Most Hardcore Engine Degreaser? 87 Bronco

[xantonin]

My buddy has an 87 Bronco which has/had oil leaks of all sorts, and has never been cleaned.

We're talking layers upon layers of oil and crud and stuff plastered on, baked, caked and melted into the block.

We want to clean everything up to help detect future leak, and just to detail out everything.



So what's the best degreaser money can buy, and what's the best process?

[speed3blackmica]

Re: Most Hardcore Engine Degreaser? 87 Bronco

well..id honestly have to say Meguiars Super Degreaser is the strongest stuff ive used, yet still safe to use. Ive tried many engine degreasers..specially the gunk engine brite. those products work, but not to my liking. when i first got superdegreaser i could tell it was strong..specially that meguiars recommends diluting it with water at 4:1 for heavy degreasing. i tried it out and was so impressed. the process is pretty simple..work on a cool engine, a hot engine will evaporate the product and can cause staining. lightly spray the engine down with a hose and water. then liberally spray super degreaser on all the areas you want cleaned..give super degreaser about 1 minute to soak into the grease and grime. and then rinse off clean. however sometimes you will have dirt and gunk so stubborn you will have to aggitate it. so if thats the case, while super degreaser is still on the engine parts, take a brush, perhaps a tooth brush, something with bristles more on the harder side to loosen up any stubborn grease or gunk, and then rinse off..and you can always repeat the process as needed..oh and just to mention, if there are any areas your worried about getting water into, cover them. plastic bags, aluminum foil, etc...all work good for that. for example, i have an aftermarket intake with an exposed filter, when i clean my engine, i wrap a plastic bag over the filter so it doesnt get soaked with water. hope this helps

[xantonin]

Re: Most Hardcore Engine Degreaser? 87 Bronco

So Super Degreaser is the best? Is it safe and/or more effect at a 1:1 ratio for what I need to tackle? What about 100%?

[speed3blackmica]

Re: Most Hardcore Engine Degreaser? 87 Bronco

So Super Degreaser is the best? Is it safe and/or more effect at a 1:1 ratio for what I need to tackle? What about 100%?

100% would deffinitely be too strong. im not sure about 1:1. ive never used it at 1:1 but i suppose if its on an area that isnt any type of polished aluminum or bare aluminum, it could work. ill have to let one of the Mike's answer that question. 4:1 should be enough though. do you have any pictures of the engine your working on ?

i have a thread on here of an engine detail i did using only super degreaser to clean it, not sure if it was as dirty as you describe the engine your working on to be...anyway, all i did was spray it on, then rinse off after 2 minutes. by the way this was super degreaser at 4:1. and ive tackled worse jobs than this at 4:1..here is the link

http://meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=40088&highlight=scion

[Lasthope05]

Re: Most Hardcore Engine Degreaser? 87 Bronco

For heavy grease and caked on grime I take the old school approach. I either use brake/carb cleaner or kerosene. It cuts through it all like a hot knife through butter.

[xantonin]

Re: Most Hardcore Engine Degreaser? 87 Bronco

Really? Hmmm. My friend just ordered some Super Degreaser. Which is better, brake cleaner or carb cleaner or kerosene?

[Lasthope05]

Re: Most Hardcore Engine Degreaser? 87 Bronco

Out of all three kerosene would be the safer to use. I personally like to use brake cleaner to get into those small little nooks and crannies but only on the bottom portions of the engine bay. Subframes, control arms..etc.

[xantonin]

Re: Most Hardcore Engine Degreaser? 87 Bronco

Aside frame safety what's the most effective?

[Lasthope05]

Re: Most Hardcore Engine Degreaser? 87 Bronco

Safety aside, brake cleaner or carb cleaner would be the strongest. They are pretty much similar in make up. Carb cleaner leaves an oily residue so I usually stick to brake clean.

[xantonin]

Re: Most Hardcore Engine Degreaser? 87 Bronco

Ah, excellent. Good to know thank you. Brake clean is cheap too I can pick up a bunch of bottles. I think the autozone brand is like <$1

[J. A. Michaels]

Re: Most Hardcore Engine Degreaser? 87 Bronco

I know your going with the brake cleaner. The few times I used Super Degreaser it it worked great.

[seth1066]

Re: Most Hardcore Engine Degreaser? 87 Bronco

You can save some time as well as product by thoroughly pressure washing it and then use the degreaser of choice. For me it's Megs Super Degreaser, especially after all the big stuff has been knocked off.

Carb Cleaner is petroleum distillate based;

Brake Cleaners are essentially dry cleaning fluid in a spray can.

[cnfowler]

Re: Most Hardcore Engine Degreaser? 87 Bronco

You can save some time as well as product by thoroughly pressure washing it and then use the degreaser of choice...

I'd agree. For caked on grease, a pressure washer is your best friend. I know all about this. When I purchased my Land Rover, I had a huge job to tackle under the hood. I couldn't have done it as quickly or easily without a pressure washer. And FYI, if a Land Rover doesn't leak, its because it is out of fluid.


Colin

[ColonelCash]

Re: Most Hardcore Engine Degreaser? 87 Bronco

I'd agree. For caked on grease, a pressure washer is your best friend. I know all about this. When I purchased my Land Rover, I had a huge job to tackle under the hood. I couldn't have done it as quickly or easily without a pressure washer. And FYI, if a Land Rover doesn't leak, its because it is out of fluid.

[Mary S]

Re: Most Hardcore Engine Degreaser? 87 Bronco

Hi, reading this post I can't help wondering if by "safe" you are talking about something that won't damage some of the finishes or metals under the hood, or if you mean it won't burst into flames because of ambient static electricity! Are some of those fluids you are talking about easily combustible?

My 13-year-old Explorer has never been cleaned under the hood; granted, it has only 83K miles on it. I don't think there are any major leaks. I am going to give the engine cleaning a try in the next week if the weather cooperates. I had originally planned to use APC+ but I think I will use the SD at 4:1 and the Hyper Dressing. I will post pictures.