Engine Cleaning

This document provides instructions for cleaning the engine compartment of a vehicle. It recommends warming the engine to soften grease before covering sensitive areas like the air filter and distributor with plastic bags. The entire compartment should then be sprayed with a citrus-based degreaser and gently scrubbed. All areas are rinsed and dried before applying protectants to rubber and metal polish to aluminum. The process helps prevent rust and detect early issues while improving appearance.

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Engine Cleaning

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budimen99

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CLEANING YOUR ENGINE:

Why should you clean the engine compartment? Rust prevention, early oil/fluid leak detection,
early belt wear detection and cosmetics are among the prime reasons. (There is a rumor that
certain series of German mid/rear engine cars have a factory designed engine oil leakage feature
to assist in rust prevention for the non-galvanized rear quarter panels and trunk areas.)

To soften the grease and grunge collected on your engine compartment, start the engine, let it
warm up for a few minutes and shut it off. The proper cleaning temperature of the engine is warm
but not hot. If you can just hold your hand to the engine without burning it, then it is warm enough
to clean. As the engine cools to proper temperature, use the time to cover the few openings on
the motor that dislike ingesting water. The air intake/air filter, the distributor, the coil and the oil
dipstick/breather are among the few sensitive areas.

Use plastic Baggies and rubber bands to cover the air intake/air filter(s) and the distributor/coil.
Place a double layer of Baggies over the air intake and secure with a couple of rubber bands.
Use a pair of two-gallon size Baggies to cover the distributor and plug wires around the distributor
cap. This may be difficult to seal, but the idea is to prevent significant amounts of water possibly
shorting out the distributor. If the cap is in good condition, it will be “waterproof”, so this is only a
preventative measure. The coil is also “waterproof”, so Baggies are again a preventative
measure. Check the tightness of the oil filler cap, the power steering filler cap, windshield washer
fluid cap, oil dip stick, battery filler caps and all other engine compartment opening caps and
secure baggies over them with rubber bands.

Now that your engine is warm and sealed, spray the entire engine/engine compartment with a
quality, non-petroleum based degreaser. Try to start from the bottom and work up. This way you
don’t have the degreaser dropping on your face as you clean the underside areas. My two
favorite citrus based engine cleaners are P21S Total Auto Wash and Wurth Citrus Degreaser. I
find that either of these two citrus products will clean thoroughly and not harm the paint or finish of
the aluminum components and are biodegradable. One note of caution, all degreasers will
remove your nice coat of wax. If you get the engine cleaner on the waxed areas, plan on
rewaxing. Allow the degreaser about 3-5 minutes to work and then use a 100% cotton towel or a
“SOFT” brush to “GENTLY” agitate the heavily soiled areas. Respray and rebrush any areas that
need additional cleaning. Once the entire engine/engine compartment has been cleaned, rinse
thoroughly with water. There is a debate as to the optimum force of spray to rinse the degreaser.
Some say a gentle spray is all that is necessary, while others advocate the use of a high-pressure
spray. Use your common sense. The stronger the spray, the more likely you will get water in
sensitive parts. If all areas are properly protected, you should have no problems with a stronger
spray. If any areas need additional cleaning, repeat as necessary.

Once the engine/engine compartment is clean, immediately remove all of your plastic
baggies/rubber bands. Dry any “puddles” and aluminum parts with a soft 100% cotton towel. Use
paper towels to thoroughly dry the battery (if it is in the engine compartment). Start the engine
and allow it to warm up. This will dry the rest of the engine and evaporate any moisture that may
have collected in sensitive components.
I am not a fan of steam cleaning. I have found that the high pressure steam has a nasty tendency
to infiltrate the electrical connections and cause havoc. The modern engine has numerous
sensors that continually feed precise information to the computers. If steam penetrates these
sensors and corrodes the electrical connections, electrical signals may be disrupted and cause
the engine to run erratically or not at all. The amount of time it takes to disassemble, clean and
reconnect all these sensors is incredible.

Once everything is dry and has completely cooled, you may wish to apply a coating of rubber
protectant to the rubber hoses, rubber, plastic shields and rubber gaskets. One Grand Exterior
Rubber & Vinyl Treatment, 3M Rubber Treatment, Meguiar’s #40 Vinyl/Rubber Treatment or
Wurth Rubber Care Spray all work extremely well. I do not recommend treating the underside of
the rubber belts, as this makes them reluctant to turn their respective pulleys, with somewhat
interesting results. (This is somewhat like waxing brake pads.)

The painted areas of your engine compartment (not the engine) should be waxed. If the uncoated
aluminum areas are dull or have whitish corrosion, a mild metal polish will help restore the finish.
My favorite is P21S Multi Surface Finish Restorer Polish. Use a soft, 100% cotton flannel cloth
and work a small amount into the surface and then buff off with another 100% cotton flannel cloth.
Check the battery terminals, to insure that they are clean. If not, disconnect the cables and clean
both the cable terminals and battery posts with a wire brush. Reconnect the terminals and
retighten. Wurth makes a nifty Battery Terminal Spray that protects the terminals from corrosion
and changes from pink to blue if there is battery acid leakage.

All of the hinges, throttle cables, cruise control cables and hood shocks should receive a thin
coating of non-silicone lubricant such as Wurth HHS-2000 Spray Lube. Lastly, check all fluid
levels, remove any stray Baggies and you are finished!

If you have any questions or wish clarification of any of topics, please give us a call.

Car Care Specialties, Inc

116 South Main Street
Unit #2
Lodi, NJ 07644
(973) 767-0033

http://www.carcareonline.com
Car Care Specialties - Product Detail Page

Product ID: 10407 Category: Bug & Sap

Removers
P21S Total Auto Wash - 1 Liter Pump Spray Kit
Description: 1 Liter Bottler with Pump Spray
Ignore the name, P21S Total Auto Wash is a citrus
based, biodegradable cleaner for tree sap, bug
spatters, bird droppings, engines, wheel wells, rocker
panels, floor mats and other grimy areas. To remove
bug remains, tree sap, bird presents from your paint
or wax residue from exterior rubber/vinyl trim, spray
on a soft cloth, dab the spot, let it work for a
moments, dab on more, let it work and then hose off.
To clean engines, mats, wheel wells, etc., spray on,
allow to clean for a few minutes, gently brush heavily
soiled areas and then rinse off with water. Leaves the
finish sparkling clean with a fresh orange scent.
Won’t damage paint, chrome, aluminum, rubber or
plastic. Do not use any degreaser on a hot surface.
When used straight, it will remove old wax and may
also be diluted with water for specific cleaning
projects. (Our favorite citrus degreaser.)
View this product on our web site.