Can I wash Engine bay with car wash mode soap+wax?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by nahaku, May 23, 2020.

Tags:
Page 1 of 2
  1. nahaku

    nahaku Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 16, 2017
    11
    6
    0
    Location:
    United Kingdom
    Vehicle:
    2004 Prius
    Model:
    ----UK----
    I want to wash my engine bay on prius 2004 2nd gen, there is self wash near my house, I have degreaser for starter, but I wonder if is ok to use the mode of car wash where it sprays the hot foam and wax in to engine area?
    I would firstly cover electric plugs with aluminium foil + the area where is the belt.
    then I would spray it with degreaser, wait couple minutes.
    then the hot soap with wax mode
    Rinse it
    unfortunately there is no air to dry it, so i will just dry it either with cloth or paper towels,
    and then i will drive home, and home i will spray there Trim shine

    Is this ok?, can i use that shampoo with Wax on engine? Thank you.
     
    #1 nahaku, May 23, 2020
  2. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 1, 2016
    11,265
    15,520
    0
    Location:
    Bay Area, California
    Vehicle:
    2019 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Plus
    @Rebound is an engine bay washer ;).

    He may have some tips (y).
     
    #2 Raytheeagle, May 23, 2020
    SFO and nahaku like this.
  3. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
    Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 2, 2004
    45,291
    16,536
    41
    Location:
    Canada
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    Also ensure that anything that is sprayed is not sprayed with force (like a pressure washer; Ideally no stronger than the equivalent of placing your thumb over the end of a hose.
     
    #3 Tideland Prius, May 23, 2020
    Montgomery likes this.
  4. nahaku

    nahaku Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 16, 2017
    11
    6
    0
    Location:
    United Kingdom
    Vehicle:
    2004 Prius
    Model:
    ----UK----
    so should I rather use normal water hose at home, I saw all using power washers on engine. Do you think the Tesco car powerwash has too much pressure?
     
    #4 nahaku, May 23, 2020
  5. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk MMX GEN III

    Joined:
    Oct 17, 2010
    59,891
    41,164
    80
    Location:
    Greater Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Touring
    I wouldn't risk it. There are expensive components that can be bricked by a corroded and/or shorted out connectors.

    In 3rd gen (just for example), the AC compressor has a 12 volt connector atop the unit, that could double as a rain gauge. There's been several reports here of the connector being a corroded mess with rusted out pins. I'd wager there was a cleaning episode involved.

    Refurb of the connector has proven near impossible, and new replacements are over $2K USD, refurbs around $1.5K.
     
    #5 Mendel Leisk, May 23, 2020
    Montgomery, Georgina Rudkus, Raytheeagle and 2 others like this.
  6. edthefox5

    edthefox5 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 25, 2007
    10,096
    4,833
    0
    Location:
    Clearwater, Florida
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Washing the engine bay on a Prius is loony tunes.
     
    #6 edthefox5, May 23, 2020
  7. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
    Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 2, 2004
    45,291
    16,536
    41
    Location:
    Canada
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    I would. You don’t want to push water into anything electrical or mechanical so if you could use a normal hose at home, that would be best.

    As Mendel pointed out, there are expensive parts in there. I’ve never washed the Gen 3 but I did wash the Gen 2 but it was a long time ago so I don’t remember what I did. For my Gen 3, I just dusted it with a brush then wiped it down with a rag (it was mostly dusty).
     
    #7 Tideland Prius, May 23, 2020
    Mendel Leisk likes this.
  8. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

    Joined:
    Mar 8, 2008
    18,200
    6,500
    0
    Location:
    Green Valley, AZ
    Vehicle:
    2015 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    I like the engine compartment to be clean and use a light water spray to get rid of the dust. Drive the car around to dry the engine compartment.
     
    #8 Patrick Wong, May 23, 2020
    jerrymildred likes this.
  9. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk MMX GEN III

    Joined:
    Oct 17, 2010
    59,891
    41,164
    80
    Location:
    Greater Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Touring
    Mine looks pristine at the top, just popping the hood. That I manage with very occasional brushing and blowing (either shop vac or leaf blower, haven't taken the air compressor plunge yet).

    If I've got the air intake system off, or maybe even the intake manifold, then things start to look grubbier. But it's not normally visible, it's not detrimental, causing rust or whatever, so I mostly just leave it alone.

    Where I do get excited, is rust-proofing the underbody, in particular bolts, suspension components, cross-beams. I clean everything I can reach, and coat with oil (small bolt threads) and boiled linseed oil (bolt heads, exposed nuts, suspension components). Also, any time the wheels come off, I brush off the hubs, apply a patina of anti-seize with a toothbrush..
     
    #9 Mendel Leisk, May 23, 2020
  10. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
    Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 2, 2004
    45,291
    16,536
    41
    Location:
    Canada
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    You’re lucky. I found maggots near the oil filler one time in my Gen 3. There was some other organic matter that they’re obviously feeding on as well but I have no idea what is was. Everything was blackened and the maggots were cooked from the engine heat. Pretty disgusting sight.
     
    #10 Tideland Prius, May 23, 2020
    Mendel Leisk and Raytheeagle like this.
  11. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 1, 2016
    11,265
    15,520
    0
    Location:
    Bay Area, California
    Vehicle:
    2019 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Plus
    Thanks for sharing:sick:.

    Glad it's not lunchtime or anything :eek:.
     
    #11 Raytheeagle, May 23, 2020
    Mendel Leisk likes this.
  12. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk MMX GEN III

    Joined:
    Oct 17, 2010
    59,891
    41,164
    80
    Location:
    Greater Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Touring
    Arr, there be maggots.
     
    #12 Mendel Leisk, May 23, 2020
  13. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

    Joined:
    Mar 8, 2008
    18,200
    6,500
    0
    Location:
    Green Valley, AZ
    Vehicle:
    2015 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Probably, a dead rat.
     
    #13 Patrick Wong, May 23, 2020
  14. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
    Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 2, 2004
    45,291
    16,536
    41
    Location:
    Canada
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    <shudder>
     
    #14 Tideland Prius, May 24, 2020
  15. nahaku

    nahaku Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 16, 2017
    11
    6
    0
    Location:
    United Kingdom
    Vehicle:
    2004 Prius
    Model:
    ----UK----
    #15 nahaku, May 24, 2020
    Samuel Williams Jr, Tideland Prius, Salamander_King and 1 other person like this.
  16. dolj

    dolj Senior Member

    Joined:
    May 14, 2012
    8,391
    4,271
    0
    Location:
    Wellington, New Zealand
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    Still a big improvement, from what you can see from the photos.
     
    #16 dolj, May 24, 2020
  17. GabrielD

    GabrielD Member

    Joined:
    Oct 18, 2019
    179
    72
    0
    Location:
    Romania
    Vehicle:
    2014 Prius+ MPV
    Model:
    V
    In my case, Prius V - 2014, I just sprayed a detergent from car wash shop, cleaning it with a brush and sprayed with pressure hose. All over the place, electrical and mechanical...
     

    Attached Files:

    #17 GabrielD, May 24, 2020
    dolj and nahaku like this.
  18. fotomoto

    fotomoto Senior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 22, 2009
    5,632
    3,809
    1
    Location:
    So. Texas
    Vehicle:
    Other Hybrid
    Yes a pressure washer used with care around electronics and the air intake system is OK but with regular light cleanings (1/yr should be enough) one shouldn't ever need too.

    IMG_6882.jpeg
     
    #18 fotomoto, May 24, 2020
    nahaku and Montgomery like this.
  19. Montgomery

    Montgomery Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 11, 2015
    2,254
    2,241
    2
    Location:
    Orange County, CA
    Vehicle:
    2015 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    If dirty, 1 part Mr. Clean to 2 parts water in a spray bottle. Then spray the areas that need it most. Lightly rinse with garden hose.
    Then, for maintenance, once every two months I do the "spot free" spray at the local car wash. Being doing this for decades on all cars I have owned.
     
    #19 Montgomery, May 24, 2020
  20. Salamander_King

    Salamander_King Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 8, 2015
    11,013
    8,942
    0
    Location:
    New England
    Vehicle:
    Other Electric Vehicle
    Model:
    N/A
    Amazing before and after photo. Good job!
     
    #20 Salamander_King, May 24, 2020
    nahaku likes this.
(You must log in or sign up to post here.)
Page 1 of 2