13.7 - Engine bay cleaning ( Brett Gadzinsky,  )

We all like to see a clean engine compartment, especially in a Jaguar where the engine is something to proud of; it also makes working on the car a more pleasant experience. Unfortunately, as we all found out the hard way at one point or another, using degreaser and a lot of water comes at a price like the car not starting or running rough.

Generally, only a wet cap/wires/plug holes will stop the engine from starting in MOST cases.

NEVER wash the engine then park the car for a week; this is a VERY bad idea. The best way to clean your engine is to run it till it's warm, then spray something like Armorall or son of a gun all over everything except the oxy sensors, then go for a drive...one that gets the engine and engine bay full hot, to bake out any moisture.

Very bad idea to spray degreaser on the engine, and .....

* Not remove ALL the electrical connectors and relay sockets and spray wd40 on them,
* Not run the engine till its full hot for some time (go for a drive!),
* Not use silicone spray of some sort.

If you do degrease the engine with those sprays, and the spray sits inside of a relay socket, a connector, etc, it will
erode away the contacts over time.

Use the spray stuff the first time you clean the engine, and from then on use the leftover car wash soap and water.

With the wd40 and silicone spray, you can actually wash the engine while it's running, without it missing a beat. Both the wd40 and the silicone spray water proof everything. Dielectric grease is also good for most connectors, but wd40 sprays any water/moisture/dirt out of the connections and leaves a thin oil coating on all the connector gaskets...