Here is my engine bay. What is safe to use for cleaning it?

steve1479

New Member
Oct 9, 2009
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Toronto, Ontario
It was mostly the firewall and inner fenders that were all dirty. I tried to scrub the pipes that lead to turbo A & turbo B and the intake manifold, they came out a bit cleaner. Other than that, I didn't really do much.
 

7mLove

Addict
Nov 11, 2009
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Barksdale AFB, Louisiana United States
i always used this shit right here..i think it works great
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Figit090

Fastest mk3 GT4 1/4 mile!
Jan 7, 2006
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Humboldt County
What about alcohol? I've used it and it seemed to work fine on my black engine bay.

While it doesn't leave a sparkling shiny surface without going over at least twice with a clean towel the second time, it WILL help cut some of the nasty oils and other gunk. If you don't wipe it off completely it will leave a bit of haze from the dirty water that didn't get picked up, but again, it's a non-greasy haze that can be wiped off I think, and shouldn't be corrosive...

I don't know how some rubbers hold up against alcohol though, anyone know?
 

WhtMa71

D0 W3RK
Apr 24, 2007
1,813
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Macon, GA
Like I said I used diluted simple green and some engine degreaser in a can with some scrubbing and a water hose and these were the results.
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After
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But like I said, all the pretty white turned yellowish after a few weeks..dammit..
 

steve1479

New Member
Oct 9, 2009
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Toronto, Ontario
Figit090;1488250 said:
What about alcohol? I've used it and it seemed to work fine on my black engine bay.

While it doesn't leave a sparkling shiny surface without going over at least twice with a clean towel the second time, it WILL help cut some of the nasty oils and other gunk. If you don't wipe it off completely it will leave a bit of haze from the dirty water that didn't get picked up, but again, it's a non-greasy haze that can be wiped off I think, and shouldn't be corrosive...

I don't know how some rubbers hold up against alcohol though, anyone know?

With my experience, I've always known alcohol to dry rubber out when it evaporates.
 

whitemike

Banned
Aug 30, 2009
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Winter Park, Florida, United States
whitemike;1486939 said:
Do what I did, take the rubber out, and pressure wash the hard parts. Don't hit the fuse box or other important electrical shit ;) You don't want connectors to rust/corrode..

I was gonna wait to post these in my build thread, but I love Kenny's car, so..

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Bump for pressure washing + purple power.
 

Figit090

Fastest mk3 GT4 1/4 mile!
Jan 7, 2006
1,835
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Humboldt County
steve1479;1488460 said:
With my experience, I've always known alcohol to dry rubber out when it evaporates.

Hah, damn. Well the only other suggestion I have is wd-40 and a good towel, but that would leave some residue. Still...could work well on the gunk.
 

grimreaper

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Jul 2, 2008
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Dallas
never knew about the acidity of castrol super clean. I'll be using something else if its on paint from now on.

Poodles, give your head a break.
 

veedubin

Official SM Decals
I'm not sure if this thread is still active or not, but my personal preference is a product called "LA's Awsome" Found out about this stuff from a detail shop I used to work beside. Around here, it's found at the "Family Dollar" store. Great stuff in full strength it is awsome at cleaning grease. Doesn't mess with paint too much. if you super dilute it, it is better than Stoner Invisible glass for windows. I used this stuff and a pressure washer on my trans when I tore down, and i wish I had before/after shots of that. lets say you could eat off that thing.
 

Figit090

Fastest mk3 GT4 1/4 mile!
Jan 7, 2006
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Humboldt County
Why in the hell would anyone use a cleaner that is corrosive or otherwise detrimentally reactive to their paint when the know that ahead of time?

.............:arcadefre:bigun2:

Does it not matter to some because you can't see it until you lift the hood? :dunno:
 

Keros

Canadian Bacon
Mar 16, 2007
825
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Calgary
gamer565;1486444 said:
Best stuff right there, bought like 5 cans and went to work on my bay and the block.

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Read the whole thread... seems this is the only cleaner not mentioned that won't remove paint, kill rubber, or destroy plastic?

That or Spray 9... atleast then the engine won't get HIV :1zhelp:
 

bfr1992t

The quiet one
Oct 29, 2005
272
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Ohio
Figit090;1489696 said:
Why in the hell would anyone use a cleaner that is corrosive or otherwise detrimentally reactive to their paint when the know that ahead of time?

.............:arcadefre:bigun2:

Does it not matter to some because you can't see it until you lift the hood? :dunno:

Exactly why I ended up using a heat gun on painted surfaces. It's not a spray on wait 5 mins and rinse off method, but every chemical product I tried turned the towel pink.

My red '92 had black cosmoline throughout the engine bay. It took a couple of hours to remove it (including unbolting parts, etc) and another hour for a quick round of paint cleaner to remove any remaining stains and to apply 4-6 coats of wax. Still looks great years later.

I have a horror story from Castrol Super Clean that almost ended with a trip to the hospital. At full strength it will strip paint (oil pan, looked fine after drying but flaked off days later), strip aluminum oxide (surface will reoxidize in a not so attractive finish), pass through latex, and strip the skin off your hands. After that I paid much more attention to the products I was using. Use just enough of the right chemicals to get the job done.
 

Poodles

I play with fire
Jul 22, 2006
16,757
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Fort Worth, TX
Yep, it removes all the oils from your skin. If it gets on your skin, rinse with tons of water until it stops feeling slimy (yeah, that's the same feeling that you get with acids BTW) and then hit with strong moisturizer (A&D ointment seems to work great).
 

Figit090

Fastest mk3 GT4 1/4 mile!
Jan 7, 2006
1,835
1
36
Humboldt County
My friend said Scrubbing Bubbles Bathroom Cleaner works wonders...although I have not tested it myself. BE WARNED. I just wanted to see if anyone else has tried it, or knows by the chemicals contained if it would work.
http://www.overstock.com/Janitorial...throom-Cleaner-12-Carton/2692953/product.html


Doesn't mention rubber on the can though...here's the MSDS to check out details and ingredients:http://www.hescoinc.com/msds/dr94386.pdf

Here is the MSDS for the engine brite by Gunk:http://www.gunk.com/msds/AEC1.PDF

AAND for LA's Totally Awesome: http://www.midlandtool.com/wwwroot/...ing products]L.A. Totally Awesome Cleaner.pdf

Someone with better knowledge of these chemicals could possibly shed more light on them...


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CajunKenny

PULL MY FINGER. PLEASE!
Nov 15, 2007
3,255
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Washington
Ok. Here it is...

Before:

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After:

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I'll bet it's safe to say that my car lost 5 pounds just in dirt removal! ;)

I ended up using a few different things. Dawn liquid soap and Gunk was my arsenal of choice. I also employed a VERY nice tip from someone on here.

There will be additional pics in my build thread shortly...

All in all, it took time and elbow grease. The problem now is that all my scratches show! :biglaugh:
 

S.A. supra

New Member
Feb 15, 2009
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Buda, Texas
Nice I'll be doing mine tomorrow. Ill try What you used, and post the results. Looks pretty nice and clean. What do you plan on doing for your scratches? Oh and how long did it take?