2nd Gen Non-Engine/Transmission cleaning engine compartment

[JCyrbok]

Was planning on cleaning the front of my engine to get rid of the breather bottle spit and was thinking of doing the rest too. Was planning on using Simple Green, Any problems?



Also anything I should watch out for or beware of, cover anything, etc?



Thanks

J-

 

[CumminsPower98]

If using a car wash try to keep the high pressure away from electrical connectors and try not to fully douse the alternator. Other then that you should be fine.

 

[OTRPU]

Have read that it's not good to let the Simple Green dry on, guess it will etch aluminum. I make sure the engine is cool, then don't use the high pressure spray, just the idle pressure of the pressure washer.



Cheers,

Steve J

 

[bmoeller]

I use the power washer at work. I can turn down the pressure low enough to stick my hand in front of it, as if I had my thumb over the garden hose. Have an external hot water heater on wheels that puts out some pretty good heat. Between the two, it works great.



Biggest thing, is to keep the spray nozzle pointed away from directly hitting a seal, gasket or electrical connection. Don't want water to get past the seals. Careful around the air filter too.



Other than that, have at it.

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

NO WAY would I use a pressure washer on the newer electronics-loaded engines! I had to clean the engine bay once on my '02 - sprayed with a decent citrus-based cleaner, then quicky sprayed with a relatively gentle flow of water, avoiding electrical plugs as much as possible. I covered the alternator with a plastic bag to keep water out of it - all came out great... Water leakage past seals and into electronics plugs can come back to haunt you LONG after the actual wash job...

 

[Jim McCarty]

Simple Green can and will wreck your paint. Keep it off the body and the air horn and other parts could be dulled as well. Don't ask me how I know.

 

[JCyrbok]

Anything better than Simple Green?

Cool, thanks for the replies.



I was gonna just use my garden hose with the spry nozzle as I figured the power washer would be too much.



Is there a better product out there than Simple Green to cut the grease and grim, that I wont run the risk of damaging the aluminum and paint? I got it because I heard it works great on grease and oil and it is non-toxic ( so I though it would be pretty mild on the paint, etc)



I'm gonna do this first thing in the morning, so the only heat the engine will have is from backing ten feet out of the garage, so I dont think that will be a problem.



Thanks again



J-

 

[DPhillips]

How did it go?

What did you use to clean the dirt and grease from the engine? Simple Green or some other product? How did it turn out? Any problems after sprayin the engine?



Thanks

 

[Wiredawg]

I use Castrol Industrial Cleaner at Wal Mart. This stuff is strong. I wet the engine first while it's warm, spray it down and it's good to go. Hasn't tarnished or stained anything, but I don't recommend letting it dry on metal parts. Also great for cleaning tires.



Wiredawg

 

[paniolo]

Watch da high pressure on thee radiator, trans cooler and A C condenser them fins are fragile.