Disclaimer : do not try this on your car. Water and XK8/R engines/electrical systems do not mix. You will most likely fry something expensive and probably damage/disable your car. I'm not kidding.

I don't think the engine on my 2005 XKR has ever been detailed, but it was still reasonably presentable prior to my detailing efforts (sorry, I didn't think to take any 'before' pics). However, knowing that we are heading for the '3rd Wednesday of the month' car enthusiast gathering at the pub this month (weather permitting), I did decide to give the engine compartment a little refresh so that I could hold my own against my wife's shiny new S5 engine compartment. My materials consisted of :

1. a new "Steamfast SF-370WH Multi-Purpose Steam Cleaner" bought proposely for my garage needs
2. a case of "S100 19200A Engine Brightener Aerosol" which I have used since the beginning of time on my motorcycles and other car engines. This stuff is expensive, but I like the way it returns the blacks to black, does not make the engine components sticky or gummy, and has staying power.
3. a gallon of distilled water for the steamer and spray bottle (distilled water is non conductive, at least until it gets contaminated during the cleaning process)
4. "Gunk EB1 Engine Brite Original Heavy Duty Engine Degreaser" for the couple of spots where I had some minor buildup of, well, 112k miles of engine gunk. Warning : this is the original formula and this stuff is nasty for the environment, people, plants and animals. Using too much of it can leave your car with an unpleasant petroleum smell that invades the interior and which does not dissipate for quite some time.
5. Two stiff bristle detailing brushes
6. a small spray bottle with a mix of Dawn dishwashing detergent and distilled water

I warmed the motor (not hot), then with the motor off, key out, but battery still connected, I gunked and brushed the few stubborn places that needed it, and then rinsed these sections with the streamer. I then sprayed small sections of the engine and engine compartment with the Dawn mixture and rinsed with the steamer, repeating this process until I had completed the entire engine and engine compartment. I avoided, as much as possible, spraying and rinsing directly the electrical connectors and components. I blotted the engine with a drying towel immediately following each steam application throughout the process.

I used less than 20 oz of water in total for the streamer and less than 10 oz for the Dawn spray bottle (including doing the hood insulation). I let the engine dry and then applied the S100. I very happy with the result and fortunately I did not fry anything.

The trick to using these low-end steamers is to vent the water condensation with a quick 'pre-squirt' directed away from the engine and engine compartment immediately prior to steaming the engine. The steamer does not emit much water (which is really the point of using it), so you have to go very light with the Dawn prespray and Gunk. In fact, most of my engine compartment and engine itself did not even need the Dawn prespray or Gunk. I used them very sparingly.

Here are a couple of pics :





Again, YMMV and I do not advise trying this (or any other water based cleaning process) on your engine, but I wanted to share my experience. I'm happy with the result.

Best Regards, Fred

PS - I stripped the paint off of the tops of the supercharger intercoolers because I didn't like the rub marks left by the hood insulation when I had the compromised motor mount. Still haven't decided if I'm going to leave it as-is or repaint.

 

Looking great, job well done, thanks for sharing.

Love to see a nicely detailed engine bay, it shows care for the car.

 

Thanks Jim. It's really relaxing for me when I can spend nice mellow morning with the XKR just to spruce it up.

Rgds, Fred

 

Totally agree Fred, it works for me too.

Once done, I usually find that as part of my normal wash process, I open the doors and clean the door shuts etc, as well as the boot and the bonnet cleaning under there too, so its always fresh and clean

I always wash, clean and dry the underside of the bonnet too and it looks as good as new.

I find its so easy to keep on top of with this method.