Michael Hinchey

Hi , before I start my full detailing of my black 2002 acura tls car including wet sanding, compounding ,polishing and waxing I would like to clean the engine bay. Can anyone tell me whatif any needs to be covered up before proceeding. An FYI , I will not be pressure washing it, just using a degreaser and some agitation and rinsing with a hose? Any info would be great.

01acls

No need to wet sand. Thats for show cars.

No need to decrease too. Just wash bc you don't want dirt anywhere on the car, just need the car clean. A dirty car will scratch the paint when polishing.

FamilyGuy

Cover your fuse box and don't spray it

Michael Hinchey

well wet sanding is needed due to a body part being repainted. I need to remove orange peel and blend the paint. I would like to clean the engine so if I don't need to degrease the engine than I wont. Sometimes less is more. But in order to clean it I need water. So what my initial question was geared towards is there anything I need to covr up so they don't get wet. Thx for your reply.

01acls

Sorry but not really following for many reasons...

Wet sanding, compounding ,polishing and waxing is usually for exterior.

Painting what? Engine parts or engine bay?

FamilyGuy

Read his 1st post. Slowly.

01acls

Lol

The title says one thing and the body implies something else.

Apparently that is not unusual here on az.

In my defense.

I like to know true and acurate facts not vague details. Thats important when asking and giving advice.

Michael Hinchey

. It is quite alright. Hopefully this helps. I am doing a full detail on my vehicle including the engine bay. I really want to know what to cover up is all when I clean the bay. For clarity purposes I added I will not be using a power washer on my engine but will be using some degreaser(4:1 dilution) agitating and then rinsing. For further clarity, I am wet sanding to blend in a few body panels. Since this may be a difficult task of blending panels I am going to wet sand with 2000p(maybe) and then prob 3000p sandpaper. I then will compound and then polishing that out. On the newly painted panel I will be using 1000(possibly) , 1500, 2000,3000 and then cont with compound and polish and the wax and possibly a sealant. Now since this was just painted I am waiting on wet sanding and working on cleaning the engine. I'd figure , it would take a few days to get some answers so I figured I'd start now. If u need any more info please ask. Thx.

01acls

^ Familyguy, if you're not familiar with automotive nomenclature please keep your smart ass comments to yourself.


Paint

If the car was painted in a heated both you should of wet sanded and polish the day after bc the paint will harden up too much... much harder to work with. If not, couple of days is about right. You only need to sand the bad areas not the whole panel.

Do not use wax or sealant on fresh paint. The solvents are still releasing you do not want to trap that in there. The paint might not cure properly. In a worse case scenario you could have adhision problems later down the road. Use Mequires M06 (breathes) instead of wax or sealant.

Engine bay is pretty much water resistant. Just becareful of the battery posts.

musiclevelz5

There is really nothing you need to cover up. The under hood fuse panel thats on the passenger side and the relay box on the driver side should have a lid to prevent moisture from coming inside.

You should be good to go as you are.

princelybug

iTrader: (16)

The only things I've ever covered are the battery terminals and alternator.

Michael Hinchey

I didn't paint it in a booth. So , I will start the engine probably tomorrow or Tues. Then I will start the wet sand in a week or so. Or do you recommend I do it now? Weird how things like wax or sealants cause things to happen to the paint but you can compound and polish them and the same doesn't happen.

Michael Hinchey

I will cover them up anyway
Along with the alternator. Thx for the tips.

MBP_TL

I would clean my engine bay after the car sat overnight. I used engine degreaser on the entire engine and rinsed it down with a hose a few minutes afterwards. I would dry the engine bay with a leaf blower and then apply armor all to rubber and plastic parts to bring back the shine. I personally never had any problems but I only cleaned the engine bay once to maybe twice a year preferably during the warmer months.

As far as wet sanding fresh paint, I've painted the bumpers and fenders when I had the 2G TL, I waited about 24 hours before wet sanding with 2000-2500 grit and a flexible sanding block to apply even pressure. I've been told waiting longer than 48 hours will make wet sanding tougher. Buffing fresh paint with the rubbing compound if done incorrectly can and will literally burn your paint off so definitely be careful there.

As far as detailing the vehicle, is there any reason you wet sand instead of clay bar? I just thought clay bar would be safer but maybe I can learn something new. I'm thinking you're after the glass like finish but definitely correct if I'm mistaken.

Michael Hinchey

I am wet sanding one area of my car and blending it into the rest of the paint. I only had to paint one area of the car because of a eye sore of a dent. I got some orange peel from painting the car so that is going to be removed. And knowing me, once I see the results from the wet sanding I will want to do the rest of the car. It is slow at work right now so I am keeping myself occupied. I have a few more weeks of down time so this is my therepy(:
As far as clay bar is concerned this will be done before wet sanding and compounding /polishing the car. I will be very gentle since this is factory paint.

tlacurawhite

I recommend leaving the engine running while spraying under the hood. Do not drive the car for at least 15-20 minutes afterwards and leave the engine running with the hood closed. It is very likely you will get water inside of a sensor connection and will need ample time to allow it to dry before driving in traffic! Otherwise it may stall and put you and others at risk! Just some friendly advise!