Cleaning Engine

[Caracicatriz]

Can someone explain to me how to properly clean the engine. I see all of these engines that look brand new, and I can't get my engine like that.

[BP2K2Max]

your best bet would be to rent or buy a steam cleaner. that'll get all the rust and shit off your intake manifold just be careful around the wirining, any minor splices in the wires could allow moisture to get in. a lot of them have steam nozzles the size of a tooth brush so you can be very precies and get into small areas.

[Caracicatriz]

What kind of spray or product should I use. I heard that a power washer also works well.

[jmd102]

You can use a power washer OK but do not spray directly on sensors and fragile components. Also throw a plastic bag over and cover the alternator. Seen too many smoke and pack it in after being drenched with high pressure sprays. Just a warning. Me I live with a slightly dirty engine...safer that way sometimes.
Blow dry thoroughly as well before starting if you have compressed air and goodluck!
Mark

[bk2kmax]

Originally Posted by Caracicatriz

Can someone explain to me how to properly clean the engine. I see all of these engines that look brand new, and I can't get my engine like that.

Just use some Simple Green and water mixture and get you a toothbrush (if you are into detailing) or use a sponge but don't soak it. When rinsing use low pressure water (not high.

The only other thing to tell you is to be extra careful not to get any water into the wells of your spark plugs.

[Ceasars Chariot]

best stuff - hit walmart and look for a big purple jug of castrol superclean, break it down with water 50/50. it will cut dirt and grease better than anything.

everyone should try it ! aluminum foil - use that to wrap up electrical, harness. Wrap up cone filter in wal mart bag. Spray fine mist. let soak a few seconds. then wash off with hose. but read up on it. there are some places you dont want to force water into. the top of the vq will hold water like a puddle behind the valve cover area ( sorry not a mechanic) and try to cover up the alternator as well. after rinse spray mist non flamable armor all like stuff and rub over hoses and stuff ..

[bk2kmax]

Originally Posted by Ceasars Chariot

best stuff - hit walmart and look for a big purple jug of castrol superclean, break it down with water 50/50. it will cut dirt and grease better than anything.

everyone should try it ! aluminum foil - use that to wrap up electrical, harness. Wrap up cone filter in wal mart bag. Spray fine mist. let soak a few seconds. then wash off with hose. but read up on it. there are some places you dont want to force water into. the top of the vq will hold water like a puddle behind the valve cover area ( sorry not a mechanic) and try to cover up the alternator as well. after rinse spray mist non flamable armor all like stuff and rub over hoses and stuff ..

Wassup Ceasar? Man, I got all of your vids saved, your car runs nicely, my favorite is the one where you raced the Z and nearly won.

[Ceasars Chariot]

And now for a commerical break...

hey man whats going on ? im going to beat someone someday ? it seems the faster i get the more races I lose. i had the 350z jumpin ! ha ha ! he got me by just a little bit.. im working on some weight reduction mods now hood, seats, battery .. maybe that will help me a bit.

and now back to engine detailing ...

[bk2kmax]

Originally Posted by Ceasars Chariot

And now for a commerical break...

hey man whats going on ? im going to beat someone someday ? it seems the faster i get the more races I lose. i had the 350z jumpin ! ha ha ! he got me by just a little bit.. im working on some weight reduction mods now hood, seats, battery .. maybe that will help me a bit.

and now back to engine detailing ...

Sorry about that threadjumping but eveyone here does it from one time or another. It's just that I don't get to see you up on the board here too often, usually you're over at the orgy but I just wanted to holla at let everyone know you be representin.

And to keep things on-Topic, your engine is always clean. Haha. Don't worry you'll begin to win more than you loose.

[joeykay]

Hi, I'm new to this forum and have a question regarding engine detailing. I took my Tahoe(97) to get detailed at a local carwash. All i asked for was the exterior and interior to be detailed. When we picked the car up they showed us the engine was detailed as well. That same day (an hour or two later) the engine was make a very loud noise and found it was coming from thr alternator. We drove the car for about 60 miles that day and the next morning only to finally take it to our local car repair shop. They said the alternator was damaged due to the detailing and needed to be replaced.
We went back to the detail shop to explain what has happened only to get a very rude manager telling us that he never has heard of such a thing happening and was not going to help with the situation.
They will not return my calls and dismissed the whole ordeal.
Can this happen to an alternator? Also just to let anyone know, the car was in the shop two weeks ago to get a new belt and I also had the shop check other items in which the alternator was one of them.

[glregez]

I destroyed an alternator on a Z washing the engine. But I still wash all my engines. I use the foam spray on stuff and wash down with low pressure. All the gear heads said to stay away from any high pressure spray. My mechanic can not believe how clean, both on top and botom, my 94 Pontiac, with 120k miles on it is. The Maxima is also very clean. Just like the day I bought it. I Clean it every about 2 months, spray it off every time I wash it. I live where salt is on the road at least 4 months of the year. Thisadd to the necessity of cleaning all parts of a car quite often.

I am going to look into some of the products mentioned. The old timers, which i am one, used to use a mixture of Tide and water. All you need is a good degreaser, a warm engine and water.

my two cents....Gary