When I purchased my car, It looks like a previous detailer sprayed some cleaner on my engine. I like everything (incl. engine bay) to be spotless, and cant have this! :nono
Even on the plastic stuff its starting to chip up (ie:washer fluid container, Fan Shroud etc..) and looks bad. Any ideas or tips on how to get this yellow stuff off?

the yellow stuff is cosmoline... i dunno if there's anything to get that gunk off...

as for cleaning hte plastic engine cover, u can use simple green and water.... that works pretty well.

good luck. sorry i dunno the solution to the cosmoline

I think Bimmer95 told me that you could get that stuff off with either WD-40 or Gasoline. I tried both and failed. I still have not been able to remove the stuff, and I really do not know what to say. I think maybe if you get it off your car when the stuff is fairly fresh then maybe you have a chance, me trying to get it off a 93 I guess is just hopeless...:dunno

As for detaling the engine and getting it clean, silicone products will make it look the best quickest, but they will also collect all the dust they come into contact with. Armoral does a good job, it dries relitively sticky free, and will leave the engine fairly clean. I have sprayed tires gel on some parts, and gotten them looking absolutly liquid, and had no dust problems, so I guess it depends on the area, and what you are spraying where.

http://66.78.48.145/forum/attachment.php?s=&postid=153017

Please PM me if you cannot see the pic.

i have a professional detailing service and what i use for that stuff is a product that u can buy from the paint store, it is called "finess" the bottle runs 30 bucks but my GOD, i mean i buff my entire 95 m tech m3 and that white looks brand new so go try it, it is in a clear container and it is a white substance and i think it is made by 3M :redspot :eyecrazy: <-- this was my reaction after i saw my car

I just spray my entire engine with a degreaser of some sort and let it sit for a while then wipe it off. I've trie Armor All and it worked alright but not great. Some tire black sprays work really well also but don't last very long and can leave a film. The last time I did it I finished it off with some Pledge wood polish that was suggested by another member. It shined up everything very nicely and smells good too.

Have any of you tried 303 Aerospace Cleaner? From what the sites say that sell detail products, this stuff will clean anything and was developed to help clean up the Exxon oil spill.

Have any of you tried 303 Aerospace Cleaner? From what the sites say that sell detail products, this stuff will clean anything and was developed to help clean up the Exxon oil spill.

Seems like a very good product. I've only used Simple Green and the Castrol cleaner. They both work very well (the Castrol solution is more for heavy duty stuff like the undercarriage), but i'm always looking for something new.

I use P21S Total Auto Wash, great stuff

Today I purchased a bottle of Simple Green because I had heard it did a really good job with cleaning things, well I should have looked around before doing so. This evening I read on a couple forums that Single Green will do damage to a number of things such as aluminum, it will also leave a white residue on metal pieces. People on Autopia were saying they have destroyed rims from using it for extended periods of time. Thankfully I have not put it on anything yet, I will save it for cleaning up oil or as a VERY last resort for tough grime in my engine bay.

I never use anything but straight water.

Those of you that have dirty engine bays, enough to warrant a possible corrosive cleaner (BTDTBTTS), or -gasp- a degreaser, determine why it is that you need a cleaner at all first.

Do you have grease or some other sticky, dried up fluid in your engine bay that is holding the dirt?

Why is that? If you have fluids leaking, you might want to takle that hurdle first.

Moreover, once you get it clean, rinse the bay out perhaps more frequently so that each time, the only solvent needed is water. If you do require some kind of soap, use the same stuff you would use on your paint; i.e. bucket, cool water, car wash soap a la Meguiars Gold Glass, and a handle brush.

Just because engine bay cleaners are availbale, doesn't mean you have to use them :)