Spring Cleaning Hey TGS91, make that 4 days! Along with more breaks I also put in new spark plugs right in the middle of Spring cleaning. Probably won't pass a white glove inspection, but looks a whole lot better then it did. Trying to decide on what to treat the hoses with as everything I've seen makes them look like they've been shellacked. Don't care for that look, I want them protected. Here's a couple "after" pics. The "before" ones got disappeared! LOL :smilewinkgrin:
Looking pretty good! You try 303 Aerospace Protectant? Tip I got from Lotsie was after you've had enough of the wiping down with SG.....spray the crap outta the engine bay with the 303 and then take your ride for a 10+ minute rip around the neighborhood. Get back and wipe it all down. Should put a even bigger smile on your face!
Thanks much TGS91 and Lotsie, too. I've got the 303, but wasn't sure about using it in the heat of the engine bay. Tomorrow AM's project. I'm good at 10++ minute rips, LOL!
OctaneGuy uses Pre-Wow to clean an engine bay in this thread: http://www.motoringalliance.com/forums/detailing/4203-octaneguy-monicas-2007-chili-red-mcs-detail.html#axzz1z7HBD4OB While my bottle of Black Wow may last as long as my car, I think that I need to buy Pre-Wow by the gallon.
First engine bay cleaning. I followed Mark's instructions, 1st post in this thread, paragraphs 1 & 2.
My sincere apologies Little Wing. A superb job. Well done. It is nice to see a female take notice of the importance of keeping an engine clean. Not only do I have to keep mine clean, I have to keep my wife's 2010 HzBl MCS clean as well. As a matter of fact, I just came back from washing it, cleaning the wheels, ArmourAlling the tires and cleaning the engine bay, which included polishing the strut bar. All this in 90 degree heat.
ArmourAlling ar·mour-all-in [ahr-mer-awl-lin] verb American Idiom 1. The act of wiping a typically liquid synthetic substance on non-metallic motor vehicle surfaces to clean, protect, beautify and sometimes increase slipperiness to never before levels. Origin: 1970's: Middle America
Whadda ya mean sometimes? Haven't you seen that armorall advert where it takes a whole pit crew to clean up the smutz after the armorall'd car leaves the driveway? What's up with that?
Ok, I really need to clean my engine because I've got 52,000 miles and I've never cleaned under the bonnet. Question though, how do you clean the underside of the bonnet? I've got a bunch of dirt built up but I haven't seen how you can clean it all off.
I cleaned a friends engine compartment that had a lot of miles & never been done. I used kerosene on old rags. It was gentle on the painted underside of the bonnet. For the rest of the engine I's follow the write ups on how to.
Well, I'm just a beginner and don't know much at all, but I used a weak solution of Hydro Wash and gently, gently sort of sponged at it. I was afraid of washing the paint off. A good bit of dirt came off and the paint stayed put so I stopped. I figure I will work at it slowly over time. I'm wondering if there is any value in using Hydro Seal or Epic on the paint under the bonnet and in the engine bay? Will the heat just burn a sealant off? What about spraying something like clear engine paint that can take the heat?
Personally I would not try spraying clear under the bonnet for fear of screwing it up. There is a lot of heat under an R56 MCS hood.
Strong Cleaners Under Hood This thread has had some discussion on how strong cleaning solutions can damage the underhood paint, which does not have the protection of clearcoat. Thought a picture could be worth a 1000 words, so . . . As one can see, cleaning solutions can disolve the paint and wash it away. Wish I could identify the culprit solution, but the damage occured during the previous owner's time. And, it was not just the underhood cleaning chemicals - the white top paint that extends under the hatch, also lacking clearcoat, has been washed away in the same manner. The BRG MINI had some gunk looking like undercoating on the bottom side of the hood. Thought a mild solvent - mineral spirits - would remove it. Did so, but also removed the paint. Fortunately, it was just a small spot and repainting was not difficult task. Repainting the areas under the hood and hatch of the MC40 will be a time consuming, tedious task. Wished the previous owner had read this thread. Hope this post helps others avoid such damage.