hey guys... I've had my car for almost for 3 months now with 6K miles on it... so the engine is all dirty with dirt.... how do I clean it?

 

I know Blue Coral makes a great engine degreaser/cleaner...if you can find it. A car wash where I used to live used it to detail their engines and it looked great on mine. Not sure if that is something sold to the public or not, but might be something worth looking into anyway. I used to grease a few palms and get it through him when they ordered, but I have been unable to find it since I have moved. If you are able to find it, please let me know. Thanks and good luck. Hope this helps.

 

I just thought that was funny. What else would it be dirty with?

 

it can be dirty with oil........

 

I wouldn't use a de-greaser on the engine, just take it to the local high pressure wash and that will do the trick. Just don't hold the wand too close to anything.

My last car was two years old at trade in time and the engine looked as good or better than the day I got it.

 

Better not be dirty with oil. That would mean there's an oil leak.

 

You wont need a degreaser just the wand soap. Stay away from the alternator and distributor and you should be fine.

 

I use the engine cleaner GUNK and spray it off at a car wash.

 

Can you simply douse the entire engine area (under the hood) with a hose or a bucket of water and then wipe dry with a towel? Or is dousing the engine with water not such a hot idea?

 

OMG NO!
:wow:

 

Distributor? Did you just upgrade from an '84 buick?

 

Are you just saying that or do you have any basis for your statement? I've seen people cool off engines by spraying it with water before they start working on them, so that's where I got that idea...

 

on my accord, I always left the engine running and then use high water pressure to clean it.... and never had a problem... no lights stuff like that came on.

 

I have seen, literally seen, a guy spray down his hot motor with a garden hose, and the engine block cracked. Right then and there. That was a ford, built in the 80's, so I can't tell you if new engines are affected in the same way by that. But I think they are...


~Z

 

do it on a cool engine and you can get the engine as wet as you want. just try to keep as much water away from the throttlebody and the alternator. any engine cleaner/degreaser will work, as will soapy water. some areas may need to be whiped clean but most should come clean.

 

No there isn't a little round thing anymore but the electronic ignition does the same thing! Regardless, what you want to do is keep all electrical conections from getting wet!

 

You can try what a friend of mine did with his Ford Probe GT many a year ago...

he popped his hood and drove through a brushless auto wash and it's super dryer system. It really worked. Clean engine.

Although, his alternator crapped out on him a couple weeks later. We couldn't prove it was the carwash so, whatever, right?

Cool water on a cool engine always worked for me. Dish soap w/brush on the hard to clean areas.

 

Gunk shouldn't be used ever, if you keep it clean, it will stay that way.

 

what the heck, I already got 6000 miles on it and oil change is due... and i think i'll get another 1000 in 2 weeks so I'll just tell the service guy to clean the engine, so if anything happens, i'll blame them

 

The engine can't be THAT dirty. I have found that you need ONLY hot water to keep the engine clean. Hook a hose to a hot water outlet and use a car wash wand to get it down in the recesses.

Soap, Gunk, etc. are not needed.

Start and drive the car immediately afterwards until it is dry.

 

I recommend only soap and water. WD-40 at best. Stay away from abrasives.