Wash My Engine Darn It!
Safety Car
Joined: Aug 2007
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From: This is not a Song, It's an Outburst: Or, The Establishment Blues; Sixto Diaz Rodriguez
No sweat.
I know a a few folks said they use high-pressure hoses, I would never do that, a garden hose is the most powerful I would use, and not at full stream, if you clean on a regular schedule (depends on your runs) you'll be able to keep it up with a light touch up.
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I've never rinsed my engine down - I just kept it clean from when it was new by wiping it down with an old Absorber each time I wash the car. Occasionally I'll use a rag with some Simple Green on it to cut some greasy spots.
As long as you use a soft stream of water to rinse the engine down, you should be OK.
As long as you use a soft stream of water to rinse the engine down, you should be OK.
Racer
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 469
Likes: 0
From: Salt Lake City Utah
I have too and no problems. Just keep your distance with the high pressure hose from the bay.
Thread Starter
Racer
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 276
Likes: 0
From: Guess it & Win a Rock, s&h only $4.95 New Mexico
Thanks everyone for so many great tips.
TraceZ - I read your post and immediately went to our local Wally World (Walmart) and grabbed some Simple Green, great stuff by the way. Also, squeezed my wallet a little more and got some tire spray from Armour All, some new towels, a few cool brushes, some rim polish, and some extra sweet gum drops for energy and got busy cleaning.
A couple hours later, (Now) and Wow! what a difference.
And that Tire Spray tip, yikes my engine bay looks brand new.
Sorry, I have no pictures to show, I just could not wait long enough to unload the camera onto the pc before I started cleaning. Needless to say, my Mistress is happy as she can be.
Thanks again,
- Craig
TraceZ - I read your post and immediately went to our local Wally World (Walmart) and grabbed some Simple Green, great stuff by the way. Also, squeezed my wallet a little more and got some tire spray from Armour All, some new towels, a few cool brushes, some rim polish, and some extra sweet gum drops for energy and got busy cleaning.
A couple hours later, (Now) and Wow! what a difference.
And that Tire Spray tip, yikes my engine bay looks brand new. Sorry, I have no pictures to show, I just could not wait long enough to unload the camera onto the pc before I started cleaning. Needless to say, my Mistress is happy as she can be.
Thanks again,
- Craig
Instructor
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 122
Likes: 0
From: Spring TX
I cleaned my engine for the FIRST time in 10 years...
The heavy build up was:
On the steering rack
Engine Cradle (visible STRAIGHT down from each side of the engine)
Under the fuel rail covers
For everything except under the fuel rail covers i went easy with the pressure after spraying engine brite from GUNK.
The engine cradle was machined aluminum which looked SWEEET!! And the steering rack looked like it was just installed.
I did however, dry with towels and used a leaf blower but didn't start the car till the next morning to make sure everything was DRY.
No problems at all and after some plastic dressing on the plastics and hoses it looked BRAND NEW.
Carefull with using tire shine on the plastics! Products like that and armor all on plastic may look shiny now, but in the long run turns it WHITE especially when it's being baked at 200 degrees under the hood!
Just my 2 cents...And keep those engines clean!
The heavy build up was:
On the steering rack
Engine Cradle (visible STRAIGHT down from each side of the engine)
Under the fuel rail covers
For everything except under the fuel rail covers i went easy with the pressure after spraying engine brite from GUNK.
The engine cradle was machined aluminum which looked SWEEET!! And the steering rack looked like it was just installed.
I did however, dry with towels and used a leaf blower but didn't start the car till the next morning to make sure everything was DRY.
No problems at all and after some plastic dressing on the plastics and hoses it looked BRAND NEW.
Carefull with using tire shine on the plastics! Products like that and armor all on plastic may look shiny now, but in the long run turns it WHITE especially when it's being baked at 200 degrees under the hood!
Just my 2 cents...And keep those engines clean!
