http://www.apexcone.com/TechProcedures/EngineBayCleaning/ArmorAll.html
:scared
Has any Autopian tried this before?
:scared
Has any Autopian tried this before?
Possibly the scariest engine detailing advice I've seen:
- Thread starter rstype
- Start date
:scared :nono :downSteve @ Guru
New member
mmmmm, looks nice! (NOT!) 
imported_Intermezzo
New member
I think some of the Armor-All fumes must have gotten into the camera lense....hence the hazy pic.
Jngrbrdman
New member
Hmmmm.... That engine picture must be the before... Right? That guy needs help...
Oooookay.... Where the heck did he get this crazy idea that Armor All has magical cleaning powers?
I bet it also does wonders for the alternator, just like all that degreaser and water that's been sprayed into it....
Another example of the danger of a little "know how" in the wrong hands. :sosad
I bet it also does wonders for the alternator, just like all that degreaser and water that's been sprayed into it....
Another example of the danger of a little "know how" in the wrong hands. :sosad
Yes, yes this was before I joined autopia.. BUT I still use a similar method to clean my engine bay.
1) simple green and an old toothbrush (for the valve cover and other more durable bits) and a old MF for the painted parts
2) rinse very well.. I've got an aluminum block so I don't want to leave an alkaline substance like simple green on for too long
3) Armour-All foaming Tire spray.
This is where I think I'll give some of your guys gray hairs. I spray all the plastic bits with a good coat of this stuff. The foam clings well and since it's for tires lasts for a very long time. I don't know how good it is for the plastic, but I don't really care since the everything is being swapped soon.
4) another rinse and spot drying with my MF
It works surprisingly well.. I'll take some pics in the spring when I do it again!
wow, I can almost hear you guys cringe.
1) simple green and an old toothbrush (for the valve cover and other more durable bits) and a old MF for the painted parts
2) rinse very well.. I've got an aluminum block so I don't want to leave an alkaline substance like simple green on for too long
3) Armour-All foaming Tire spray.
This is where I think I'll give some of your guys gray hairs. I spray all the plastic bits with a good coat of this stuff. The foam clings well and since it's for tires lasts for a very long time. I don't know how good it is for the plastic, but I don't really care since the everything is being swapped soon. 4) another rinse and spot drying with my MF
It works surprisingly well.. I'll take some pics in the spring when I do it again!
wow, I can almost hear you guys cringe.
Jngrbrdman
New member
I've used the tire foam before on the rubber hoses. I'd never think about soaking down the whole engine bay with normal Armor-All though. The tire foam works really well for when the engine hasn't been touched in 10 years and the hoses are just brown with crud. Whatever works...right?
imported_Luster1
New member
:nono Knows just enough to be dangerous.
"What's that smell?"
"What's that SMOKE?!!!!!"
Speaking to insurance agent after the fire:
"But ...........No One told me......."
"What's that smell?"
"What's that SMOKE?!!!!!"
Speaking to insurance agent after the fire:
"But ...........No One told me......."
Redcar GUY
New member
see sig:down
4DSC: But I wonder how bad it is for the engine. I use 303 everywhere else in the car, but for the cost it's hard to use it for the engine.
Jngr: Yup, I got my car 6 years old and it made the plastics and hoses look great again. The guy I got it from didn't even know how to open the hood, let alone clean anything under it!
Dale: Well once there's an engine in there that's worth taking care of it's gonna take me ages too. Not looking forward to that, but I am looking forward to 100 more hp.
spin
Jngr: Yup, I got my car 6 years old and it made the plastics and hoses look great again. The guy I got it from didn't even know how to open the hood, let alone clean anything under it!
Dale: Well once there's an engine in there that's worth taking care of it's gonna take me ages too. Not looking forward to that, but I am looking forward to 100 more hp.
spin
I don't understand what the huge ordeal is?
Seems to me like he found a great use for a crappy product, and its no more dangerous than any other methods I have seen (all he had to do was cover liquid sensative parts and he would have been at the same level as everyone else in my mind).
Forgive me, but sometimes it seems that autopians link to other peoples detailing advice just to bash it and make themselves feel 'better'.
If this guy's results aren't up to your standards than don't follow his method, but I'm guessing a lot of people out there in cyber world who don't ever clean their engines will be very thankful for this apparently super easy method.
Seems to me like he found a great use for a crappy product, and its no more dangerous than any other methods I have seen (all he had to do was cover liquid sensative parts and he would have been at the same level as everyone else in my mind).
Forgive me, but sometimes it seems that autopians link to other peoples detailing advice just to bash it and make themselves feel 'better'.
If this guy's results aren't up to your standards than don't follow his method, but I'm guessing a lot of people out there in cyber world who don't ever clean their engines will be very thankful for this apparently super easy method.
Redcar GUY
New member
emobob said:I don't understand what the huge ordeal is?
Seems to me like he found a great use for a crappy product, and its no more dangerous than any other methods I have seen (all he had to do was cover liquid sensative parts and he would have been at the same level as everyone else in my mind).
Forgive me, but sometimes it seems that autopians link to other peoples detailing advice just to bash it and make themselves feel 'better'.
If this guy's results aren't up to your standards than don't follow his method, but I'm guessing a lot of people out there in cyber world who don't ever clean their engines will be very thankful for this apparently super easy method.
:nixweiss
imported_Luster1
New member
One thing is for certain.
That engine bay will never rust.
That engine bay will never rust.
Jngrbrdman
New member
emobob said:
Its not elitist to correct the misguided. He suggested that you spray down your entire engine without telling you to not spray water down the valve cover and to avoid the electronics. Those are some pretty important instructions in detailing your engine.
He also suggested that you spray it down with water with a cold engine and then spray Armor All all over it while its hot? Again, not a wise idea. Never spray anything on your engine when its hot. It doesn't matter if its water or Armor All. The laws of physics will apply in the same way. You apply a cold liquid to a hot surface and it may crack. Very dangerous to do.
Perhaps spraying Armor All on your hoses and letting it sit over night is a great idea. It certianly doesn't look like it did his hoses any favors though. I've forgotten to wipe down the hoses after I've sprayed them before and it left drip marks that I had to go back over them to fix.
Basicly what he is suggesting you do is degrease your engine, spray water all over it without covering any electronics or avoiding the danger areas and then heat it up so you can spray it down with a cold shot of armor all. Seems to me that the actual cleaning of the engine took place when he degreased it and rinsed it down. Spraying down a hot engine with Armor All seems like a wasted step. The next steps should have been to dry the engine and then dress the hoses. No danger there.