Cleaning under bonnet.

[PAISLEY1903]

Rav 4 still being built in the factory and im already thinking of how to keep it clean.

Does anyone keep their engine bay clean.

I never bothered on my old car and just wondered if anyone bothers.  

I will not be using any form of water - seen a neighbour do this and couldn't believe what I was seeing.

Im thinking of some type of spray followed by some kind of wipes....     Anyone got a suggestion or to just not bother.

Just adding to my excitement by buying needless things probably haha!

[oldcodger]

Usually just go around with a damp cloth and some Flash type liquid to get rid of the dirt and finish off with some car polish and tyre shine on the  plastic parts.

To do it "properly" you want to search Ytube on "Car Detailing"  it can almost be a cult thing !

[Catlover]

I first of all used cling film or baking foil to wrap around electrical connections. Then I use Elbow Grease, £1 or less for a spray bottle. Spray all accessible places, use the wife’s toothbrush to agitate in tough areas. Then use water in a spray bottle to flush the rubbish away. Never use a hose pipe or jet washer - that’s a big no no.  Comes up really good. Elbow Grease is brilliant.

[Avalon]

As above spray down with a degreaser, agitate where appropriate, and then rinse down. All electrical connectors in a modern car are designed to prevent water ingression, not at jet-wash pressures, but certainly at low pressure such as the mist setting on a garden hose or from a spray bottle etc. You could always go with a steam clean, but it’s an engine bay, not an ornament.

[bonjo]

I clean with car wash shampoo or foam then use water to rinse followed by a drive to air dry.

I only use manual pressure pump sprayer / hand sprayer and mains water spray never pressure washer

[frankys111]

On 5/9/2021 at 12:53 PM, oldcodger said:

Usually just go around with a damp cloth and some Flash type liquid to get rid of the dirt and finish off with some car polish and tyre shine on the  plastic parts.

To do it "properly" you want to search Ytube on "Car Detailing"  it can almost be a cult thing !

What tyre shine do you use? 

[catnash]

The best one recently reviewed on a few detailing forums is the autoglym high performance tyre gel.

[arianartg]

I usually use car wash shampoo too, it works really well

[Rocks703]

On 5/24/2021 at 10:29 AM, frankys111 said:

What tyre shine do you use? 

Check out Carpro PERL (Plastics Engine Rubber Leather) really versatile product. You can use neat on tyres and then dilute it for the other applications like you engine bay, Really good durability too

[Roy124]

I used to use pressure wash but that was with an 'open ' engine and visible dirty oil and grease.  I stopped using that with the Mercs as there was a massive plastic cover over the engine and the rest simply got dusty.

With the hybrid under the hood might as well be in a sealed engine room.  A wipe down with a slightly damp cloth will remove dust.