[mithun]

Originally Posted by Ricky_63

kerosene or diesel is used by a lot of service stations - mostly kerosene. I used to clean my engine bay with kerosene with a paint brush to dislodge muck from nooks & crannies & then wash it with RIN or any other soap solution & then use a water hose to wash off the soap etc. used to work well, my Maruti 800 1988 model looked spanking new even after it crossed 1,00,000 kms !!!

Unfortunately have gotten lazy now - maybe I'll get back to doing it again now that we talked about it

I usually cleans the engine bay by the same method !!!

Any other tips, from the Pros ?

[AUTO_CRAZY]

Cleaning the engine room with water is not recomm'd. As water may enter electrical wiring,relays etc. Same ways it may also damage ABS actuators. Kerose is also not recomm'd as it will make the rubber and resin parts hard and damage them over a period. Steam wash is the best.

[ajayclicks]

Auto, Any idea where we can get this steam cleaning done in bangalore, and approx costs for the same?

Ajay

[2fast4u]

when doing the cleaning urself its best to disconnect the battery (remove negative)

[Ricky_63]

Originally Posted by AUTO_CRAZY

Cleaning the engine room with water is not recomm'd. As water may enter electrical wiring,relays etc. Same ways it may also damage ABS actuators. Kerose is also not recomm'd as it will make the rubber and resin parts hard and damage them over a period. Steam wash is the best.

Are you a shippie ??? but all service stations use water jets to wash the engine..so i guess it's ok - kerosene etc will harm if left for a long time so as to be able to corode / damage. Have not come accross steam wash here ever...

[Guderian]

Hi, I have a Scorpio CRDe and I clean the engine well every Sunday as a part of my car seva !
Usually its a bucket or two of water and a Kora cloth.Gently pour the water over various spots and clean with the cloth.Take care around the battery area.Clean up all dust/sand and detritus and check all tubes,hoses etc.
No fancy stuff and the huge engine looks like it did on the day I got it. Also fill up up all the fluids if required. No issues around using the water or cloth - till now !

[moralfibre]

Originally Posted by 2fast4u

when doing the cleaning urself its best to disconnect the battery (remove negative)

This results in a reset ECU for cars running one and may also reset all clocks, Headunits.

[vishnuvijay]

i don't know about how authorized service centre people do it. but i have seen in local workshops people using high pressure air spray and water sprayed along with diesel or/and soap on the engine bay. they don't use any type of cover or shield to cover the battery/electricals etc.

i myself clean my cars engine bay by using water/wet cloth/shampoo/dry cloth.

[2fast4u]

Originally Posted by vishnuvijay

i don't know about how authorized service centre people do it. but i have seen in local workshops people using high pressure air spray and water sprayed along with diesel or/and soap on the engine bay. they don't use any type of cover or shield to cover the battery/electricals etc.

i myself clean my cars engine bay by using water/wet cloth/shampoo/dry cloth.

if its your car then u will certainly take care to know whats the right way to do it best based on ur engine feedback. learning process.
In my case somehow water would reach to the coils and it would not start even after 30 tries to the extent the battery would die - then jump start. checked this the second time same problem but this time did not try 30 times just got it blowered with hot air and on first crank it starts.
In any case its recommended to cover alternator, coil, open battery points and any other open electrical connections.
precaution is better than cure.

[2fast4u]

Originally Posted by moralfibre

This results in a reset ECU for cars running one and may also reset all clocks, Headunits.

reseting is better than getting current from an open wire.
as u know that there are constant 12V lines.

[filcord]

I have done the same as ricky_63 and mithun. Old paint brush in kerosene to loosen grease and oil, follow up with another paint brush in strong detergent solution, this removes the kerosene and the grease, light spray of water to rinse off. Cover the coil/ECU/other electrical stuff that might be open, with a piece of cloth.
After that run the engine for a few kilometres to warm it and dry out the engine compartment - and you have a squeaky clean beauty.

I hate to see a dirty engine compartment - it shows how much you love the car.

[spadival]

Better to clean it ourselves rather than let the service guys muck around with air and water jets inside the engine bay.

BTW, the baleno engine bay gets dirty pretty quickly.. lots of gaps for the dirt to enter from below. I will post a pic one of these days.

[babe_on_wheels]

i have a stupid question here though....but still will proceed still...

What happens if the guy at the workshop uses water with kerosene any mixture with water to spray on...wat if it gets in contact with the contacts and terminals of the battery..i mean even if it is covered it still will not be waterproofed...its just a shield kinda thing..wont it get corroded???

[spadival]

Originally Posted by babe_on_wheels

i have a stupid question here though....but still will proceed still...

What happens if the guy at the workshop uses water with kerosene any mixture with water to spray on...wat if it gets in contact with the contacts and terminals of the battery..i mean even if it is covered it still will not be waterproofed...its just a shield kinda thing..wont it get corroded???

If the car doesnt start after the engine bay is cleaned, better leave it to dry out. Recently, the car cleaner in my apartment splashed some water on to the engine bay even though the hood was closed !! Result: the car wouldnt start.. with krrr sound coming from the engine bay.. Solution: I left the car to dry for a day and in the evening.. Voila.. the car started without any problem !

[gbpscars]

Originally Posted by babe_on_wheels

What happens if the guy at the workshop uses water with kerosene any mixture with water to spray on...wat if it gets in contact with the contacts and terminals of the battery..i mean even if it is covered it still will not be waterproofed...its just a shield kinda thing..wont it get corroded???

my car during its wash 2 weeks before was standing with its engine bay open hoisted 6 feet up for more than 30 minutes until a surprise heavy flash rain subsided. it started with the first spark after the clean up job.

so, just believe in Murphy's law.