DFB5.0
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Having a clean, detailed engine bay has few practical benefits, save for giving your mechanic something clean to work on. For the most part, a clean engine bay is for the owners pride.
This is a subject that divides opinion. And in that I mean people are a) fine with using water, or b) completely against water entering the engine bay. Having been one of those who didn’t dare point a hose at my engine bay, I can appreciate both sides of the equation.
For this thread, I will cover two basic methods for cleaning an engine bay, one which uses water, and one that doesn’t. Both methods lead to the same outcome, one taking much longer than the other. Either way, this is how to get your engine bay back to looking new.
No Water Engine Bay Cleaning –
This method is great for older engine bays that are less protected or for those who are apprehensive of adding water into the equation.
For the task, you will need the following –
- All Purpose Cleaner
- Rinse-less or Waterless wash
- A Water-based Dressing
- Towels, two or more depending on the level of dirt
- Wheel & Body Brush (soft)
- Bristled Wheel Brush
- Boars Hair Brush
- Compressed Air or Blower
Working in sections, apply APC and start agitating with a towel and the selection of brushes. Remove the cosmetic engine cover if required.
Then, wipe up the residue with the towel. Anything you can’t reach, flush with the rinse-less wash solution.
Compressed air is your friend here, which can help drive the cleaner and residue out of intricate areas like induction tubes, radiator cover ribs ect. Hold the towel in unison to catch the residue in the towel and avoid splattering the surrounding paint.
Once you have cleaned and dried the whole engine bay, including the windscreen scuttle and the underside of the hood, its time to apply some dressing.
There are so many different products to choose from for this task, from tyre dressings, to rubber trim dressings and even ceramic spray sealants like Carpro Reload. I find using runnier liquid dressings for this job to the best, which I will explain why in a moment. Something like Reload will offer the most natural finish, wont accumulate dust and will last the longest. Water based dressings can be diluted to taste are generally easier to apply. My favorites are 303 Protectant, Meguiar’s Hyper Dressing at 4:1 or Koch Chemie Motorplast.
Again, working in sections, mist the dressing onto the plastic surfaces to be treated. Using compressed air will drive the dressing into places where the towel can’t easily reach, this is the reason why runnier products are desirable over gels like VRP or Megs Trim Detailer.
Finished result -
Water Assisted Engine Bay Cleaning -
Modern engine bays are generally well protected from water. In some cases, you will need to cover up the battery, fuse box, alternator or open pod air filters. Provided you use common sense and avoid focusing the stream of water for too long on any one spot, using a hose to clean an engine bay is safe and effective.
For the task, you will need the following –
- All Purpose Cleaner
- Hose or Pressure Washer
- A Water-based Dressing
- Towels
- Wheel & Body Brush (soft)
- Bristled Wheel Brush
- Boars Hair Brush
- Compressed Air or Blower (optional)
- Plastic bags (optional)
It's important to note that this method should be done prior to washing the rest of the car. This helps prevent getting APC and dressing onto the surrounding exterior surfaces.
First step, cover up any sensitive areas on your particular car with a plastic bag. You may find a saturated towel can be handy at keeping the bag weighted down.
Then rinse the engine bay with your hose or pressure washer. As mentioned, don’t focus the water in one direction for too long, move quickly and from a safe distance. Make sure to rinse the underside of the hood and hood insulation if fitted. Blast out the scuttle panel.
Next, cover the engine bay and underside of the hood with APC, then agitate with your brushes. The bristled brush is super handy for reaching down and between confined spaces. The initial rinse and the agitation with APC are where you save the most time over the non-water method, the flow of water is what does the most work here.
Once scrubbed, rinse the engine bay clean.
Then, while still wet, spray the entire engine bay with a water-based dressing, making sure to get the scuttle trim as well. Be generous! Don’t get too hung up on getting the dressing on the painted sections of the engine bay, although don’t directly apply it to these areas.
I use Meguiar’s Hyper Dressing at 4:1 and Koch Chemie Motorplast as these are self-leveling as they dry. From here, this means that you can close the bonnet and walk away. You may decide to use compressed air or a blower to distribute the dressing and speed up the drying process, but it's not really needed. After a few hours (or the next day), you may choose to give the engine bay a quick wipe over the mop up anything that didn’t dry. Apart from that, job done!
Follow Up Maintenance -
From here, the engine bay really won’t need this level of attention going forward. After each wash, a quick wipe over with a towel and some waterless wash or drying aid is all that is needed to maintain this look. Instead of a lot less often, a little, more often is the goal.
This is a subject that divides opinion. And in that I mean people are a) fine with using water, or b) completely against water entering the engine bay. Having been one of those who didn’t dare point a hose at my engine bay, I can appreciate both sides of the equation.
For this thread, I will cover two basic methods for cleaning an engine bay, one which uses water, and one that doesn’t. Both methods lead to the same outcome, one taking much longer than the other. Either way, this is how to get your engine bay back to looking new.
No Water Engine Bay Cleaning –
This method is great for older engine bays that are less protected or for those who are apprehensive of adding water into the equation.
For the task, you will need the following –
- All Purpose Cleaner
- Rinse-less or Waterless wash
- A Water-based Dressing
- Towels, two or more depending on the level of dirt
- Wheel & Body Brush (soft)
- Bristled Wheel Brush
- Boars Hair Brush
- Compressed Air or Blower
Working in sections, apply APC and start agitating with a towel and the selection of brushes. Remove the cosmetic engine cover if required.
Then, wipe up the residue with the towel. Anything you can’t reach, flush with the rinse-less wash solution.
Compressed air is your friend here, which can help drive the cleaner and residue out of intricate areas like induction tubes, radiator cover ribs ect. Hold the towel in unison to catch the residue in the towel and avoid splattering the surrounding paint.
Once you have cleaned and dried the whole engine bay, including the windscreen scuttle and the underside of the hood, its time to apply some dressing.
There are so many different products to choose from for this task, from tyre dressings, to rubber trim dressings and even ceramic spray sealants like Carpro Reload. I find using runnier liquid dressings for this job to the best, which I will explain why in a moment. Something like Reload will offer the most natural finish, wont accumulate dust and will last the longest. Water based dressings can be diluted to taste are generally easier to apply. My favorites are 303 Protectant, Meguiar’s Hyper Dressing at 4:1 or Koch Chemie Motorplast.
Again, working in sections, mist the dressing onto the plastic surfaces to be treated. Using compressed air will drive the dressing into places where the towel can’t easily reach, this is the reason why runnier products are desirable over gels like VRP or Megs Trim Detailer.
Finished result -
Water Assisted Engine Bay Cleaning -
Modern engine bays are generally well protected from water. In some cases, you will need to cover up the battery, fuse box, alternator or open pod air filters. Provided you use common sense and avoid focusing the stream of water for too long on any one spot, using a hose to clean an engine bay is safe and effective.
For the task, you will need the following –
- All Purpose Cleaner
- Hose or Pressure Washer
- A Water-based Dressing
- Towels
- Wheel & Body Brush (soft)
- Bristled Wheel Brush
- Boars Hair Brush
- Compressed Air or Blower (optional)
- Plastic bags (optional)
It's important to note that this method should be done prior to washing the rest of the car. This helps prevent getting APC and dressing onto the surrounding exterior surfaces.
First step, cover up any sensitive areas on your particular car with a plastic bag. You may find a saturated towel can be handy at keeping the bag weighted down.
Then rinse the engine bay with your hose or pressure washer. As mentioned, don’t focus the water in one direction for too long, move quickly and from a safe distance. Make sure to rinse the underside of the hood and hood insulation if fitted. Blast out the scuttle panel.
Next, cover the engine bay and underside of the hood with APC, then agitate with your brushes. The bristled brush is super handy for reaching down and between confined spaces. The initial rinse and the agitation with APC are where you save the most time over the non-water method, the flow of water is what does the most work here.
Once scrubbed, rinse the engine bay clean.
Then, while still wet, spray the entire engine bay with a water-based dressing, making sure to get the scuttle trim as well. Be generous! Don’t get too hung up on getting the dressing on the painted sections of the engine bay, although don’t directly apply it to these areas.
I use Meguiar’s Hyper Dressing at 4:1 and Koch Chemie Motorplast as these are self-leveling as they dry. From here, this means that you can close the bonnet and walk away. You may decide to use compressed air or a blower to distribute the dressing and speed up the drying process, but it's not really needed. After a few hours (or the next day), you may choose to give the engine bay a quick wipe over the mop up anything that didn’t dry. Apart from that, job done!
Follow Up Maintenance -
From here, the engine bay really won’t need this level of attention going forward. After each wash, a quick wipe over with a towel and some waterless wash or drying aid is all that is needed to maintain this look. Instead of a lot less often, a little, more often is the goal.
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I just wiped mine down the weekend, it was only a little dusty so a little wipe and some Carpro Perl and she was good to go. Thanks for the info in case I ever let mine get dirty enough to need a thorough clean.
