My BMW 328I 2014 - Engine Bay

[borderman01]

Hi all,
So would like to detail my BMW engine bay. I have read plenty here about the risk of using water from a hose to wash out APC used. But I have also understood the areas that need to be protected to avoid any issue. Big shot out to Nick McKees37 for the great article he wrote and also to Mike Philips as well. So my understanding is cover the alternator, air intake if exposed and any electrical plugs. My BMW has the air intake covered so I should be good there. I have included pics to show the areas of risk which will be covered that are circled in red. Just wanted to get your thoughts on anything I might be missing. Not that this is too dirty but good to know when it does. Thanks

[oneheadlite]

Having cleaned a lot of BMW engines (tech by trade), all of the connectors you've shown are "weather pack" type connectors that stand up well to normal water pressure. I'd say stick to hose pressure and avoid direct high pressure (pressure washer) blasting and you'll be fine.

One thing to be careful of is getting water underneath the engine cover as that's where the ignition coils live. I've seen people get bit by water ingress down into the spark plug well from a thorough degrease and now you've got a misfire because water's sending the spark to the head instead of the spark plug.

You honestly might even be fine just doing a rinseless style wash with brushes and towels as they don't seem to get too dirty in city use.

Hope this helps.

[JMak97008]

All of those exposed wire connections are safe to get wet...

I'd cover that alternator with a plastic bag or tin foil just to be safe, although when I haven't nothing has ever happened.

Stick to regular hose pressure, no power washing (though, if the underside of your hood has that fabric insulation, you can go hard at that. I normally use just the shower setting on my sprayer and that's about all the pressure I give it.

Blow it dry with a shop-vac or a leaf blower and you're good.

[borderman01]

Thanks. I do plan on using only a hose and at a level of mist.


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[Klasse Act]

I would use a quality engine bay cleaner like McKee's and for rinsing you could get a 1 gallon hand pump to rinse the grit away. The pressure is low enough not to hurt anything but gets the job done as well. Brushes and general MF towels are your best friend here, along with that 1 gallon hand pump, available at any of your big box stores!

[TTQ B4U]

Having cleaned a lot of BMW engines (tech by trade), all of the connectors you've shown are "weather pack" type connectors that stand up well to normal water pressure. I'd say stick to hose pressure and avoid direct high pressure (pressure washer) blasting and you'll be fine.

One thing to be careful of is getting water underneath the engine cover as that's where the ignition coils live. I've seen people get bit by water ingress down into the spark plug well from a thorough degrease and now you've got a misfire because water's sending the spark to the head instead of the spark plug.

You honestly might even be fine just doing a rinseless style wash with brushes and towels as they don't seem to get too dirty in city use.

Hope this helps.

^^ perfect advice. IMO just do a rinseless with APC and rinseless solution. Your engine realtively clean already thus it makes it easy. The real final look is going to come from what you dress things with. I use Adam's in and out spray. Works great under the hood. Here's our van with over 117k (http://www.pbase.com/timothylauro/image/165897981/original.jpg)on the ODO and done this way.

[borderman01]

Thanks again. Will def try out the rinseless especially if its not that dirty to begin with. I do already have meguiars APC. Did plan on using a spray bottle with MF towel to clean up. Might try the hand pump. Seems easier and safe.
Question, assuming it was really dirty would rinseless style still work?

[osiapstndp]

Using a standard rinseless wash is sufficient for engine bays that are dusty and victim to only superficial dirt. I used Mckee's 37 N-914, a variety of brushes and a few microfiber towels on this Challenger and the result came out great and it didn't take long at all. CarPro Perl at 1:3 (it may have been 1:4) was used to dress everything.

1. Put your brushes and towels in the rinseless solution of N-914 at 1:256.

2. Pre-soak half of the engine bay with N-914 at 1:128. Reduce the dilution if necessary. Pre-soak more or less, whatever is your preference.

3. Remove one brush at a time and make sure it isn't too saturated and then start to gently brush against the components in the engine compartment. Use different brushes to get in to all of the crevices.

4. Brushing will not pick up and remove the dirt, it just loosens it, so use several microfiber towels to remove the residue. This also helps to dry the surfaces.

5. Once you're happy with the cleanliness of the compartment you can treat it with your preferred dressing. I've been using CarPro Perl a lot lately and it works well. Meguiar's Hyper Dressing and Optimum Opti-Bond work just fine too.

Before
61120

After
61121


Here are some of the brushes that I use on a regular basis for engine bays.

Wheel Woolies Boar’s Hair Wheel Brush (https://www.autogeek.net/best-wheel-cleaning-brush.html)
Wheel Woolies Boar’s Hair Detail Brush – 1 inch (https://www.autogeek.net/boars-hair-car-detailing-brush.html)
Wheel Woolies 3-Piece Kit (https://www.autogeek.net/wheel-woolies.html)
Wheel Woolies Spoke Wheel Brush - 12 Inch (https://www.autogeek.net/wheel-woolies-wheel-brushes.html)
Famous Detailing Brush (https://www.autogeek.net/boars-hair-detailing-brush.html)

[oneheadlite]

Awesome advice from all. The only thing I’d throw in is:

Please don’t use foil to cover the alternator! Your positive cable is exposed, It could turn out to be much more exciting than you’d probably prefer.

For light cleaning, I don’t think you’ll run into any trouble leaving it exposed. If you have the plastic license plates from your dealer you could form them to fit over it (hand roll) if you wanted to play it safe.

[TTQ B4U]

Thanks again. Will def try out the rinseless especially if its not that dirty to begin with. I do already have meguiars APC. Did plan on using a spray bottle with MF towel to clean up. Might try the hand pump. Seems easier and safe.
Question, assuming it was really dirty would rinseless style still work?

Yep, rinseless will still work. It's a lot easier to control and safer in that respect, a sprayer or spray bottle vs a hose/nozzle. Just rinse/soak dirty areas ahead of time with some APC solution. I use McKee's APC as it works really well and is cost effective in 1 gal. size concentrate size.