Engine cleaning tips?????????

I can get my engine looking MINT!

... because I wipe the engine off each time after I wash the car, so it never really gets bad.

... I use Orange Glow cleaner (but any MILD degreaser will do). Don't use harsh cleaners.

... get lots of q-tips, old toothbrushes.... and tooth picks. And, roll up my sleaves and get busy!

... I then use a high-gloss tire gel on the hoses, but I buff to a satin glow.

... If the shock area and lower/upper mounts are REALLY greasy, I'll use some Gunk Degreaser in an arosol (sp?) spray can. It's potent stuff, I wouldn't use it in the engine compartment.

Here's a process that has worked for others.
Engine Cleaning Proceedure courtesy of Mean Green


1. Spray down the engine compartment with the hose (I took off the fuel rail covers and made sure to get everything free of loose dirt and dust).
2. Then close the hood and start the car and let idle for about 5 minutes to warm it up and then shut it off.
3. Using Simple Green (Full Strength, no dillution), amply spritz everthing you want clean.
4. Close the hood and go drink a beer (or in my case, wash the Fuel Rail covers with hot water and Dawn and let dry).
5. Next spray out the engine compartment completely.
6. Spray Armour All or equiv over those same surfaces. Avoid the belts and wiring. Use alot on the fender covers and the radiator shroud.
7. Close the hood and go and Spray Armour All on the Fuel Rail covers.
8. Open the hood and reinstall the Fuel Rail covers and your done.
Won't take more that 20 minutes and your engine will look like it just came off of the showroom floor.

Re: Re: Engine cleaning tips?????????

basecorvette said:

...Also I have developed a bleach like stain on the carpet on the inside of the hood from the windshield washer fluid container. It seems like the fluid squirts out onto the carpet. The cap seals well. Anyone ever had a problem like this? I wonder if it is covered by GM warranty.

basecorvette

Click to expand...

Torch Red 2K said:

This problem is common with C5s. It's coming out of the vent in teh cap. Try putting a "filter" under the cap. If you look around you can find some thick dense foam to cut a plug the size of the cap. This will slow the fluid down during sloshing

Click to expand...

You're absolutely right and your solution is simple and ingenius. I simply didn't fill the windshield washer tank which ameliorated the problem but didn't eliminate it. I will apply your solution. The vent can't be blocked because that would prevent the entry of air to equalize pressure in the system when the pump draws fluid from the tank. The foam acts as an air-permeable barrier for the fluid going in the reverse direction.

This phenomenon is caused by hard acceleration. The engine (which is an air pump after all) sucks in a tremendous amount of air creating a low pressure area under the hood. The washer fluid gets sucked up from the vent hole in the cap, soaks the hood liner in a spot about twice the size of a silver dollar, and gets pulled out by the low pressure area at the base of the widshield and splashed onto the windshield.

The first time this happened, while jousting with a guy in a Ferrari 512 TR, I thought "Oh ****, I broke the engine just showing the flag" (I had a '91 ZR-1 which had an engine expire with about 3,000 miles on the odometer and which Chevy bought back from me and I was thinking "Not again!").

Thanks for the truly clever tip!:thumbsup:

Ray