How to get your P5 clean as a whistle, inside and out?

[steefnap]

Hey all!

It's quite easy to wash the outside the car and make 'er all shiny... however, having gone through a fall, winter, and spring with my new toy, I've discovered that the engine has gotten rather greasy and grimy inside.

My question is this: I frequent a local wand wash place, and I'm wondering if it is safe to crack open the hood, soak it with degreaser, and then spray it down with high-pressure soap/rinse. Is there anything I should cover in a plastic bag first or something?

Please give me some ideas, I don't really want to whip out a bucket full of rags and spend 2 hours cleaning my engine!

Thanks for your input.

 

[Synthesis5]

if you have any type of intake put on your car it would be smart to cover that first then also your fuses with a plastic bag, thats what i do

 

[pshaw34]

you may want to, but if it was me, i still wouldnt do it. I like to do what is best for my car. I would take that longer time to clean it by hand.

 

[spazspike]

The fuses are encapsulated in that plastic box, no? While it isn't the worst idea to hose it down with degreaser and then the high pressure wash, I still agree with pshaw on the hand wash. Unless you've let it get so thick in there that you require the high pressure and then a hand wash.

 

[WaatDaHell]

If your everything is still stock, you can do that with no problems. One thing though, you have to keep the engine running to prevent the water from just sitting in any openings.

 

[tonkabui]

i like to clean my engine bay with carburator cleaner. it works wonders on stubborn dirt. then i high pressure hose it on low pressure. works like a charm.

 

[JOS3]

i also wondered about this. so, i should put a garbage bag over the valve cover or what?

 

[pingdum]

i like to clean my engine bay with carburator cleaner. it works wonders on stubborn dirt. then i high pressure hose it on low pressure. works like a charm.

Isn't this bad for the hoses and electricial conections and stuff?

 

[twistedrx7]

i do my engine bay on a regular basis. all u got to do is leave the motor runing spray her down wit some degreaser let it sit a bit and pressure wash it off. comes out great and if u really want it to shine after its dry spray some silicone over the motor and it makes it all shine. your fuse box should be fine but if u have an open air element ( an aftermarket air intake just cover the filter wit a plastic bag but leave it loose so the engine can breath

 

[zcast]

My opinion...

Hey guys,


My 2 cents....

Prior to recently purchasing my Pro5 a few days ago, I owned a Dodge Avenger ES. I was a member of their Owners Group as well and there were lots of talk about cleaning and detailing. After a lot of back and forth on "What's best to use", and after trying lots of products, I finally found one that works wonders that doesn't grease, gunk, or build up on your innards. For cleaning your engine bay, I would reccommend Simple Green. It's highly concentrated and works wonders on grease and grime. (I sound like a commercial don't I?!) I have also used it to get brake dust off of my rims and as long as they are not "polished" it works great. I would use SG on polished or painted (coated) rims. When all is said and done though, it's personal opinion. I SG my bay and let it sit while I handwash some tougher, more sensitive areas. Then instead of "bagging" those sensitive items, I use a "plastic roller" (for lack of better words). Basically its one of those rollers you see in mailing supply stores that have Saran Wrap on it and lets you wrap multiple items together and it binds them together. I use the roller and "wrap" my sensitive items like hoses, connections, fuse boxes, etc.. Then I pressure wash or even hose out the SG from the bay. I then remove the plastic wrap from the items and dry some of the areas by hand.


Anyway, you get the idea. Just my 2 cents. Take it for what it's worth.

Hope it helps!

Z-Cast

 

[Vaarky]

zcast: Sounds like you've got quite a process there. But hey, you do what you gotta do!

And you're right about Simple Green. I work at Home Depot in Norwood, MA and we get some of the toughest stains. I got bored today ( yes... I worked the 4th!! :mad: ) so I started cleaning things. The little pocket-szied Simple Green bottles were sitting in a display at a cash register so I figured I'd spray some and see how it works. It dissolved the grease and grime built up on the counter like <B>nothing</B> I've ever seen before.

I might even be able to get my hands on a roll of that shrink wrap, cause they use it in the shipping/receiving departments all the time.

 

[2020Pro5]

Getting the engine bay wet is not a problem. However, if you do shoot it with water, don't soak the coilpacks. Also be aware of the wire harnesses above the intake manifold. Simple green is good to get rid of the dirt and whatever else there is. If it's possible, get either a leaf blower or a shopvac (that can also blow) use it to blow off ANY excess water in the engine bay. I use this process whenever I clean my car or any of Team Pro5's cars. If your car does start to loop in the idle, then make sure all wire harnesses are dry. Other than that it's a fairly easy process. To finish it off, if you want to spray some type of dressing on the hoses, black plastics, etc. I use Meguiars Natural shine. MAKE SURE NOT TO SPRAY IT ON ANY OF THE FAN BELTS! Just a little will make it squeal a LONG time. Anyway, good luck.
Lanson

 

[steefnap]

thanks for all your input, folks.. I really appreciate it

 

[Esteban Toledo]

I'm looking for these: http://simplegreen.com/products/consumer/automotive7.html

I can't find those anywhere. Not autozone, oreilly's....nuthin'.
:mad: