How to clean an engine

[markrutherford]

Hey guys ive been looking up how to clean the inside of an engine. Whats the best way to clean it to a close to factory clean.

[SOHC-FTW]

Like clean the engine bay?Or the oil gunk build up in the head?

If you mean bay then first off you need to wrap your dizzy with a plastic bag and tape around it to make sure its sealed so no water gets in same with your air filter if your running a cone.But theres tons of products out there for cleaning grease and dirt.Mean green,simple green,purple power etc just make sure after you spray the cleaner and scrub it to spray it off with water.

[markrutherford]

Like clean the engine bay?Or the oil gunk build up in the head?

If you mean bay then first off you need to wrap your dizzy with a plastic bag and tape around it to make sure its sealed so no water gets in same with your air filter if your running a cone.But theres tons of products out there for cleaning grease and dirt.Mean green,simple green,purple power etc just make sure after you spray the cleaner and scrub it to spray it off with water.

Oh no i mean how to clean the inside of a engine. All the built up crap thats in there. I want it to feel and look clean!

[blk91coupe]

I've heard that if you use synthetic oil it will eventually clean it out. I'm not sure if it is true though.

[92smokeaccord]

in order to get it minty fresh/new ish..u would have to strip it clean and have it hot tanked..thats the best way to clean ur motor in and out.

[SOHC-FTW]

Oh well then.To clean the gunk out of the head/valve train ive allways used the old tranny fluid trick it cleans the gunk out real good use maybe a 1/4 of the quart or half a quart added to your oil change run it till next oil change and it should cleans everything up real nice.Its a real old trick learnt it whn i was 15-16 or so.

[dreamability]

Old mechanics used to put 3 quarts diesel and 1 quart oil in then let the car run,(idle) for 10 minutes.

I had a 1960 Ford Falcon once that had really bad sludge so I did this.
It seemed to work. I had less smoke (desludged the rings), and the top end got quieter.
However I've heard they have some great ways to desludge engines now.
I would call around to your basic oil change places and see what they offer.
What I did was pretty old school. But, It worked.

I searched google with this : engine Using Diesel to flush

And came up with this.

http://www.fordmuscleforums.com/all-...sh-engine.html

[Ratty]

Oh well then.To clean the gunk out of the head/valve train ive allways used the old tranny fluid trick it cleans the gunk out real good use maybe a 1/4 of the quart or half a quart added to your oil change run it till next oil change and it should cleans everything up real nice.Its a real old trick learnt it whn i was 15-16 or so.

X2 on the ATF. It works well.

But if there's a lot of sludge in the engine, be careful of how you get it out. Break it loose too fast and it can clog your pickup screen and starve the engine for oil.

If it is heavy just do a few frequent oil changes, like 1000 miles apart, maybe with some ATF added, but not necessarily. (This is how I'm doing it.. and I added 1/2 quart of ATF, it's already working.)

Kerosene works nicely, 1 quart in the crankcase, let the engine IDLE until it's warm and then drain/flush with cheap oil and refill with the good stuff. Just don't drive the car with kero or diesel in the crankcase. Either one has enough lubricity for the engine running with no load, but are too thin to protect the bearings under a load.

[dano28]

Noooooo....

You are asking for problems. Leave it alone !!!!!

[JaberCB7]

^^ x2...with these old cars usually the gunk etc is not only making ur car run slower/sluggish but its also probably keeping it from breaking down. But if you really want to clean the inside. Seafoam should do the trick

SEA FOAM Motor Treatment is a 100% pure petroleum product that safely and effectively cleans internal fuel and oil system components, helping your gasoline or diesel engine run cleaner and more efficiently. SEA FOAM is an EPA-registered product, and will not harm engine components, seals, gaskets, catalytic converters or oxygen sensors.

SEA FOAM liquefies gum and varnish deposits or internal engine contaminents, removing carbon deposits, freeing sticky valve lifters and rings curing rough idle, pinging and hesitation problems. By using SEA FOAM to eliminate varnish and carbon buildup, mechanics can more accurately diagnose mechanical problems that may exist. That is why Sea Foam has been so popular with professional mechanics for over 65 years.

As a fuel system additive, Sea Foam will clean fuel injectors, clean carbon, gum and varnish deposits, add lubricity to fuel, stabilize fuel for 2 years and control moisture.

As an oil system additive, Sea Foam controls moisture, gum, varnish and residue deposits.

Seafoam DIY

[DariuszZ]

take it apart, clean it, put it back together? :P

[BILLYBOPROCK]

I think an engine flush at the local oil change place but that's only if you need it if it isn't brokn leave it alone

[Ratty]

^^ x2...with these old cars usually the gunk etc is not only making ur car run slower/sluggish but its also probably keeping it from breaking down. But if you really want to clean the inside. Seafoam should do the trick

SEA FOAM Motor Treatment is a 100% pure CRAP

Fixed for more truthiness.

Seafoam is a waste of money. It does nothing better than any other product like Marvell's Mystery Oil and the like. Whatever Seafoam can do can be done better and cheaper with either ATF or 90% rubbing alchohol (no alchohol in the crankcase!).

And the gunk in an engine is just a timebomb waiting to clog the oil passages. There's no benefit to it being there. It needs to be fully dissolved, held in suspension and drained out with the oil. ATF is designed to do this with it's high detergent content. R&O hydraulic fluid does it too and is better at suspending the particles, but I'm not 100% on it's lubricity being up to snuff for an engine since it's based on 10wt oil instead of 30wt.

[accordztech]

seafoam has some alcahol stuff in it...

http://www.auto-rx.com/

Its an ESTER based cleaner. Ester is the thing inside oils that is used for cleansing. This is a super shot of it and works with time and not right away. Nice gentle way to clean the motor.

I used this in all my cars, and on my van with 145k the lifters were golden clean like day one, my 86z clean, and both my accords.

[quaidum]

...

I used this in all my cars, and on my van with 145k the lifters were golden clean like day one, my 86z clean, and both my accords.

golden is a sign of the oil burning and tarnishing the metal

it should look like a piece of aluminum, grayish kinda

Hey guys ive been looking up how to clean the inside of an engine. Whats the best way to clean it to a close to factory clean.

to thoroughly clean it would require you to disassemble the motor, cleaning the inside of a motor isn't often a regular maintenance thing

i would recommend you take the oil pan off first(you will need to replace the gasket) to see how much actual buildup there is. there could be very little there could be a lot, i have taken apart 3 different f22 and none of them were sludged up at all. all of them where in various conditions as well