GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

I learned this from a guy who details cars a couple of years ago, been doing to all of my cars ever since.On a cold engine, not hot, don’t want to crack the engine block:1. Spray the engine down with water.2. Spray the engine with SimpleGreen, let sit for 20 minutes3. Rinse with water.4. While engine is still wet, spray with tire foam.5. Let sit for 20 minutes6. Mist engine bay with water to even out foam coat.7. Let dry or drive.Only thing, the engine tends to get "furry" over a month or two.

Quote, originally posted by 4azdmunky »....Only thing, the engine tends to get "furry" over a month or two.Furry???

I Second that motion... FURRY???Quote, originally posted by zionzr2 »Furry???

Wasn't aware that my engine could grow hair... is that an extra option?

"engine tends to get "furry" over a month or two"...in the event that fur last for 4 or more hours, contact a physician immediately (or call your friends and brag!) i'm guessing that the tire foam attracts dust/dirt to the point where things get 'furry'.

LOL ..yea the oil in the foam tends to collect things like fuzz, small critters and the occasional homeless person.

And you don't cover anything? I've always been nervous to clean my engine...

everything that craps out when wet is already covered, and since our cars have individual coil packs per spark plug, and they are under the cover, there is no problem.

What kind of "tire foam"?

Any brand works, I've used several and had the same results

I've subscribed for when the detailing weather arives...

Quote, originally posted by scott_h »And you don't cover anything? I've always been nervous to clean my engine...Don't be.I routinely wash the engine of my Nissan Frontier at the car wash. I spray the entire engine bay down with either the engine cleaner or tire cleaner, what ever is available, let it sit for a few minutes, and then spray it off with the low pressure spray. Never had a single problem, and if you looked at my engine bay of my truck you would think it just rolled off the showroom floor, and has never seen door handle deep mud holes every other weekend.And don't worry about water cracking a hot block. It takes very cold water to do so. You aren't going to accomplish it with a garden hose.

yea if the house water is that cold from the hose, ...move out of Alaska. I just threw that in as a disclamer. Dont want someone to blame me in case something happened.

Yea, Simple Green is the best for getting all the crap off.I used it on my old 83 Jeep Cherokee. Afterwords everyone asked me if I got it repainted, ...i washed it. No one realized that it was white, everyone thought it was gray. So it works on paint too.

i thought you had to cover the alternator???I usually just took a wet shop towel and cleaned what shows... but tomorrow ima have clean engine!!! Thanks for the tips.

just be careful if you have an aftermarket intake that has an exposed filter you really dont wanna get it wet or get that tire foam on it . i imagine it would be a pain to get off of filter material and might possibly get sucked in the engine

I've never had to cover the alt, and have never had a problem. The coils are coated with a clear epoxy, and are already exposed to the elements.

the foam is diluted with the final misting step, but you have a good point. While this has not been an issue for me before, it would be a good idea to let the filter dry a little before stating the car. Luckily the CAI's for the vibe run to inside of the driver side fender. SAR's are a different story.

I have been cleaning my engines with Mean Green for years. After it is well dry by using a leaf blower and waiting overnight I spray it down with high temp clear paint. Talk about shine! The clear also helps protect from future corrosion, seals the connectors and makes it easier to clean next year. I always get comments from mechanics. I can't help but think when they work on my engine they take a little extra caution since I obviously do. If they don't, I am on good footing to tell them to be careful.