How to detail an engine?

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brig2221

New member
After I bought my new 07 Accord a few months ago, I ran into this site and have been a car detailing aficianado ever since!



I finally have all of my products and tools down pat for both my exterior and interior details on my new car. One thing I haven't learned how to do yet is to detail the engine on my car.



I am looking for some advice on the following questions:



1) What products do I need and would you recommend??? I am assuming I would need some type of degreaser and some type of spray for the rubber and platic in the engine.



2) How do I physically detail the engine??? As I mentioned earlier, I have a 2007 Honda Accord. I would plan on taking the car to my local quarter car wash. I assume I would be popping up the hood, spraying some degreaser all over the engine, letting it sit for a bit, covering up some parts of the engine that need covering up, and then power spraying everything off. Topp it off with treating the rubber and plastic. I think I have the general jist of it, I am looking for specifics if someone is willing to offer them.



I appreciate all responses. Thanks!
 
Here is what I do.



I get tin foil and wrap up most of the electrical connections that I can see. This works much better than plastic bags being that you can form it around the parts.



Spray down engine bay with a degreaser, it doesn't need to be some fancy crap, most any will do.



I get a brush and scrub areas I can reach and see, then get the hose out and spray down the whole thing



Remove the tinfoil



Turn the engine on and let run for 10 mins to dry out.



Use and old MF and wipe everything else down.



Then I get a foaming tire spray and spray the whole thing down. Let it sit for about 30 minutes and mop up and pools, it will dry out when running later.



Thats it. Never had an engine that took over 30 mins.
 
It's about the same procedure from most people. I just wait til the engine is cool, spray it down with a shower of water, spray degreaser on everything, scrub what I can, rinse, use my shop vac on the exhaust port to blow all the water out. I usually do the engine before any other cleaning so by the time I'm done, the vehicle is ready to safely start up.



(I'm a bit paranoid about water on the engine)
 
Would Simple Green work as a good engine de-greaser? Also, I have the original Armor All Shine, which thanks to ScottWax, I now know works great as a rubber dressing.



Anyhow, my car is relatively new, and the engine isn't that dirty. That said, does anyone have an product recommendations that I could get over the counter? Thanks!
 
Pretty much any mild degreaser will do the job. A good OTC product would be one of the citrus based cleaners. There is no need to do any manual scrubbing, especially since your car is so new and there is only going to be a minor layer of dust and dirt that will come off easily with the cleaner and high pressure water from the coin op. Just be careful and avoid direct high pressure water to electrical connections and such. Its also a good idea to let the engine cool down a bit first before spraying cold water on a hot engine. In the past, what I have done is pop the hood to aid in the cooling down process and wait a few minutes. The engine is definitely still going to be hot when cleaning, but I have not any problems whatsoever. If your doing it at home then thats a different story. If thats the case, a 30 minute cool down period should be sufficient.
 
brig2221 said:
Would Simple Green work as a good engine de-greaser? ..Anyhow, my car is relatively new, and the engine isn't that dirty.
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Simple Green can permanently stain some aluminum finishes, so I wouldn't use that. Not sure what's available OTC but some place oughta have a good APC like Meguiar's APC+.
 
so i could use my armorall tire blackening foam to make my engine look better?

If, so thatd be cool....



what elese is that stuff good for?
 
If you just bought the car, and it is new, the engine should not need to be sprayed down with water. You run the risk of damaging electrical components on your new car and voiding the warranty. I would just use some damp MF towels and wipe everything down. After that, use a spray dressing like Stoner's More Shine to dress the rubber and plastic parts.
 
brwill2005 said:
If you just bought the car, and it is new, the engine should not need to be sprayed down with water. You run the risk of damaging electrical components on your new car and voiding the warranty.
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Who told you that......?



An external water rinse is not going to damage your engine or void your warranty......



(your right about his car being new and it not needing a lot of attention but, a spray down with a mild degreaser and a shower rinse with water is fairly harmless with modern engines......:xyxthumbs)
 
Spray off the engine and everything around it. Spray on ALOT of Megs APC+, let it sit some... brush the areas that need it with a small brush.. Give it a GOOD rinse.. Dry.. Spray on protectant of choice. I drive a jeep so it may be different on other vehicles. Ive had it under water before offroad so spraying it with alittle water isnt going to hurt a thing.
 
Dave1 said:
Who told you that......?



An external water rinse is not going to damage your engine or void your warranty......



(your right about his car being new and it not needing a lot of attention but, a spray down with a mild degreaser and a shower rinse with water is fairly harmless with modern engines......:xyxthumbs)
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Are you kidding? What makes you think flooding your engine with water can not damage it?
 
I guess one of the previous posters repsonse is what is scaring me the most. I obviously can find a light degraser, try and cover up any electric plugs, unplug the better, and then spray down, but I fear screwing up my engine.



I guess everyone here talks about it like it's just as easy and harmless as spraying down and wiping off the exterior of your car. I was just curious realistically, how great or how little the chance is of actually screwing up my engine or electrical system.



I know a lot of your professional detailers probably do this every day without incident, but please keep in mind that I know nothing about the modern engine at all, and will just be trying to cover up components and or plugs that I think I should be whereas you will probably be covering up areas that you KNOW what they are.
 
brig2221 said:
I guess one of the previous posters repsonse is what is scaring me the most. I obviously can find a light degraser, try and cover up any electric plugs, unplug the better, and then spray down, but I fear screwing up my engine.



I guess everyone here talks about it like it's just as easy and harmless as spraying down and wiping off the exterior of your car. I was just curious realistically, how great or how little the chance is of actually screwing up my engine or electrical system.



I know a lot of your professional detailers probably do this every day without incident, but please keep in mind that I know nothing about the modern engine at all, and will just be trying to cover up components and or plugs that I think I should be whereas you will probably be covering up areas that you KNOW what they are.
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I am a professional, and do this every day. I do not do engines though. I do not want the liability of possibly damaging a customer's engine with water. I explain the risks to my customer's, and they understand just fine. I will wipe down dusty engine covers and hoses and dress with a spray dressing. My whole point is that your new engine should not need much more than a simple wipe down and dressing. I see no point in spraying it with water as you run a risk, however small, of damaging an electrical component.
 
My tip would be to avoid tire dressings or silicone sprays. It is shiny at first but collects dust like crazy. I much prefer a water based dressing. Even OTC, like armour all interior dressing, works great.
 
If you don't know what you are doing you should avoid it and seek a fellow Autopian to show you the way. Older cars have less "sensitive" electronics but can still be a pain. A LIGHT misting would be unlikely to damage any engine but a full steady continuing stream of high pressure water can cause issues. Many seals are designed for the real world and in the real world the rains doesn't swoop in at 100 PSI and ten gallons a minute.



Today's modern cars should not exhibit a large amount of grease and oil contamination
 
Flooding may harm it, but water won't. If water was such a threat to modern engines then the engine bay would be totally sealed. Last time I checked I could still see the driveway if I looked into a modern engine bay. Engines aren't made of sugar and a light degreasing and rinse isn't going to hurt anything.
 
Have you checked your owner's manual? I own a Ford Windstar and a Lexus ES350 and they both have a section in the owner's manual about cleaning the engine. They both explain what parts to cover and in both cases, it is the air intake and battery.



The way I see it is I'd REEEAHHHLLLYYYYY like to see either Ford or Lexus attempt to deny a claim because I had the audacity to clean my car's engine in a manner as specified in the manual.



Also, I'm an engineer so I tend to think quite analytically. That being said, I'm sure the designers anticipated that a car engine would get wet; however, I'm not sure they designed every part to be able to withstand several thousand psi pressure water aimed directly at it. Even otherwise waterproof seals will allow some water leakage if it is at a high enough pressure. Every design has its limits. Since I don't know what those design limits are for my car, I have to go on the assumption that the manufacturer knows what they are talking about when they specify how to clean the engine.
 
brwill2005 said:
Are you kidding? What makes you think flooding your engine with water can not damage it?
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What part of rinsing off a degreaser qualifies as flooding......?



As a pro you might not want to do engine compartments but, that doesn't stop other pro's from performing that task on a daily basis.....with water.



To each his own......
 
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