve car wash with the steam gun they have to wet and spray the car down with

 

DO NOT USE WD-40, dust sticks to that stuff,
Go to your local automotive store buy some engine compartment cleaner ex. GUNK (very good, has a citrus sent to it) If you need instructions on how to clean the engine pm me.

 

If you use some general household cleaners.........I would be carefull. Some cleaners are not good for paint or certain rubber pieces and metals. We not longer use straight simple green on Army Helicopters becuase it tends to cause more corrosion on Magnesium and eats away the green paint leaving the helicopter to look like a banana!

I also don't recommend WD-40. That is a quick fix if you are looking to sell your car. That way the next owner will be cleaning it in a week from all the dust accumulation!

SOONERFAN........"spray entire engine bay with the foaming wheel cleaner"
after letting this sit for 30 minutes do you spray that off? If not, how long is it till you have alot of dust accumulation from normal driving. Never did it your way. I LIKE IDEA THOUGH and may even try it!

 

works like a charm

 

no..it foams the dirt off. running the car dries it out.
it forms a barrier against the dirt

 

Jason, your engine bay looks nice....but not as nice as that beautiful vehicle next to it

 

I am kind of hesistant about spraying water on my engine to wash it off. after all there is a ****load of electronics under the hood and i do not want them to short.

 

I never use a hose. I only clean engine bays by hand. Call me **** about it, but I don't want to be liable for any damages sustained on customer cars. That would severely damage my profits, as well as my detailing reputation.

 

In case no one ever read, WD-40 is a solvent, not a lubricant. It will probably dry the hoses out more. Use a good vinyl and rubber protecant, like 303 or 1Z or even armorall if you want it to blind you. Also, you can use some metal polish on the metal hoses to brighten those up.

If you really want to see a nicely detailed engine, check out Bluesbrekr's car. Check out this forum for a good pic of the metal lines nicely polished.

http://forums.maxima.org/showthread....=engine+dremel

 

Best product ever for this: CD-2 kit. Comes with 1 bottle of cleaner and 1 bottle of detailer. Hard to find, but well worth the trouble. A local guy turned a few of us onto this product, and now everyone in the region uses it.

 

High pressure hoses are usually a bad idea, mainly because it will force water into areas it shouldnt be. Its all in the scrubbing anyways. Spray some degreaser on, use a brush to scrub everything down, then rinse with a low pressure garden hose. Simple, easy, and no damage.

 

What does a metal hose look like? Hoses are made of rubber.

 

Best Way ive had experience with (Special thanks to ceasars chariot)
1. Go buy a spray bottle and castrol degreser
2. mix these 2 50/50
3. spray down engine compartment (making sure you have covered up alternator air filter etc. etc.)
4. Wait 1:30- 2 minutes
5. use a medium bristled brush and a mild detergent and go to to town (keep scrubbing)
6. rinse with very low water pressure (garden hose with no nozzle)
7. Dry everythign you can get to by hand.
8. Let car sit for appox. 2 hours
9. start car let engine get to running temp.
10. allow it to cool down
11. go back and give all hoses etc. a good wipedown with a shiney spray of your choice ( i personally prefer finish 2001..odd one to use i guess but thats what gives me the best results)
12. Go back and make sure u didnt leave a plastic baggy on the airfilter (hahahahahahah..take it for what its worth)
Hope this helps someone
-Brian

 

So the battery terminals, air filter should be covered right? what else?

p.s. I think I'm gonna go with soonerfan's rec.

 

i always cover the alternator just for good measure.

 

Well i've always been paranoid about cleaning my engine for the simple reason that there are a LOT of electrical connections under the hood. In the old days all ya covered was the alternator... lol. I can't find a link that tells ya exactly what to cover, but from what i've gathered in threads you cover the battery, alternator, and the air filter if exposed? Should you cover any or all of the electrical connections? Or is that just me being toooo paranoid? I just changed my plugs, ignition coils, MAF sensor, PCV, and one of my O2 sensors on my car Saturday and realized just how FREAKIN' DIRTY my engine is. Bought her in '99 and i've never cleaned the engine.... I know... most of ya probably wanna smack me and I can't say I blame ya. I reeeeaaaaaally need to clean it, but I wanna do it right and I figured what better place to find out. So besides the alternator, battery, and air filter, should I be covering up anything else? Thanks in advance for any help you provide.

Mike

 

I was like you when I started cleaning engines. I wanted to make sure I covered anything that could get harmed. The first time I cleaned my engine, I sprayed it down with hose and degreaser, but the degreaser and/or hard water turned my chrome intake a dull gray, and left water spots all over.
Ever since then I have ONLY cleaned engines by hand. You don't have to worry about covering anything. If you don't want to get something too wet, just clean it with a damp towel.

 

what parts would everyone recommend covering before cleaning the engine.

 

alternator, battery and airbox or intake. that is all ive covered in the past with no problems. if i had a distributor then id cover it but no worries in 95 and up maximas.