hey guys... so i personally think my engine bay needs a bath. the thing isnt to pritty. the last time i cleaned out my engine (in my old car), moisture managed to leak down and kill 2 of my spark plugs... im really not a fan of that happening again. (then again that was an old 92 lumina)

so what would be the best idea for cleaning up the stang? i heard steam cleaning works well. not sure who does it (a ford dealer?) its kinda freezing out this time of year, so i was hoping to find something i wouldnt freeze my *** off doing. any opinions or words of wisdom would be appreciated [8D]

 

This would get more responses in the detailing section. If you do a search, you can find some good posts about it. There have been many people that have asked this question.

 

dont steam clean or pressure wash . use wheel cleaner & hose off w/out spray nozzle .

 

SImple green works too but keep your car running, and dont water it down forever cause water will get to your coil and it will miss for a while, it happens to me everytime i clean mine, i just leave it run for an hour with the hood shut and it dries up the moisture

 

Simple Green. Should be able to get it at Autozone or NAPA.

 

dont use steam or water. i used my water hose to clean off mine and kept it away from all the coil packs and still had 3 packs burn out. thank god the ford dealer replaced them 4 free. from now on itsalittle degreaser and a bunch of rags!!!

 

I use EngineBrite on mine, available at most parts stores or other retail store. It's an engine degreaser, and it foams up. It worked pretty good for me. Just use it in spots, and when you rinse it off, spot spray and be careful where you're spraying, don't spray the whole engine down. Anything that doesn't clean off to your approval, you're gonna have to grab some shop rags and Simple Green or something else and get in there. And when you're done, wipe down any black plastic or rubber parts with ArmorAll or some other plastic/rubber shiner, it makes it look nice.

 

the last time i triedcleaning my engine bay, i had to spend the rest of the nightblowing water out of the plug wells [:@]

 

Interesting, I've always cleaned mine at the car wash. Switch it to the engine cleaner and hose it down.I haven't had a problem in 6yrs.

 

EXACTLY!! I've been hosing my engine down for 10 years now. Yes the water likes the plug holes, but nothing an air compressoercan'et blast out or the engine can't dry up. If you mess something up is because you are a rookie. I have NEVEr had any problems cleaning an engine. I had a detail business and I would spray atleast 50 engines off a week! Not one problem. Here's the scoop: Spray degreaser, not that foam crap that auto stores sell like engine brite or gunk. That stuff is junk and causes all kinds of problems.
1. Get a standard degreaser like Simple green as mentioned before and spray your engine down liberally while it's COLD and stay off the alternator!!!
2. Let it sit up for about 30 miutes. It will dry and look like runs all over the plastic parts. Drive your car to the car wash with sprayers or if you have a pressure washer.
3. When you get your car inside the wash bay turn your engine off and spray your engine with a light coat of degreaser.
4. Turn your engine on
5. Use wash with soap at high spray on your engine and hold the nozzle away about 1ft.
6. Stay off the alternator!!! Stay off the black box in the passenger corner of the firewall and go easy on the coil packs. Everywhere else spray the crap out of, even your battery. I spray off my hoodliner first, but don't get too close or you'll rip it. If you have a CAI, just stay away and you'll be fine. DON'T wrap a bag around it as the engine will starve for air.
7. turn rinse cylce on and rinse the engine. I usually go around the whole car at the same time, but you want to wash the engine first, make your way around the car and then rinse your engine first.
8. You can shut your hood immediately and drive home. No need to let your car run for hours on end unless it's super cold out, then 1 hour will be suffucient.