Has anyone washed their engine yet? Mine is starting to get pretty dirty, if anyone one has any ideas on cleaning it I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks, Gino

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Gino Tedesco, '99 XLT 5.4l, SUPERCHIPPED, 3" Gibson catback exhaust,4x4 S/C Flareside D.wedge bl/Dk.graph, factory sidesteps & Tonneau cover, Manik grlgaurd w/Piaa lights, 305/70-16 Goodyear Wrangler AT/S tires

 

Great topic! I know it has been talked about before but it has been a while and it sure won't hurt to get some more comments.

I have always had a hankering to clean my engine compartment but all of the wires and hoses concern me - I've never washed it.

I have read though that if you cover the power box (the big black box on the firewall with all of the wires sticking out) and the alternator you should be okay. I think I would stay away from high pressure hoses and stick with chemical cleaners and low pressure water myself.

I have friends who wash there engine down at the car wash every visit - hot engine and everything. Myself, that seems pretty risky.

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'97 F150 Lariat, Flareside, white/sliver, SC, ORP, 5.4 (FQR 8/99) running Mobil 1
Mods: 305/70/16 GY ATS, AR Baja wheels, dual exhaust, Smittybilt Nerf Bars, Edelbrock IAS Shocks, K&N Filter, Carbon Fiber Bug Gaurd and rigged the fog lights too.



[This message has been edited by kkirt1 (edited 11-29-1999).]

[This message has been edited by kkirt1 (edited 11-29-1999).]

 

I know, My friends wash their engines and I laugh, I'm scared of messing it up.

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Gino Tedesco, '99 XLT 5.4l, SUPERCHIPPED, 3" Gibson catback exhaust,4x4 S/C Flareside D.wedge bl/Dk.graph, factory sidesteps & Tonneau cover, Manik grlgaurd w/Piaa lights, 305/70-16 Goodyear Wrangler AT/S tires

 

I wash my engine everytime I wash my truck, at least 35 times in the last 11 months. I do the same with my wifes contour also. When I am done washing the truck I just add a little more water to the bucket, pour it all over the engine compartment and sponge off the easy to reach stuff, then rinse. My wifes contour has 56,000 miles and my truck has 12,000. I never had any problems from water getting into anything, and the engine never gets dirty enough to need heavy duty degreasers to clean it.

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99 F150 XLT Silver 2WD S/C 4.2 5-speed, Pioneer DEH P4000, Superchip, Flowmaster muffler // Rear door switch guards - check them out at http://www.geocities.com/motorcity/show/5031

 

After offroading, especially through lots of mud, your engine can get very soaked with mud, and most people don't often check to look under the hood for a while, letting it dry on there.

Anyways, if you have any of those 'self car wash' stations, you can go in there, some have special engine cleaning fluids, other just water and soap. Don't spray directly into the fan/alternater or electrical systems, but you can cleanly rinse off most things. Furthermore, the hoses and stuff can get mud stained because the rubber is pourous and mud loves to stick in there. You can rub most of it off with yer hands and then rinse.

Just another note, mud loves every little nook and cranny of your truck. In side bumpers and frame, so I'd just take a garden hose, and rinse that until no more mud flows out. Springs quite often get mud in them and need to be relubed a little (WD40) or else insane squeaking occurs.

Sorry for getting off the topic

 

I have a l996 F-150 and since day one I wash the engine completely. It's still clean enough to eat off of. I use the car wash where I put in quarters and turn the engine off and wash it down.

After I go home I use my air compressor to blow most of the standing water off the engine. When its dry I completely spray the engine and hoses etc. with silicone spray.

It still looks like new.

 

Just becareful if you use a pressure washer

 

GinosF150,
Here's what I do... Spray the whole engine compartment down with Simple Green (cool engine) let it sit for a few minutes, rinse it off with a garden hose (no high pressure). Let it dry or drive it till it drys. Then I spray a light coat of wd40 over everything. When the shiny carrier solution evaporates the engine compartment looks new...

Mike

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99 Lariat S/C 5.4 4x4
Amazon Green/Harvest Gold
3.55/LS
K&N Filter
Mobil 1

Oshkosh, WI.

 

I steam cleaned mine last month. I covered up my K&N filter w/ a plastic bag. My engine was pretty dirty and dusty. I used a new product called STEAM made by GUNK just follow the directions. When I used the steam cleaner on the engine, I made sure I stood back a foot or two. Now the good part....... I don't know if the new product did it or not but my entire engine compartment turned out AWESOMELY clean and it SMELLED LIKE IT WAS A BRAND NEW ENGINE ! it freaked me out, like it just rooled off the assembely line. it was that clean. I was leary at first, steaming a new engine (mine has 38,000) but not anymore, I am cleaning it at least once a year. Got for it you won't be disappointed. Try that STEAM product. drop a line here when your finished.

PS I regular hose will work too, but I would try to use a steam machine if possible, good luck.

F&B's

 

One more thing I forgot to mention, I sprayed this product STEAM directly on the paint it's safe to do so (underside of hood) it was really dirty and it came out spotless, not even a speck of dirt on it.

R/

F&B's

 

Everytime I wash the truck, I pop the hood and hose her down!! But I think I would like to try that STEAM Product. Will the local parts house have it?

Dean

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99 F-150,XLT, Silver, 2WD, 4.2L, 5spd, RegCab, Shrt WB, Styleside.
Current Mods:Billet grille, Line-X bedliner, 5%window tint all the way around, Alpine CD w/2 MTX Subs & Rockford Fosgate 250w amp. K&N Airfilter. Glasspac w/dual exhaust exits out the back. Blue Ion Headlights.
Future Mods: Superchip, driving lights(on order), & a custom paint job

 

A couple of points:
Don't let the degreaser get on the painted surfaces of the truck, it will discolor the paint.
Don't hold the high pressure water on the seals, the hot water, chemicals and high pressure will break down gaskets after a while and you'll end up with more oil leaks.
If you start with a clean engine, keeping it clean with just 409 or Simple Green and a garden hose with a trigger sprayer is usually all it takes.

Otherwise all the ideas are good. BTW, "Steam" from Gunk has been around for a looooong time.

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1999 Lariat Super Cab, S.B. 5.4L, 3.55 LS
and everything but the leaky slider window.
Bright red w/ gold 2-tone, Leather Captain's Chairs
Mods: Duraliner bedliner, Bugflector II, Hide-a-hooks.
& a leeetle chrome tip on the exhaust.

 

Well the STEAM by Gunk was new to me, and I really like this product.

F&B

 

Regular cleaning with simple green, etc is fine, heavier cleaning use the gunk products they work well, especially STEAM...but I would not advise using a garden hose or a true steam cleaning or high pressure washer because electronics don't like all that heat & that much moisture. A small engine cleaning gun , warm water, through a compressor with the area pre-treated will work great and not damage (eventually) all those little connectors!

Jeff

[This message has been edited by beechkid (edited 12-18-1999).]

 

I'm with Spartan, I go off-road often and clean the engine after every trip to get all the mud and dirt out. After I wash it down and get it clean I spray it down with a little old fashioned WD-40.

1. It displaces the water on the electricals.

2. Makes it's easier to clean the next time around. Seems the Mud and dirts doesn't stick as bad.

3. Looks brand new all the time.

Done this on every vehicle I've owned nothing but compliments when I pop the hood. Especially from the guys that I go off-road with. They know I keep my truck clean but they're still trying to figure out how I keep the engine compartment so new looking.

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'98 F150 4X4 ExtCab Flareside ORP. Current Mods: Billet Grille, K&N Filter, Spray-in Bedliner, 285-75-16 BFG A/T's, Removed 4X4 Stickers, True Dual exh.