detailing engine

Bill D I went to tol and yes they have excellent savings on 303 but for the price and none of us can deny that Jason's bay is spotless, I think im going to try this combo first. Jason, when you say spray it down with AA and close the hood, do you mean litterally..you dont have to wipe it down.



And to back Bill D up...I beleive being anal retentive plays a big part on this website.
 
To the best of my knowledge AA products contain typical dressing silicones but no naptha, up to the user to decide if that's signifcant or not.
 
You say it like its a bad thing or not sufficient enough...So is water based the only way to go...which one will last longer under the hood.
 
Bill D said:
Why not put paranoia totally at rest and simply use a water based dressing? Also what f the car is a keeper, intended to be had for years and years? Sure seems one less thing to be paranoid about to simply use a water based dressing than one that specifically contains naptha.



The scope of Autopia to a notable degree is to be "anal retentive"
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Bill, I see where you're coming from, however I can't get there from here. We have used somewhere in the amount of 200 gallons of solvent based dressing in the last 10 years, repeat customer's pride and joy automobiles, and have not noticed any ill effects. I look, believe me, I look, I want perfect EVERYTIME.



I have used water-based products in the past and I have to say, I am not pleased with thier performance, you might say i'm being incredibly obtuse, but I prefer solvent based dressing.



I suppose we will just have to agree to disagree on this topic. :D
 
oaevo8u said:
........ spray it down with AA and close the hood, do you mean litterally..you dont have to wipe it down. ......
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Typically you'll let it sit while you do some other stuff then come back and buff/wipe off the excess residue. You'll get a feel for how glossy/matt you want it to look.



Tire foam will leave it fairly glossy, so if you like more of a matt look you'll have to wipe/buff more or consider 303, after all, nothing's too good for your car is it ;)
 
Where do you get the Bleach WHite from? I haven't seen it round here, but i really wasn't looking either...
 
MacGyver said:


I suppose we will just have to agree to disagree on this topic. :D
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Fair enough. "Long lasting" appears to be the motive behind using naphtha based dressings if I understand correctly.



In my experience, if "long lasting" is the key attribute important to you, I also find water based dressings to be surprisingly long lasting under the hood: little exposure to the elements responsible for their degradation unlike their application on tires or other exterior surfaces.





Not intending to "counter punch" or be nasty just sharing about products I use too :wavey
 
oaevo8u said:
Jason, when you say spray it down with AA and close the hood, do you mean litterally..you dont have to wipe it down.
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First, dillute the BW 50/50. BW straight up can discolor a few things like the oi filler cap (yellow paint on top) but dilluted it does a great job and doesn't mess with anything. I always like to clean an engine bay cold even though warm would make it easier to get the grease off. For stubborn oil stains and/or grease stains I use Simple Green. After you spray everything down with BW and SG (if needed), let it sit for a moment and then come back with a wheel well brush and a bucket of Dawn wash and agitate the really dirty areas. All of my engines stay spotless so I don't really ever have to touch them. After you get all the bad areas scrubbed real good, just hose it off with a strong stream. This is where I usually close the hood and start detailing the car, so if any of these cleaners got on the fenders or bumper, they will wash right off. After the engine bay is completely dry, just spray a nice thick layer of Tire Foam on it and let it sit at least 30 minutes and check it. Most of the time, you don't need to do anything but if you sprayed a little too much on certain spots, just wipe it off and you're done.



As a precaucionary measure, it's always recommended to cover certain areas under the hood before spraying directly with cleaners or water (distributor, coil, computers, fuse boxes, alternators, etc) but I've never covered anything and never had a problem, but I don't spray these areas directly anyway. A quick rinse off is all they need. The real water blasting is only needed around the oil pan and suspension areas.
 
jasonmac said:
Jason, have you noticed any ill effects from the BW or AA on the paint in the engine bay -- I'm guessing no way, since AA is water-based? That looks like a great, quick combination, so I want to try it!
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Did some searching, so I think I answered it already. No one has an issue with silicones, right? :) I've narrowed it down to the BW/AA, CD2 (kit) or Gunk/CD2 detailer.



I figure a full detail with one of those and then use 303 to dress later on might be an option; I'll post pics when I do it.
 
The nice thing about the liquid based dressings your choice: water based or not is that they often come in large sizes,like gallons. You can avoid having to store cans of stuff all over. I used to buy all of the foam or spray in can stuff off the store shelf. I even ordered cases. I switched to 303 and other similar dressings and found it easier and more cost effective for me.
 
I will use regular AA when I'm out of foam if I have to, but IMHO it doesn't work as well. The foam allows more of the dressing to get absorbed before it just *rolls* right off, that's why I use it. I find that straight AA spray just pools everywhere and doesn't stick to the important stuff, and most of it just ends up on the ground, where the foam stays on the engine. JMO
 
Prometheus said:
Where do you get the Bleach WHite from? I haven't seen it round here, but i really wasn't looking either...
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All of the auto part stores around here carry it, but I always keep an eye out for when WalMart has it in stock because they sell the bigger refill bottle for the same price everyone else sells the regular sized spray bottle, and I usually use one full spray bottle of BW for an engine detail (dilluted of course).
 
Granted there isn't many ways to avoiding having to apply the spray bottle based AA or similar product without foam brushes but that doesn't take that long and you can totally control where you apply and how evenly you do so.
 
Very true. All preferences I guess. I just hate spending a lot of time on an engine so I try to use the absolute quickest way possible and the foam does it for me, but sure, anything would work. Once the engine starts, any pools leftover will dry up or vibrate out very quickly anyway.
 
Why is it every time I start a new thread it ends up being a war:rolleyes: This is almost as bad as the ZAINO post I started, dont make me delete this one as well:nono ...lol
 
Nahh, no war. Just some friendly posts comparing opinions. Whenever you have a situation where there is more than one correct way to do something, there will always be a slight debate over who's way is better, but in the end it's all about what works for you. If we didn't have opinions, instead of the Autopia Message Board it would be called the Autopia Instructions Board.
 
JDookie said:
..... If we didn't have opinions, instead of the Autopia Message Board it would be called the Autopia Instructions Board.
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That's one of the great things about this board, you find several different ways/products to get the same result. There were some good ideas batted around here on this topic, and a new person reading this thread will have several more options open to him now. :up
 
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