stemags

As many users here we care for our cars and while it's a no brainer that the outside can look great,,,under the hood not so much. I've seen some guys using bathroom cleaning scrubbing bubbles,,,P21s Total wash,,,Gunk degreaser,,with water from a hose to rinse,,and sure it looks great afterwards,, but isn't it risky? 🤔 My independent tech advises against it,citing possible electrical issues,,etc.
So what's the consensus?

pierrejoliat

I clean under the hood frequently, with a rag and a spray bottle of washer fluid, using as little liquid as possible, yes, this takes time but I don't have to worry about frying out electricals. On the oily spots I just keep wiping and throw the rag out afterwords.

CaliBenzDriver

Pierre has this figured out to spray-clean locally!

Do a dry cleaning if you have to. Your mechanic is all right about MB electricals not liking water. The engine bay is remotely water tolerant, not waterproof.

MB leaks come in garment sizes: S - M - L...

Engine dirt is like a Japanese garden: the unperfections are part of the beauty. I don't worry about how the beast should look.
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ALFAitalia

Well this wont go down well but.....but my past three Mercs engines have regularly received the water from the working end of the jet washer!! I tape poly bags on the obvious ECUs etc and don't aim directly at electrical plugs. Also I always make sure the engine is warm (NOT hot) before I start...that way there is enough heat in the bay to dry it out quick and before it has time to penetrate where it shouldn't. I then clean and polish everything and liberally coat the electrics in water displacing spray so its ready for the next time. Never had an issue over all those years and engine is clean and shiny!! A clean engine makes it so much easier to spot leaks and other issues!

stemags

That's what I like,,,a diverse and informed dialog,,,I kinda like the ideas AL and Pierre put out,,,I could see doing the removable plastics with p21s and they take up alot of the space,,as for under there where you have metallics,,,wiping down with a rag and a solution,,,even tire foam could work well. No reason why a topshelf vehicle like we enjoy can't be tidy.

bzcat

I wipe down the engine bay whenever I wash my car so it is relatively clean. If you keep it up with simple wipe down and cleaning, it won't get dirty enough to require a hose to clean.

I find that using compressed air works pretty good to get rid of the dirt. And spray bottle and cloth take care of the rest.