Warm the engine by starting it up for a few minutes and then shut it off. Cover the distributor, and you can either cover the alternator and fuse box, or use low pressure spray in those areas. Wet the engine with high-pressure spray. Spray engine and compartment with Simple Green at full strength (dirty engine) otherwise use a 50/50 mix (50% Simple Green, 50% Water). Let sit for about 5 minutes. Use a brush on heavily soiled areas. Rinse with high-pressure spray, but use low pressure around electrical components. Don’t forget the underside of the hood.

After rinsing, start the engine and let run until the engine is dry. Go ahead and start wiping down the painted areas-but be careful while the engine is running. After the engine is dry, wipe down and towel dry the areas that you couldn’t reach when the engine was running. Finish up with Silicone Spray on hoses and plastic parts and your ready to go.

As long as you have no oil leaks, you shouldn’t have to clean your engine more than 2 times a year.

 

Battery Terminal Maintenance

Here’s a fast and easy way to clean all that icky, moldy-looking green stuff that feeds on your battery terminals like a snail on a fish tank wall. You have two choices: 1) Coca-Cola, or 2) Hot water and baking soda mixture.

Just pour either one directly onto your battery posts and watch all that corrosion instantly dissolve. Personally, I prefer the water/baking soda method, so I’m not left cleaning any dried up sticky Coke later. For best connectivity between your battery post and terminal cable, loosen or remove the cable before cleaning with one of the previous cleaning solutions.

 

Windshield Wiper Tech

To help your wiper blades last longer, just put a drop of dish soap into the windshield washer reservoir and you’ll be surprised the difference it makes!

How To Maintain Rubber

On almost all of my cars, the rack and pinion boots and other exposed boots under the car get cracked over time. I found that spraying all the boots, once a year, with Silicon Spray keeps these boots protected and flexible. It’s simple and cheap and keeps all your rubber boots and other rubber parts (door gaskets, etc.) lasting much longer. Silicon does cause dust to cling to certain parts, gathering dirt, so watch where you spray!