I have seen some stunningly clean engines/bays out there with high miles so I know someone has some secrets...comon and share them! Inspiring and inquiring minds want to know! How do you get all the crap off of there and leave a spotless engine...say you start with this...



(Not poking fun of the owner of this car/engine, just quickest I could grab. No Fieros were hurt or injured during the photographing of thi sengine.)

Most "stunningly clean" engines were either kept clean over the long haul, and just touched up for shows, or were removed from the car for cleaning. You could use engine cleaner on that one, and it would help, but it really needs to be cleaned piece-by-piece. And that car needs one of Rodney Dickman's spacers for the oil fill cap. It seems to be leaking.

drop the craddle.
degreese everything
replace the "hard to reach area" stuff(rear plugs, etc.)
replace/ clean real good "seen parts"
paint things

all in all you will learn all about the engine and it will get the care/shine you seek

I have a hunch that all the detailers do is put some greasy goo on all the black parts to give it that "wet" look. But really it is still dirty underneath. But that is just cynical me talking. I am sure that many of the well-loved cars are meticulously scrubbed and polished and are truly clean.

I do wonder about this though. When I rebuilt my headlight motors, I scrubbed and scrubbed the plastic housings and they look much better, but they are still very dull and do not "pop" like other front compartments I have seen in pictures here. I am guessing that is where the goo comes in. Maybe someone can set me straight on this...

thats an easy one...
get some spark plug wire holders. should be able to get those at someplace like advance auto or autozone.
pressurewash the bay with a car wash engine degrease and light rinse all the last off. clip the plug wires
in between the hoist hook and the valvecover fierostore vacuum line kit wire brush the egr cover... best to take
it off and wire wheel it then paint it. now soap water and a rag for that intake tube. use tireshine on the drying process
car polish the intake plenum.
re-arranging vacuum lines, wiring, and stuff makes the look way cleaner.
there is only so many types of vacuum so if you have twenty vacuum lines running side by side that is just a waste. some of the vacuum lines can be combined to minimize tubing
corrosion must be fixed/replaced that is the hardest to remove.because it cost the most money usually

A lot of work ,, I have not had the patience for this the past 30 years,in the fifties my engines were spotless ,to much work,,start with the big stuff,like the rubber snorkle,you have to use armour all and clean it all over ,then clean up the valve covers and plenum,you do not have to remove them,touch them up with heat resistant paint use book type match sticks,, clean up the caps, paint if needed..
clean up the rusty stuff like the Egr top,,paint it..
Do the parts that stand out !! You need naval jelly, paint,old tooth brushes ,some of the old tooth brushes you cut the bristles shorter ..this gives a harder brush when you need it,old paint brushes,some type of gunk or foaming engine cleaner,brake cleaner,a selection of old rags..I never pass up a towel in the road if there is no traffic,,some of these towels are now in my bath room ,,better than i would buy,,the tire track on one towel shows I have zest for life..
the 2.8 Air cleaner should be rubed out or painted..just do the big and easy items,,when you start cleaning the nooksandcrannies with the Q tips, you are in for real labour.
Im not a fan of pressure wash,, I lay the hose in the Sun to heat water ,,you can wash engine and detail with out removing parts and still have a great engine bay..
you can use old news paper isolate rear valve cover and paint it while it is on engine..

[This message has been edited by uhlanstan (edited 01-31-2010).]

I use either spray nine or greeze off by 'Kights Products'. On a COLD really dirty engine and after bagging the distributor I start of 100% strength in a lawn & garden pump sprayer. With a mirror you can work the firewall side and get most of that side degreased ( a lift does make it much easier) . After letting it soak in for 15 min I CAREFULLY powerwash the engine bay down at the lowest pressure I can use to remove the grease. Repeat as necessary and on really dirty areas use what ever brush will reach to clean. Dry engine with airhose and then check all electrical connections especially grounds for corrosion and clean as required. Touch up scrapes in paint with rattle can or brush. Repair oil fill cap gasket if necessary and check distributor area and valve covers for leaks. After everything is BONE DRY finish with Knights 'Final Touch' or Armour All. Take your time and keep the electronics as dry as you can.
1 hard core cleaning in the spring and barring getting caught in a rain the rest of the season usually only requires a quick rinse and touch-up.

[This message has been edited by steve308 (edited 01-31-2010).]

I never let mine get dirty. Never.

A little Fantastic and aluminum cleaner twice a year and fix any leaks asap. What you see when you look at my engine is what I bought in 85. One advantage of being the original owner.

Also my wheel wells are factory fresh too. They are cleaner than some cars. I washed them with every wash of the car. Still do the same on my daily driver HHR.

The seceret is the hard work is getting it clean the easy part is just do a little clean up every week and it is easy to maintain. A few min of cleaning a week will save several days of cleaning later.

[This message has been edited by hyperv6 (edited 01-31-2010).]

Mine is semi clean. A work in progress. I work on it a little everyday in summer, and in winter, I do the things that can be done indoors, such as headliner or a shift boot. But yeah, Fieros have got to be the dirtiest cars ever. On mine, there's some sort of greasy-tar like substance...

quote Originally posted by CaravanBill: I have a hunch that all the detailers do is put some greasy goo on all the black parts to give it that "wet" look. But really it is still dirty underneath. But that is just cynical me talking. I am sure that many of the well-loved cars are meticulously scrubbed and polished and are truly clean. I do wonder about this though. When I rebuilt my headlight motors, I scrubbed and scrubbed the plastic housings and they look much better, but they are still very dull and do not "pop" like other front compartments I have seen in pictures here. I am guessing that is where the goo comes in. Maybe someone can set me straight on this...

There are some things you can do to make plastic parts look better. Turtle Wax Ice works well on plastic, and dries completely so there is not any "goo" to collect dirt. For interior black, such as your ashtray lids, try wiping them with a paper towel moistened with WD-40, and then rub them well with a dry paper towel.
The "goo" that many use before car shows on black parts is "Back to Black". It makes the black parts look good, but it does collect dirt.

quote Originally posted by CaravanBill: I have a hunch that all the detailers do is put some greasy goo on all the black parts to give it that "wet" look.

This won't win you any points at a car show. If fact they will deduct points if you just spray armorall over everything.

I'm a glass half full kind of guy so I will say that at least that engine has a clean throttle body.

There is no substitute for hard work. As Revin suggests, if you want to have a show winning engine bay you need to drop the cradle and detail. If you just want it to look nicer, you can clean it little by little. My rule is any time I remove a part, I will clean it up and paint it, (or at least clear coat it) so that it gets better over time.

quote Originally posted by TopNotch: There are some things you can do to make plastic parts look better. Turtle Wax Ice works well on plastic, and dries completely so there is not any "goo" to collect dirt. For interior black, such as your ashtray lids, try wiping them with a paper towel moistened with WD-40, and then rub them well with a dry paper towel. The "goo" that many use before car shows on black parts is "Back to Black". It makes the black parts look good, but it does collect dirt.

I bought this stuff called 303 Aerospace protectant based on the recommendation of Acura TL owners who have problems with chalky dashes. The Fiero ashtray doors fully recovered that full black look without being overly greasy from say Armour All or smelly petroleum products like WD-40. I also bought expensive but well worth it leather cleaner combo called Leatherique. This guy has stuff called rejuvenator oil and Prestine clean. http://www.leatherique.com/ I learned about that stuff from Reatta owners who swear by it. I've put some of that on window seals and they puff out to their original size. As for leather seats, the cracks will disappear if you spray the seats, cover them in plastic wrap for a day in the hot sun. You could probably put that on the air intake and some of the vacuum fittings. Amazing stuff.

[This message has been edited by sricka01 (edited 01-31-2010).]

this took many hours sorry quality poor

Before:


After:


I won't reveal all of my secrets, but here's the products I use:

Zymol Cleaner Wax
Looks Wet, No Mess tire shine
Nu Vinyl
Meguiars Natural Shine
Meguiars Ultimate Quick Detailer
Eagle One Nevr-Dull Wadding Polish (for bare metal and stainless steel)
Turtle Wax Rubbing Compound (also works on bare metal)
Black Magic Engine Shine/Degreaser

The Looks Wet, No Mess tire shine is very hard to come by without ordering a 4-pack online, so i only use it sparingly for cruise nights in the engine bay and on the radiator hoses. For actual car shows I use it on the tires.

Natural Shine works great on decklid vents and rubber components as well, but is very greasy/messy. Don't get too carried away with it.

[This message has been edited by ShockWave (edited 01-31-2010).]

Here's my 270k mile '86 GT daily driver




And my 157k mile '88 Formula right when I bought it....



and after I got it.




I use paint thinner and brake cleaner. Typically these will damage painted surfaces but on most Fieros everything has been caked on by heat so it's not going to remove paint. What I do first is spray everything really good with brake clean. Typically I go through two cans cleaning the engine and the trans. Then with paint thinner on an old rag I scrub all the heavy stuff down. For all the black areas I get some high temp black paint and spray it to clean it up. It's not really correct but I like how it looks. Then on the things like the rubber intake and other pieces I hit it with some tire shine.

There's probably better ways to do it, but this is the cheapest way for me.

[This message has been edited by Fiero84Freak (edited 01-31-2010).]

Here is my engine No repainting other than the exhaust manifold.





It was never dirtier than this even when I drove it in the winter. I just have maintained it for 25 years. Yes I do not drive it as much now as in the 80's but I used to wash the car several times a week in the winter when had to drive it in the snow. I also had it under coated and have since cleaned it off much of the bottom and now I can wax the pan.

I will second the 303 spray as it does work but I also use Armor all on some parts and on the wheel wells. The 303 is the only thing to use inside as it is not greasy.

I also use aluminum wheel cleaner on the trans axle and a tooth brush.

Before I forget a light fog of black header paint cleans up and refeshes the black insulation if it get white and faded looking. Don't coat it heavy just a lite spray.

[This message has been edited by hyperv6 (edited 01-31-2010).]

I got my engine shined up by just using cash: I gave Classic Auto Spa some money and they did this. Now I just maintain it on my own.

Before:






After:

This is a 108,000 mile car. I was lucky...it was fairly clean already when I bought it. That was one of the reasons I bought it in the first place. But I've done a lot of cleaning on it since then. It's as others have said...there are no quick fixes. You can powerwash it and then spray it with Armor All, and it will look good, for a while. And, both of those...the powerwashing and the Armor All, or other protectant, are vital steps in a clean engine compartment. But what you also need to do is spend many, many hours in the trunk, hunched over the engine with a rag wetted down with degreaser, or a box full of Q-tips, to clean dirt and grease out of the tiny crevasses you find all over the engine compartment. Different people use different things to accomplish the same result...one person may use Armor All on a part, another might use something else. The best thing to do is ask...go to a show, and ask people how they cleaned their engines, what products they used, etc. You'l find that most people....especially at smaller, outdoor car shows, are more than willing to help you out.

These are of my car. I spent a lot of time initially, getting it to this point. Now, all it takes is a little maintenance every now and again to keep it this way. There are still a few things I'm not happy with...the worn heat blankets on the shift cables, and the rusty base of the EGR Valve. But, eventually, I'll get around to those. The main thing is cleanliness. Once it's clean, the other things aren't that hard to take care of.

Just want to do a "side by side" engine comparision.

Before:

Present:


I like it!!

I miss it... I had to sell it when we got married to be able to buy a home insted of rent.
WD-40 works awesome with alittle elbow grease

SOS pads work really well to shine up all your heat shields, dogbone and even your transmission housing & side cover.
Armor all type products should be used on all rubber hoses/lines.
Some items such as the dogbone, throttle body, alternator & bracket, thermostat housing cap & cooling tubes can be
buffed/polished on a grinder with a cloth buffing wheel and some rouge.

All this stuff is very low dollar and will give you a lot of bang for the buck!

Kit

quote Originally posted by Kitskaboodle: SOS pads work really well to shine up all your heat shields, dogbone and even your transmission housing & side cover. Kit

What I have found though is that if you don't clear coat or paint these surfaces they will quickly corrode and look terrible in no time at all.

quote Originally posted by Kitskaboodle: SOS pads work really well to shine up all your heat shields, dogbone and even your transmission housing & side cover. Armor all type products should be used on all rubber hoses/lines. Some items such as the dogbone, throttle body, alternator & bracket, thermostat housing cap & cooling tubes can be buffed/polished on a grinder with a cloth buffing wheel and some rouge. All this stuff is very low dollar and will give you a lot of bang for the buck! Kit

I use a can of free McGuire's aluminum polish. It got my spark plug shields looking like chrome, and for the not-so-shiney things, it takes a LOT of junk off.

All my corvette buddies spray everything down with some slimy, shiny stuff to look new. All it does it pick up more dirt like a magnet. I prefer to use something like Fantastic on a cloth to wipe down hoses and wires to keep them looking new and DULL. The real trick is to spend the time and clean it good once....then keep it that way with just an occasional hosedown and wiping. It helps if you have compressed air to dry it all out afterward. I drive all my cars a lot and all my engines are clean enough you could eat off of them. Even my daily winter driver is spotless under the hood.

I've used 95% alcohol Q-tips and gauze to clean gunk off of rubber parts like the snorkle and plug wires and then coat them with the 303 Aerospace UV protectant.
But mostly it just all takes time. clean one part or area at a time when you get tired of it go do something else, come back later and do more. It will eventually come around.
Be careful with heavy degreasers. If you leave them on too long you won't have any orange paint left on your plenum and valve covers.