Engine cleaning

[tinman]

Just detailed my engine. It came out clean except for the aluminum engine cover. I used 3M degreaser, soak then agitate with a nylon brush then hosed off with water. The cover still is stained. Tried using Eagle one metal polish but I didn`t like the result. It cleaned the cover alright but at the expense of the cover being shiny. I want the matte look of the stock engine cover. Is my procedure wrong or do I have to use another product. thanks.

[tinman]

anyone?

[Black240SX]

Does it have baked-on oily grime? If so, a bit of kerosene will take it off easily.

[jasonmac]

You might have to give the degreaser a couple of tries, I like Castrol`s Super Cleaner/degreaser (in the prurple bottle). I`ve also used P21S Multi-surface finish restorer with great results. It`s a little on the expensive side, but use it for my exhaust and some of the undercarriage.

[tinman]

yes it does have baked on grimes. and nope kerosene and even diesel didnt even touch it. Ive soked the cover for about 15 min with the degreaser to no avail. do you guys think using another brand of degreaser would do much better?

[JasonD]

An aluminum engine cover?? I`ve seen plastic covers before but never aluminum. Can you post a picture of it? In the past, I have had good luck cleaning my aluminum engine pieces with Fast Orange or some other type of orange hand cleaner with pumice. It sounds funny but will get it cleaner than any spray cleaner on the market. This is if it`s aluminum, of course. Just squeeze some cleaner on it and work at it with a stiff brush. Don`t use too much water, just enought to get it to move around.



Another tip is after you get it all cleaned up, spray it with a clear coat and it will stay looking new.

[tinman]

yup. its a 95 model nissan sentra. I dunno if you`ve heard of it. I think its an asian version only.

[tinman]

Here`s a picture of a similar engine. (got this from e-bay i hope i am not violating anything)







http://autopia.org/gallery/data/500/196659a_1_b-thumb.jpg

[JasonD]

Oh okay, I wasn`t thinking about the thin aluminum heat guards. I gotcha now. I`d remove them and use a strong degreaser like the ones mentioned above or even something like laquer thinner. Spray it down and let it soak for a little while and then get some 0000 steel wool to agitate with. The fineness of the 0000 wool won`t leave any scratches and should remove just about anything. To give you an idea of how mild 0000 is, most people use it on glass. Disregard my suggestion of clearcoating it, since this is a heat shield and the clear will turn yellow. Just leave it bare. Hope this helps.

[wannafbody]

what about using a metal polish?

[Bill D]

Yeah, you could follow up with a metal polish with a cotton polishing wheel on a drill.

[tinman]

i tried using metal polish. It does clean the cover but like I`ve said, it becomes shiny and I want to retain the dull "stock" (read:original) look.

[tinman]

jdookie, I`m afraid of trying Lacquer thinner. care to give me specific instructions or precautions? thanks