Anyone never clean the engine bay?

I was watching a video today and it made me realize that I don't think I've ever touched the engine bay. Anyone else? Maybe I should give it a rinse if nothing else...

 

Yeah never cleaned it… too scared to mess up the electrical stuff.

Was at the dealership today and the tech told me “I don’t know what this truck has been through but this dust can really mess stuff up.”

Just dusty from dirt roads…but I should probably learn how to clean it

 

I wiped the engine cover off once about 10 years ago.

I’ve done my share of “making it worse, by attempting to make it better”
The older I get, I’m in the mind frame of “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”.

I do however wipe down the parts I take off when repairing them.
Other than that, I leave it alone.

 

That's kind of my thinking, like the other person mentioned I would be afraid of messing up something on the electrical side.

If it is literally just for aesthetic purposes I won't bother. I just want to make sure I am not doing any damage by NOT cleaning under there.

 

Just don’t make a habit of washing the engine bay. You can rust sensors or connections. Don’t point at the alternator. Nothing wrong with rinsing it down when really dusty. Just make sure you drive it to evaporate the water and let it drain out. Don’t flood the area under the intake manifold, that’s where water get trapped and rusts connections and sensors.

 

I haven’t washed my truck in 10 years so…..

 

Spraying the engine bay is like shaving below the neck line. Like Kramer said, you don't want to mess around down there

 

I give zero fucks. I've pressure washed the engine before. No problems. Hell I'll even do it on a hot engine, and I have. Just don't point the pressure washer directly at the connectors and you'll be all good. Of course that's just my experience. Your mileage my vary.

 

Cover your alternator! I messed mine up when rinsing my engine bay. Run your motor afterward if you spray down with water.

 

yes it's safe to clean

 

What a wall of text! Ain't got time to read all that, way too many words.

 

fixed

 

The engine bay is made to me dirty. Clean if you have a show vehicle. Cleaning an engine bay by the average joe hobo will cause more harm than good.

 

Every time I wash my truck I start with engine bay and bottom of hood. I also get in the gas cap door and door jams and inside the finder wells. Also I dig out all the pine straw and crap that falls in the bottom of your front finders. My first Yota I did none of this and after many years it gets baked on and wont come off. My 15 Taco still looks new. Well when I wash the mud off it does.

 

I have given reasonable cleaning to every engine bay I've ever owned, and some I didn't.

Now I do a wash/rinse about once a year. When the oil gets changed. On both the truck and the RAV.

 

I give the radiator a rinse after wheeling. Also anywhere else mud is sitting.

 

I cleaned my engine bay a month ago and it looks like it came off the dealership years ago. Just needed to use some simple green and a nylon brush. It looks great. Just run the engine afterwards for that the heat from the engine dries off the bay.

 

Yep 11 years worth now. My drive way is 1/2 a mile of dirt if I left it alone in a couple of years I wouldn't be able to see the engine.