Ok, I have a question. What is the best way to keep the engine
compartment clean. I would like to keep it looking like it came off
the show room floor. However, I don't particular like the shiny look
that comes from junk like Armor all. Any suggestions? Need help.

 

Ok, big difference between...."keep clean" and get clean.

First off: to get it clean. I would suggest using a few different products.

1) Engine brite clean, engine degreaser. Ok, this stuff is not just good for metals. It leaves a nice semi gloss, almost factory clean look on some plastic parts as well. I use it sparingly however on these plastic parts and hoses as in can dry them out over time.
2) Professional Protectant: used in moderation (as in not a lot) you can get a nice shine on various different plastics. It does leave a film, more shine. So use it sparingly.
3) SimpleGreen cleaner: use this to remove all the grime and stuff. I use this first to remove all the heavy stuff. Follow this by your vacuum cleaner as it breaks up the heavy gunk.

Now to keep in clean, I hate to say it, but from my experiences the best way is to do a simple overall cleaning every weekend if you barely drive your car much. (1 or 2 days a week). If you drive more then that and the cars your daily driver, well you then have 2 options:
1) Let it go for a couple of weeks then expect to have a big cleaning to do every 2 weeks or so.
2) Clean it lightly every night you come home.

If its one thing I know...its cleaning corvettes. The one thing I would dread back when I brought my C4 to car shows was the time it took to get the car "cleaned and ready" for the show. I would literally have to get out of work at least 2 hours early on a friday, work on it all the rest of that day and into the wee hours of the morning, then devote the whole saturday to get the car all cleaned. This was mainly because I drove it like a daily driver and always got lazy in keeping the cleaning part up to par.

For my C5, I initially did the huge "big cleaning" when I first got it. It took a whole weekend. Now all I do is "maintenance cleaning" each night when I get home. This makes it much less time consuming and I don't dread it.

 

new C5 owner.
What are some "don't do" in enginr cleaning?
Thanks

 

Check out the Car Care section. Tons of info/tips and pro detailers as well.

 

well first off: Contrary to popular old school belief: DON'T JUST ENGINE GUNK/Cleaner THE ENGINE BAY AND THEN HOSE IT DOWN!!! Big, HUGE no no. These cars have lots of electrical parts that when wet or moisture gets into them cause problems. So no matter what you read, Don't go doing this or even worst, don't fall for some dealer or used car mechanic saying he will "steam clean" your engine.

Don't just assume all chemicals are created equal and buy cause you like the pretty package or the name brand on it. Read the label carefully. Some products can't be used with others and produce really bad results. In addition you will save a lot of money by only buying the products that your going to use. Trust me, you would laugh if I ever stacked up all the cleaning and waxing products I have purchase over the years, only to have tried it 1 time and not be happy and have it sit on my shelf for over a year. My garage looks like an autostore. I would say stick to whatever works and only go for new products if there is a good deal on them or if you can afford a change/can risk the product not working.

 

At present, the engine compatment is really clean. No oil residue, etc.. The car is a 2001 that had 9000 miles on it when I bought it and I must say it is really clean. It is not a daily driver and have hopes to possibly show it off in the months to come, but want to do everthing possible to keep it the way it looks now. I will, and have never gave consideration of steaming, powerwashing the engine compartment. I am not certain what is safe to use to do keep it look as showroom clean as possible.

 

Since your compartments clean the best thing you can do is to stay on top of the cleaning. The C5 once it's clean stays pretty clean even when you hit some rain and bad weather. Unlike the C4 it's a pretty easy engine bay to keep clean. I use the Meguiar's quick detail on the painted surface and on the plastic and rubber I use Meguiar's #40-it doesn't have the shine of the Armour All.

 

If you decide to use Simple Green, a great product, try to use the Extreme Simple Green (Aircraft), it is made for aluminum (aircraft metals) where the standard stuff is not designed for use with aluminum. In any case the Extreme is meant for it!

http://industrial.simplegreen.com/ind_prod_ext.php

 

Dont drive it! !

 

Got to drive it some. Otherwise, what was the point in buying it? Too only look at? I think not. So far I have put less than 100 miles on it. It pretty much stays in the garage. However, not driving it will keep the engine compartment clean.