1st attempt an an engine detail

I

imported_Ronin

New member
I have a black car and a silver car. With that being said, and having looked at the 3M website, would I have to order SMR for light colored cars for the silver car and SMR for dark colored cars for the black car? Does it really make a difference? I'm new to 3M products so I have no clue. :confused:
 
let me see if you can answer the question :D



SMR is swirl mark remover meaning it does have an abrasive compound in it. I figured the reason why they have ones for light and dark cars is the color of the residue. is the one for dark cars dark in color? if not I would tend to use that one as one can see that light residue would look way worse on black. Anyways, if you're going to completely remove this residue, like lets say with Pinnacle Paint Cleansing Lotion then I wouldn't see the need to get both products. What do you guys think? I believe some actually Dawn after SMR, but I would PPCL most likely. HTH-Steve



now that I think about it, it might be advantageous to have a different color residue cause you can see that you have residue. For example, on my silver passat if I used the one for light cars and then did the PPCL, AIO, then SG and it looked great then all would be good right? But what if I did the same thing but with the one for dark cars, did the PPCL, AIO, then SG then there was black still on the car? it would mean that I didn't remove all the SMR completly, I think it may make a good indicator. Cause I don't want light SMR on my car whether I can see it or not inbetween my Klasse and the paint. Unless it fills in the swirls.



okay i'm done rambling :)
 
I thought SMR was a very mild abrasive product and not just makeup. Ron's post indicated that it was really just a glaze/filler.

The 3M site doesn't answer the question....so....which is it? :confused: Or is it both abrasive and a filler?



H
 
to abrasively remove swirls. The oils left behind are usually removed with a car wash, dawn wash, or paint cleanser before applying the final coat of sealant....
 
So I decided to attempt to detail my engine today for the first time. I must say that I was a bit nervous, as I have never done this before.

Here is what I did:
Sparyed entire engine with Purple Power at full strength. Let it dwel for a few moments and then brushed it with an old wheel /spoke brush. I then hosed it off and repeated tha procedure over again. Then I took an old towel and dried most of the water and then turned on the car and closed the hood to allow to dry. After it was dry, I used AA Tire Foam and sprayed the hoses and plastic. I let that dwel for a few moments (AA Tire Foam has some good cleaning power), and wipped off excess. I added Poor Boys Natural Dressing to a few spots and wipped it all down. All in all it took me about 20 minutes.

On to the pics.

Before:
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Purple Power Dwelling:
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After:
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Please let me know what you think. As I stated, I have never tried an engine detail before and I would appreciate your honest opinions. If you have any suggestions, by all means, please let me know.

Thanks for looking.
 
Hey Barry........NICE WORK! Especially for your first engine detail. Looks great!

You can cut Purple Power 50/50 with water and it's just as effective.

Again, nice job!:biggrin::biggrin::biggrin:
 
Luster said:
Hey Barry........NICE WORK! Especially for your first engine detail. Looks great!

You can cut Purple Power 50/50 with water and it's just as effective.

Again, nice job!:biggrin::biggrin::biggrin:
Click to expand...

Thanks Bill.

Will cutting it reduce it's effectiveness?

Street Dreams said:
Perfect work, I dont see any streaking which is great. Reminds me my engine hasnt been touched in months!
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Thanks Dave.

Comming from you, that means a lot.

Mindflux said:
Looks tip top. :) Might have to get me some Power Purple, seems like an effective, relatively inexpensive degreaser one can find locally. :)
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Thanks.

Bill (Luster) turned me on to it. It's very inexpensive and handles a lot of different jobs.
 
Wow, beautiful engine and engine compartment, Barry ! It looks like it is better than brand new !
I am so proud of you !!!

I use P/power too and cut it with water; it will still work but could take a little while longer to clean.

On really dirty, greasy, oily engines, I also turn the P/power up a notch, and brush some of the harder, dirtier areas.

Since I use my pressure washer to wash it down first, spray the chemical, and then pressure wash to rinse, I dont have any issues getting it clean.

The only thing I might suggest is that your engine was so clean to begin with, it might not have needed full strength cleaner, which is dangerous at that mix to the rest of the paint - it will want to remove your wax..

I usually wash the front end of the car with alot of soapy stuff and leave it on to help "protect" the finish while I spray the thing with the chemical.

Wait till your try a can of Chemical Guys Fade to Black on that bad boy - wow, that stuff is also really good, and doesnt leave a greasy, residue like some treatments do.

Again, that engine now looks like the rest of the car - Perfect - ! ! !

Dan F
 
Like this a lot. BMW engine's look so nice. Engine degreasser is the only product I haven't purchased yet for my home supplies. Not sure what to use just yet, but I think I'll research this purple power stuff.
 
Stokdgs said:
Wow, beautiful engine and engine compartment, Barry ! It looks like it is better than brand new !
I am so proud of you !!!

I use P/power too and cut it with water; it will still work but could take a little while longer to clean.

On really dirty, greasy, oily engines, I also turn the P/power up a notch, and brush some of the harder, dirtier areas.

Since I use my pressure washer to wash it down first, spray the chemical, and then pressure wash to rinse, I dont have any issues getting it clean.

The only thing I might suggest is that your engine was so clean to begin with, it might not have needed full strength cleaner, which is dangerous at that mix to the rest of the paint - it will want to remove your wax..

I usually wash the front end of the car with alot of soapy stuff and leave it on to help "protect" the finish while I spray the thing with the chemical.

Wait till your try a can of Chemical Guys Fade to Black on that bad boy - wow, that stuff is also really good, and doesnt leave a greasy, residue like some treatments do.

Again, that engine now looks like the rest of the car - Perfect - ! ! !

Dan F
Click to expand...
Thanks Dan.

Those are some very kind words. I appreciate the words of encouragement and the added tips. I don't have a pressure washer, so would the fact that I am using a garden hose with a fire nozzle, make a difference on the strength of the PP?
94Canuck said:
Like this a lot. BMW engine's look so nice. Engine degreasser is the only product I haven't purchased yet for my home supplies. Not sure what to use just yet, but I think I'll research this purple power stuff.
Click to expand...
Thanks.

It is really a very versitile product.
glfahlc said:
good work barry, you did a great job on your baby. did you rinse it down without covering anything i.e. spark plugs or electrical components
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Thanks.

The plugs as well as all of the electronics are all pretty well covered in the BMW's. I didn't cover anything, but I tried to be careful about how much water I sprayed into the engine.
 
Top Notch Job Barry :wizard:

I also use Purple Power as my primary degreaser. Yes, 50/50 IMPO is just as effective as full strenght which is great. $3 a gallon is impossible to beat :soldier:
 
Barry,

I have also used a regular hose and a brass nozzle on engines before and it works fine. If it will move the dirt and whatever else is on the parts in the compartment, that will be all you need.

I just like to use a 2.0 gpm pressure washer because it gets all kinds of stuff off the car that is particular to the Northwest - mold, little trees, composted mud and gunk in all the door and trunk jamb areas out really quickly, provided its not been in there so long you need to go to the Forestry Ranger Station to get a tree cutting permit. :)

I try to find Purple Power on sale and am also wondering how effective the Meguiars APC's or Super Degreaser's would do vs their cost..

I remembered something the other day, back when I was a kid, the most unscrupulous car places would have the guys spray down the cold engines with something like lacquer thinner to cut all the grease off, let it all dry, and then spray the entire engine with an appropriate engine color - orange for Chevrolet, blue for Ford, etc...

I am sure glad we dont have to do anything like that any longer...

Dan F
 
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