My engine compartment sucks its so dirty. I have the car parked for awhile and its accumulated dust and grime, etc., and I am working on it for our Region 6 cruise in at Old Town....

I am installing a new carb, so I am gonna get some - badly needed - new valve covers, air cleaner, hoses, etc., and while I have some of this off, I want to do some cleaning and painting of the equipment - as best I can with the engine still in the car....

my dilemna is how best to clean the engine compartment, and would appreciate any tips and suggestions.

Thanks

Well, there's always the steam cleaning that any detail shop can do. But check around, there is a new process that's like the "dry cleaning" that we do on our good clothes. I've had this done and it's really great.

After it's clean, you'll be able to see what condition it is in. Painting under the hood is almost impossible unless the engine compartment is 'empty'.

Good luck,

Elky77

that 'dry cleaning' process sounds promising....

was that also done by a detail shop, or some other specialty retailer? I am sure Jacksonville should have something like that here....

A detail shop, and not a really big on here in Cincinnati.

It leaves a slight shinny finish that looks great until it wears off.

Check around,

Elky77

If I where you I would just blast it with a hot steam cleaner to knock all of the gease and dirt off.. Try removing all the spark wiring and all the parts your will be replacing. Belts, Spark plug wires, ect... Remove your air cleaner housing and cover your carb so you dont get any water in your engine. Blast it with hot watter pressure and you can also do the undercarrige the same. After you get it all off blow dry it with a compressed air hose and dry it throughly. Buy some glossy black heat resistant paint and spray away. Once your all done replace your vallve covers, belts, plug cables, cap n rotor, filters and tune it all up. This should give you a decent looking engine bay without pulling your engine.

If it's not your daily driver and you have a place to store it you could do like I'm doing, pull the front end off, engine and trans out, wire harness out..............and start from the frame and work you way back up "yee haa".

Now realistically, steam or dry clean it, works fine. Painting it is a different story, you'll have to be a little more meticulous about how you go about it. I'm not sure how to paint mine yet, but I have plenty of time.
Possibly matching paint on the inner fender wells and firewall, a little chrome here and there, some braided hoses etc.......

If it's not your daily driver and you have a place to store it you could do like I'm doing, pull the front end off, engine and trans out, wire harness out..............and start from the frame and work you way back up "yee haa"......

yeah Lee, that is what I will be doing 'soon' (translated when I get the money) as I will be removing the 350 that sits there now (with TH350 trans) and replacing it with a 454 and TH400 as it came from the factory. I will also be doing an engine wiring harness, as well as a main harness, so you are right....at that point I will really strip it out, clean it thoroughly and paint it correctly - or at least what I want to paint it anyways! :P

This step is just an interim.

Thanks for the help, Lee, and everyone.

:) Well, if you want to paint it wile the motor is still in, here's a trick I learned a looooong time ago & I do it all the time! Clean the motor compartment, either steam (best ) or GUNK then hot soapy water then blow dry with an air compresser...now, here's the fun part :P ...disconnect the Battery then get a couple roll's of HEAVY DUTY FOIL. Now, take your time & completely wrap your motor in Foil, it will hold on by itself by just pinching it around wire's-bracket's-hose's...etc...mask off your fender's, windshield & grill with 3-M tape & news paper. I use Dupli-Color HIGH HEAT with CERAMIC 1200 degree's...get it at Wal-Mart for under $5.00 a can & this stuff goes on Great (NO NEED FOR PRIMER) & cover's AWESOME (you will prob. need 2 can's, 3 at most) & it's GAS & OIL PROOF! They have Black Flat-Semi Flat & Gloss...lot's of different Color's too! When your done, let it dry overnight (this is best) then just pull all the foil off & throw it away! :) Hope this help's..."SKULL"

Thanks Skull the foil sounds like a neat trick i will try that with a few areas that need help on mine!

Thanks Skull!!!!

thats the kind of 'tip & trick' I was looking for here, and I KNEW somebody here could be just as cheap and lazy as me...... just kidding!

seriously, Skull, thanks... that sounds like just what I am after....now what color to paint under there on a black car...hmmm?? 8O

:cool:

oh yeah, should you paint the radiator on the engine side (maybe a light coat) or just the shroud, cause my shroud is broken and I was thinking of getting a new (repro) one, as well as a chrome top support, so I thought maybe if I take the old ones off, paint, then the new ones will look super over the painted radiator??

Try this link for more ideas.

Chevy HP (http://www.chevyhiperformance.com/howto/89738/)

YUP, that's the trick that really works! We do that where I work, when we have to spray a room(like a furnace room)with pipes and stuff in it. The foil really does stay in place.
Do yourself a favor and get a bottle of "wax-n-grease remover". After the places you are gonna paint are dry, wipe it down with the wax-n-grease remover. It's only a couple dollars, at parts stores or maybe even at wally world, and it will help the paintjob last longer. I put it in a spray bottle, and spots I can't get to, I try to spray a little on and use a paintbrush to spred it around. Cleaner the surface, better or longer lasting the paint.
In the near future I'm going to try to buy one of those portable powder coating kits/guns and see how they work. I'll let you know.
LATER
P.S. MAN that's one sweet lookin 72 SS Mike.

Hey, Mike, don't use regular spray paint for the radiator. It will not dissipate the heat. There is special radiator paint.
That foil trick is a good idea.

Try this link for more ideas.

Chevy HP (http://www.chevyhiperformance.com/howto/89738/)

Thats a great web page 65Elco....thanks!

and to all you others I appreciate it, as well. I will try to take a few before and after pics if I can remember so I can compare how it all turns out. I am anxious to get the 454 back in next spring (if everything holds to schedule) and then I will really do it nice once the 350 and trans are out of the way.

hey ElCafreak....that wax-n-grease remover, after I wipe it down to I again need to clean that area to remove any of its residue, or does that make it ready to paint?

No you shouldn't have to wipe it down again after the wax and grease remover, unless it is really dirty. I've used it for all the parts I've painted, including interior stuff.
It won't make the paint unchipable or resist any scratches, but it won't look like hell. Such as spraying over some dirt or grease. It just gives you a cleaner surface.
Good luck. Don't forget the pics. 8-)