ok. i put my car back to stock and replaced the splash guards in the front fenders. i previously had the guards removed because of my body kit. well now my engine i so dirty from the winter rains and what not so i want to wash the engine bay. what i want to know is is pressure washing the engine bay o.k. the dealer says that they can pressure wash the engine bay for me for $30. i have no problem paying that amount, i just don't want any problems with my engine afterwards. if pressure washing is not a good idea can someone tell me why it isn't and the correct way of doing it? any help is appreciated.

 

When ignitions were a lot different--not electronic, and there were carburators--it was a dangerous proposition to get water under the hood. Now days the engines are pressure washed a lot more. Personally, I just spend a lot of time cleaning the bay by hand---but I do not think you would have a problem. $30 would seem cheap to have someone experienced do it...........

 

yea, its alot cheaper than i thought to have the dealer do it. and i figure if the dealer does it and theres issues with the engine, they'll have to cover it. thanks yeller.

 

DIY:

http://www.clubxb.com/forums/f33/600...e-compartment/

Personally, I cover the alt. and fuse boxes with foil before washing, just as a bit of extra security. But I have seen others do it without any covering, so you should be golden.

I do NOT recommend high pressure though only because I have never used it. Let the cleaner do the work and rinse. Repeat if necessary.

 

thanks heathen. thats a very good diy. i think i will get that cleaning solution and wash it myself now.

 

Chtob vse byli zdorovy

 

That DIY says "Once the cleaner has had a chance to sit for a while, grab some cloths and start washing. Be sure to get into all the nooks and crannies."
If that is the case, then I suggest using S100 Cycle Cleaner instead of trying to manually clean the nooks and crannies with a cloth. S100 actually lifts and removes all dirt and grime when you rinse it, with no physical touching required. And it is harmless to electrical components and paint as long as you don't let it dry on them. It is made for completely cleaning motorcycles. I have used it for years on bikes and car engine compartments.
However, S100 is not a degreaser for removing heavy dirty grease and oil deposits. It will hardly touch them, and at $10 a quart, is a waste of money trying. For that, Gunk is required.

 

most professional detailers will use a pressure washer. With the correct PSI, it is actually safer than blasting it with a garden hose - reason being that a pressure washer's "water" is really made up of a large part of air. It's not all water.

Here's what I do:
0) Cover alternator with aluminum foil. Probably unnecessary, but I'm not a risk taker. I'm pretty boring that way.
1) Spray Meg's APC 4:1 liberally everywhere under the hood but NOT ANYWHERE ON THE PAINT
2) Let sit...
3) Grab a long, old body brush with a bucket full of dishwashing liquid/water or car wash solution. Hit stuff you can get to, don't try to force water into anywhere, but you don't have to be too scared
3) Rinse off with a free, very gentle flow of water. I usually don't use an attachment on the hose
4) Immediately use a leaf blower and blow as much water off as possible
5) Even more immediately, turn on the engine, close hood, let sit for about 15-20 minutes. This gets rid of any water that may have creeped into places it shouldn't have.

Of course, I skipped a few steps where I dress the engine bay, but I'm guessing you probably don't do that. If you want to (greatly improves the appearance of the bay), then go ahead and say so... i'll try to reply

 

I just use the pressure sprayer at the local wash but on the low setting, and avoid the fuse box and alternator. They still get wet, but they don't get blasted with really high pressure spray. After that it's just a matter of drying stuff off and detailing.

 

From that link you posted:


What's he tryin' to accomplish there?

 

now what about if you have a sri w/o a bypass? when you start the motor and if it sucks in any water well ya kno...u think i should cover the intake head as well?

 

most definately cover a sri with a couple of plastic bags just in case.

 

You mean keep it off the paint that it not under the hood, i.e. the exterior painted finish of the car. There is a lot of painted surface in the engne bay that needs cleaning. One advantage of S100 Total Motorcycle Cleaner is that it removes dirt off paint without hurting the paint.

 

Looks like he's trying to blow water out of the cracks. I use a similar process except I use a 250 mph Craftsman blower. I use it both when washing the engine bay and to dry off the car after washing it.

Gets water out of cracks which drying towels miss and also has the greatest advantage of not causing additional micro-marring on the paint which happens if you dry the car the conventional way (or for people who use stuff like cotton towels or old rags, or DRAG towels across the paint ). Works pretty well for engine bays since there's really no other way to "dry" a bay other than to start the engine and shut the hood. This gets rid of standing water so you don't end up with water spots everywhere.

Yea, good point. I don't have a problem getting it on the painted parts under the hood, and I've actually heard Meguiar's APC won't kill the paint if it gets on there.

But yea, with other degreasers... just use common sense.

 

 

oh haha I never noticed that

I have no idea

 

Notice the DIY says to use a fine mist, not a "blast".

 

Nice catch! I totally missed that. Im sure it was just to ilustrate what to do regarding using the wet/dry vac, but good eye nonetheless.

 

i just washed my engine and it came out pretty good. it looks alot better now. that orange cleaner worked great. afterwards tho my engine was smoking for about 5 minutes. i was starting to worry that i messed something up but it went away.

 

Probably just steam from water that got into the spark plug recesses under the engine cover.