Anyone have a link on how to properly clean and detail a 997 engine ? Searched the site but was looking for something with more specific info on what electrical parts to need to be covered before starting the process.

 

ive detailed many porshes and did motor cleans on most. All you have to do is find the distributor and put a towel around ,that spray down the motor with a cleaning product and let it sit for about 10 minutes then hose it down everything in there can get wet but u cant soak the distributor so u put a towel down on it a try to stay away from it.

 

Alternator not an issue ? Appears to be positioned to catch a good deal of water even with a light hose down.

 

if u want to cover that too you can how bad is ur motor how dirty do u have a pic??? but yeah i dont cover that all that stuff is pretty water tight like i said just soak the motor in like a degreaser lightly wash it away like mist it away then come threw with like some tire dressing soak it with that a rinse it away and it looks like new

 

Actually the car is a new 2007, was one of the last '07 models on the dealers lot. I've only put 2M miles on it and have kind of kept up with the engine cleaning by wiping it down when I was the car. Was more interested in the process for these motors. My Boxster didn't lend itself to cleaning the engine and given the fact you couldn't see it without going to a lot of trouble I never bothered with it. As this engine is visible I'd like to keep it clean and figured at some point it would need more than a simple wipe down. Thanks for the tips. Any product in particular you like to use for cleaning and dressing up the rubber/plastic bits ?

 

well for the cleaner i use production car care INDUSTRIAL FALLOUT
REMOVER and for the dressing of the parts i just use the turtlewax formula 2000

 

The engine on any newer 911, 993-997, is quite simple.

1. Run the engine for about 5 minutes to heat things up. This makes the water turn to steam when you do the initial rinse.

2. Gently rinse the engine compartment. Usually 40-50 psi is all you need; typical home pressure is about 70-100 psi. You can reduce this by using a garden hose on a "FLAT" setting.

3. Use a very mild and gentle pH balanced wheel cleaner like P21S Wheel Cleaner or Zymol Wheel Cleaner. Since your engine bay is new, you're more concerned about light dirt, not much engine grimme. If you have an engine that needs more TLC, zymol makes an excellent citrus-based cleaner called Strik. This all-natural product is diluted to the correct level and left to dwell for about 15 minutes.

4. Then you use a soft bristle brush to loosen and aggitate the dirt. A microfiber towel comes in handy as well.

5. Rinse to flush out the loose dirt.

6. Dry using a forced ait blower like an Airmax or by using a microfiber towel.

7. Turn the engine back on for about 5-10 minutes to heat everything up and further steam and dry the engine bay.

8. You may want to apply a protectant like einszett Vinyl Rubber Care to the black plastic areas. I usually don't because I prefer a more matte finish and don't want any product on anything.

Lastly, using de-ionized water really is the key here. This assures a time-saving spot-free finish in all the nooks and crannies.

Hope this helps.

 

moe great write up!

 

Thanks...I hope it shed some light and answered your question

 

Thanks to both Motomanic and MoeMisty for the pointers. Can't wait till my engine gets dirty enough to clean.

 

I'm also a fan of the matte finish, can't stand when engines have tons of dressing / armorall on them.

Another cool thing to have is a paint brush, obviously one thats never been used

Its really helpful getting into tight spaces and getting out dirt.

 

I just found some pictures of some engines we've done in that past:

This 540i was washed using Zymol Wheel Cleaner and dried with a microfiber. It was then wiped down with Zymol Detail Spray.



This NSX was wiped down with Zymol Detail Spray only. On cars like this, we don't use direct water spray.



Zymol Detail Spray again.



This Lotus Esprit Sport 350 was wiped down with a secret recipe....tried a mixture of Zymol Detail Spray and Zymol Vinyl. Came out pretty good.



The common theme here is that most of these engines don't really need the use of harsh degreasers and shinny dressings. I'll try and find some Porsche engines. The only ones I can find are Carrera GTs and that doesn't really apply to the original poster's question. There are times where the grimme on the engine is pretty bad. Even in those cases, something safe like Zymol Strik, a grapefruit rind-based cleaner, does the job without the use of harsh chemicals that can damage engine parts and are harmful to the environment.

 

Moe,
My engine bay is filthy. It also appears to be quite difficult to reach most areas.
I was planning on removing the intake to clean the upper intake manifolds/bellows which are pretty grimey. Do you think this is necessary? Would a diluted solvent like Simple Green be too harsh to use here?

What other recomendations do you have?

Thanks!

 

That looks worse than it really is. If we were detailing that engine, I'd use zymol Strik and simply agitate with a zymol wheel brush and use an ez detail brush to get in the hard to reach places. Rinse and dry again and wipe down with einszett Detail Spray. Simple, safe, and effective.

 

I don't have those products available and I'm not looking to break the bank just to clean up my engine bay. Are there any products that I can find at my local walmart or auto parts store that will work without damaging my vehicle?

Thanks again Moe!

Basically what I got from your post is that I should do the following:
1) Warm up the engine
2) Hose everything off
3) Spray down with a mild degreaser
4) Agitate dirt/grime with a brush
5) Rinse/wipe/rinse
6) Dress with a finishing product

Did I get this right?