Everyone knows there are 2 kinds of pictures on the 2nd Gen forum.
ones with loose wires, broken parts, and ones with sparkling clean engine bays.

my question is, how do people get such CLEAN engine bays? no grime, no dirt, nothing.....

and anybody have experience with steam cleaners?

 

engine degressors at your local autosstore and pressure washers..

just cover up critical electrical parts and dont spray directly on those areas..

Some hard to clean parts, spray something like simple green, esp on the painted body areas like strut towers etc.. and scrub em. then rinse off with water and a hose.

On the black parts like hoses and some plastics etc, you can use tire shine on em to make em look good.

After you get it cleaned.. its all about keeping it maintained. Whipping it down whenever etc

 

I use Simple Green and a hose/pressure washer.
works everytime

 

If you want to get really **** about it. I've used a big paint brush with soapy water and a hose to get like the firewall behind and in between all the lines and stuff up there. Usually for car shows and stuff like that, but yea get it clean and then keep it maintained and it'll look good all the time.

 

be careful with pressure washers ... they tend to blast water into places they shouldn't

 

agreed, or blast off things that they aren't supposed to... lets just say i lost some spots of clear coat that i didn't know were flaking.

 

Many people do it when they have the engine out, makes it much easier.

 

exactly what I plan on doing. I still dread working around all the crap that will still be mounted though.

 

well then take it out! it's the perfect time to re-wrap your harnesses anyways ;D

and while it's out, you can clean your brake booster, replace the o-rings on your brake and clutch master cylinders..it's awesome!

 

ya cuz most of us have that way to often hahahaha

 

[insert nervous laugh here]

 

orange foam engine cleaner, soft brass brush for non painted, non plastics. lots of rags. lots of patience. normally i'll spray everything with the orange engine degreaser and let it sit for 30 minutes then start wiping it down and scrubbing. mothers aluminum polish. and my secret finishing touch: armor all wipes over black plastics and all hoses. that **** is horrible for the interior of your car but works awesome on the engine bay. wipe down everything the armorall wipes and then wipe off with a dry rag to get the excess residue off. makes all hoses and plastics look damn new.

 

ooh! pretty! I want to touch it

 

that engine looks damn good!

 

i used black magic 2 in 1 engine shine. you spray on. no need to wrap any parts and then i took a squirt bottle and squirted water around.

results

 

wow, I'm lovin that first turbo...

 

I like to clean mine with magic...............



sorry couldn't help myself.

 

I'd suggest simple green, let sit for ~15 minutes, wash that off. Then spray some armor all tire foam everywhere and let that dry.
The tire foam puts a nice shine on everything.
Warning: Close your eyes if you will burst into rage when you see pics of a non-rotary engine.

 

Miata <3

 

hahaha, i kept thinking "wtf, why did he relocate his expansion tank and his windshield wiper fluid reservoir....oh, wait"

 

Pressure washers are evil. They will force water into areas where it should not go. Such as bearings, electrical connectors, under the CAS cover, between panels, etc. They are also unnecessary.

The best way to clean the engine bay is to remove everything. If the car is filthy, then that's going to be the only way to get it totally clean. In that case you can just pull everything and then just scrub with a thick bristle brush and a strong mix of degreaser (I like Castrol Super Clean) and water. A few sessions of that and it will be ready to paint after a good rinse.

With everything in the engine bay, it's a lot harder. The best bet is to spray the whole thing down with Super Clean right out of the bottle. Soak it good, and then let it sit for 20 minutes or so (don't let it dry!). Now mix up a bottle of Super Clean and water at about a 10/90 ratio, start spraying and then scrub with your brush. Rinse off, let dry, and then repeat as many times as necessary to get it clean.

Don't let most degreasers dry on aluminum; they will turn it white with corrosion.

Once it's clean you need to keep it clean. Eliminating all leaks is the first step. With no leaks, just use regular car wash soap and a cloth/sponge when you wash the rest of the car. If you don't slack off, it will stay clean rather easily. But miss a few months and you will then start to need the stiff brush and degreaser.

 

Damn Aaron..


You're car gives orgasm's.

 

thx for the info, basically the dirtiest part of the engine on my car is the rats/nest power steering and oil area

some of that is my fault =) but the power steering seems to be leaking lately

and that part (i think) is the hardest to clean