motorculture
7th July 2011, 10:57 AM
How to clean your engine bay.
Cleaning the engine bay is not something most people worry about. Some people don’t see the value of cleaning something that most people wouldn’t see, or afraid that they may damage components in the engine bay. In most cases it may be true, but as a car enthusiast we spend more time at car meets and under the bonnet then most people and I would pick a clean engine bay to work on any day of the week!
Cleaning the engine bay is a very simple task, and once properly detailed, the engine bay is no harder than washing any other part of your car.
http://i537.photobucket.com/albums/ff332/redsprinter/civic/civic1.png
1.The first thing you should do is make sure your engine is cold - never try and clean a warm or hot engine. The cleaning products will dry too quickly and leave stains.
http://i537.photobucket.com/albums/ff332/redsprinter/civic/civic2.png
2.The next thing you should do and most importantly is to cover (in this case we used a plastic bag) the air intake and any sensitive electrical parts. You do not have to fully seal every part you are covering - all you want to do is create a mini umbrella that will prevent water going in , or pooling around sensitive components. A plastic shopping bag is perfect for this.
http://i537.photobucket.com/albums/ff332/redsprinter/civic/civic3.png
3.Once the air intake and any sensitive electrical parts are safely covered, spray degreaser and use car wash over the entire engine bay, covering all surfaces, including the underside of the bonnet (although you may want to skip this step if you have a sound proofing cover secured in place, as they take ages to dry). If I can I normally leave out the cam covers, spark plugs and injector area or very lightly wash it making sure that no water goes into the spark plug holes.
http://i537.photobucket.com/albums/ff332/redsprinter/civic/civic4.png
After waiting 10-15 minutes, the next thing you should do is to rinse off the entire engine bay, including the underside of the bonnet if necessary. Under no circumstances should you use the high strength pressure settings of the washer for rinsing off. A normal hose with the spray attachment set to a wide angle is perfect or the low setting of a pressure washer, as it provides enough force to carry away all of the loosened grease and grime but not enough to force water into your spark plug galleries or air filter. Spray lightly around those areas. Once the suds have disappeared the job is done. Remove all of the coverings.
http://i537.photobucket.com/albums/ff332/redsprinter/civic/civic5.png
4. The next thing is to check that your engine starts. You should only leave it running for a couple of minutes though, as you don’t want it to become too warm, as this will adversely affect the application of surface dressings. After switching off the engine, finish the drying process using microfiber towels.
5. With the engine bay now clean and dry, the only thing left is to dress and protect all of the surfaces. In this DIY we used Mothers California Gold Car Wash (http://www.autoobsession.com.au/shop/online-store/mothers/california-gold-car-wash.html) to clean the engine bay, Mothers Naturally Black (http://www.autoobsession.com.au/shop/online-store/mothers/mothers-naturally-black.html) for all the rubber and plastic items and Mothers California Gold Showtime Instant Detailer (http://www.autoobsession.com.au/shop/online-store/mothers/california-gold-showtime-instant-detailer.html) for the surrounding engine bay.
6. And the result:
http://i537.photobucket.com/albums/ff332/redsprinter/civic/civic6.png
For more info on Mothers products and to watch the 'how to videos' you can check them out at http://www.autoobsession.com.au/shop/online-store/mothers.html
More pics of us hanging out at the local car wash. its pretty funny how plans to just wash the car and take some photos can turn into a little meet.
click here for more pics (http://s537.photobucket.com/albums/ff332/redsprinter/civic/?albumview=slideshow&direction=reverse#/)
(photos were taken from my phone so I tried the best I could to get them clear)
http://i537.photobucket.com/albums/ff332/redsprinter/civic/IMG_20110207_205801.jpg
http://i537.photobucket.com/albums/ff332/redsprinter/civic/IMG_20110207_211834.jpg
http://i537.photobucket.com/albums/ff332/redsprinter/civic/IMG_20110207_204612.jpg
Cleaning the engine bay is not something most people worry about. Some people don’t see the value of cleaning something that most people wouldn’t see, or afraid that they may damage components in the engine bay. In most cases it may be true, but as a car enthusiast we spend more time at car meets and under the bonnet then most people and I would pick a clean engine bay to work on any day of the week!
Cleaning the engine bay is a very simple task, and once properly detailed, the engine bay is no harder than washing any other part of your car.
http://i537.photobucket.com/albums/ff332/redsprinter/civic/civic1.png
1.The first thing you should do is make sure your engine is cold - never try and clean a warm or hot engine. The cleaning products will dry too quickly and leave stains.
http://i537.photobucket.com/albums/ff332/redsprinter/civic/civic2.png
2.The next thing you should do and most importantly is to cover (in this case we used a plastic bag) the air intake and any sensitive electrical parts. You do not have to fully seal every part you are covering - all you want to do is create a mini umbrella that will prevent water going in , or pooling around sensitive components. A plastic shopping bag is perfect for this.
http://i537.photobucket.com/albums/ff332/redsprinter/civic/civic3.png
3.Once the air intake and any sensitive electrical parts are safely covered, spray degreaser and use car wash over the entire engine bay, covering all surfaces, including the underside of the bonnet (although you may want to skip this step if you have a sound proofing cover secured in place, as they take ages to dry). If I can I normally leave out the cam covers, spark plugs and injector area or very lightly wash it making sure that no water goes into the spark plug holes.
http://i537.photobucket.com/albums/ff332/redsprinter/civic/civic4.png
After waiting 10-15 minutes, the next thing you should do is to rinse off the entire engine bay, including the underside of the bonnet if necessary. Under no circumstances should you use the high strength pressure settings of the washer for rinsing off. A normal hose with the spray attachment set to a wide angle is perfect or the low setting of a pressure washer, as it provides enough force to carry away all of the loosened grease and grime but not enough to force water into your spark plug galleries or air filter. Spray lightly around those areas. Once the suds have disappeared the job is done. Remove all of the coverings.
http://i537.photobucket.com/albums/ff332/redsprinter/civic/civic5.png
4. The next thing is to check that your engine starts. You should only leave it running for a couple of minutes though, as you don’t want it to become too warm, as this will adversely affect the application of surface dressings. After switching off the engine, finish the drying process using microfiber towels.
5. With the engine bay now clean and dry, the only thing left is to dress and protect all of the surfaces. In this DIY we used Mothers California Gold Car Wash (http://www.autoobsession.com.au/shop/online-store/mothers/california-gold-car-wash.html) to clean the engine bay, Mothers Naturally Black (http://www.autoobsession.com.au/shop/online-store/mothers/mothers-naturally-black.html) for all the rubber and plastic items and Mothers California Gold Showtime Instant Detailer (http://www.autoobsession.com.au/shop/online-store/mothers/california-gold-showtime-instant-detailer.html) for the surrounding engine bay.
6. And the result:
http://i537.photobucket.com/albums/ff332/redsprinter/civic/civic6.png
For more info on Mothers products and to watch the 'how to videos' you can check them out at http://www.autoobsession.com.au/shop/online-store/mothers.html
More pics of us hanging out at the local car wash. its pretty funny how plans to just wash the car and take some photos can turn into a little meet.
click here for more pics (http://s537.photobucket.com/albums/ff332/redsprinter/civic/?albumview=slideshow&direction=reverse#/)
(photos were taken from my phone so I tried the best I could to get them clear)
http://i537.photobucket.com/albums/ff332/redsprinter/civic/IMG_20110207_205801.jpg
http://i537.photobucket.com/albums/ff332/redsprinter/civic/IMG_20110207_211834.jpg
http://i537.photobucket.com/albums/ff332/redsprinter/civic/IMG_20110207_204612.jpg