What to buy for engine cleaning ?

[toyopl]

Hello, I wanna get my engine bay cleaned and give it some shine. I searched forum here and there's a lot of topics on it but most of them talk about products I don't understand and are not explained so I can understand.
Sorry fo starting another thread but I just wanna ask the questions and not cut into somebodys thread.
I'm in Canada and was thinking about buying Meguiars Engine Cleaner and Dressing on ebay from a guy in UK, what do u think ?
And what products do u guys use ? is there more than one available ? And how do u do it with the product of your choice.
thx

[yalerd]

Re: What to buy for engine cleaning ?

Really depends on how dirty it is.

If you have what a normal engine has, nothing very serious then I would just get Meguiar's All Purpose Cleaner Plus and use with various brushes. Clean everything well and dry. You can use to dress the engine bay area HyperDressing.

Now if your engine has tough grease and things that are serious you could try All Purpose Cleaner Plus diluted stronger.

The Nice thing about APC+ and HyperDressing is that they are products are designed to be used on many other things. See if you can get those products in Canada

[TimG]

Re: What to buy for engine cleaning ?

I'll echo with Francis.

For general cleaning, get an all purpose cleaner (with correct dilution) and couple that with various brushes to clean the plastics/rubber/painted surfaces. Be careful on certain APCs would stain aluminum parts so read the instructions beforehand.

For tougher stains, get a degreaser to cut through the gunk. After that, rinse well.

As for protection, the more popular (well at least what I seen online) would be a water based dressing for all the rubber/plastic surfaces. Usually it would be a spray, let soak, wipe dry.

edit: as for product brands - lots of them to choose from. Ranging from Meguiars to other brands that you might be able to purchase if certain Meguiars' items are unattainable in Canada

Worry not, tons of helpful people here so they'll chime in a while.

Tim

[akimel]

Re: What to buy for engine cleaning ?

There are lots of products to choose from. It seems a bit extreme to order an engine degreaser from the U.K. and end up paying the hefty shipping charges, etc. As others have mentioned, a lot of MOL members use APC+ (diluted 4:1). You can use the APC+ on lots of different tasks, so it's a good product to have. Another possibility for you is to pick up a can of one of the Gunk engine degreaser products (e.g., Engine Brite), which I believe are available in Canada.

For engine dressing, Megs' HyperDressing is very popular here on MOL. The problem is you have to buy a gallon of the stuff, which is both good news and bad news. The good news is that you typically dilute it at, say, 4:1, which means in reality you are getting four gallons of dressing, which is going to last you for an eternity if you are only detailing your personal car(s). The bad news is that the gallon costs you $40+. Other dressings to consider: CD-2 and 303 Protectant. I have used the CD-2 and like the way it performs. It is an acrylic resin (so I have read) and lasts longer than the water-based products.

Cheers,
Al

[Tuck91]

Re: What to buy for engine cleaning ?

I usually clean engines with APC and dress with M40

[toyopl]

Re: What to buy for engine cleaning ?

Well it's all about Meguiars I spent maybe $300 this year on their products and I'm very happy.
I took a quick pic of how the engine bay is, I don't think it's very greasy, it's just very dusty.

[Bounty]

Re: What to buy for engine cleaning ?

Click on the link below and scroll down to a pic of the products used in that engine detail and you'll have an excellent starting point...

http://meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?p=315966#post315966

[toyopl]

Re: What to buy for engine cleaning ?

thx, will start with APC and Hyper-Dressing, we'll see how that goes when it gets shipped here. Those little red and blue spray bottles u buy separate ?

[Bounty]

Re: What to buy for engine cleaning ?

thx, will start with APC and Hyper-Dressing, we'll see how that goes when it gets shipped here. Those little red and blue spray bottles u buy separate ?

If I had to start with just two I'd go with M40 and APC+...the APC will clean and degrease all the major gunk and the M40 will clean and condition/protect both the underhood plastic and all rubber trim, seals, and hoses.

[Eddie6th]

Re: What to buy for engine cleaning ?

I don't know about canada,but I've never been able to get the Meguiar's Engine degreaser here.In the past I've used Gunk for removing oil,also Castrol make a good spray...It's a bit pricey though.

[Calais]

Re: What to buy for engine cleaning ?

Some people my disagree with me on this one, but I recommend Purple Power. It is a great degreaser for seriously gunky engines (like my own). Use it liberally, its cheap (~$4/40oz),

[ziggo99]

Re: What to buy for engine cleaning ?

+1 to Calais, just used some today in the door jams other cars on the door. Works great.

[Megafast13]

Re: What to buy for engine cleaning ?

I didn't read anyone Else's posts yet but here is what I always use and recommend:

If you are going to get the engine wet:

Super Degreaser and Brush



Cover All Electronic Areas with foil
Rinse Engine
Spray Super Degreaser everywhere
Scrub with brush
Allow to sit
Rinse Off
Allow to dry

Not getting it wet:

Use Super Degreaser, APC+ and some old MF towels





Okay,

For really gunky greasy areas, spray Super Degreaser and wipe up with your towel.
For all other areas, simply spray APC or APC+ and wipe up.

Next Step for both of the above:

Apply your Dressing:

A lot of people like M40... I use Gold Class Trim Detailer. It lasts a long time, Deep Shine, and WAY cheaper than M40 or any other dressing.

Use a Circular Foam or MF applicator to apply dressings.