Engine Cleaning Suggestions

[RK Ryder]

I took the plastic off my ‘98 R1100RT and discovered possibly years of mess (oil & road crude) surrounding the lower engine casing. I’m only interested in cleaning the engine under the Tupperware.

 

What cleaning products has been your successful experience with cleaning the lower engine without doing any damage?

 

Thanks!
 

Paul

[BABABeemer]

I’ve been happy with Simple Green.

[9Mary7]

I soak it undiluted first......

[Paddler]

I've found Gunk is much better than Simple Green:

 

https://gunk.com/product-category/engine-cleaners/

[JamesW]

Yup, I go with Simple Green as well and let soak for 15 minutes cold motor.  Maybe a little kerosene on any bad spots put on with paint brush.

 

Not sure about Gunk on an older BMW because of possible wiring insulation issue.  Just me being cautious not because I've read anything negative about Gunk.

[dirtrider]

50 minutes ago, JamesW said:

Yup, I go with Simple Green as well and let soak for 15 minutes cold motor.  Maybe a little kerosene on any bad spots put on with paint brush.

 

Not sure about Gunk on an older BMW because of possible wiring insulation issue.  Just me being cautious not because I've read anything negative about Gunk.

Afternoon James

 

Unless your are using aviation aluminum-safe Simple Green you might want to research allowing it to soak on your alloy engine or transmission cases.  

[Paddler]

42 minutes ago, JamesW said:

Yup, I go with Simple Green as well and let soak for 15 minutes cold motor.  Maybe a little kerosene on any bad spots put on with paint brush.

 

Not sure about Gunk on an older BMW because of possible wiring insulation issue.  Just me being cautious not because I've read anything negative about Gunk.

I'm not sure about wiring insulation and Gunk.  I used both it and Zep citrus cleaner on my old edger and the Gunk was way better.  I also used kerosene applied with a paint brush and it worked well.  That thing was really dirty.

[RK Ryder]

I used Simple Green diluted 50/50 with water and let it sit/soak for maybe 3 minutes, used a few brushes, gently hosed it off and then dried the area.

 

The lower part of the engine, (especially under at the back of the left cylinder normally out of sight under the plastic) was coated with what appeared to be oil. No oil drippings under the bike which has not moved for a couple of months. Of course it appears that the belly pan protected the floor.

 

I plan on taking photos later today of the mostly clean area for a later set for comparison. If the gasket needs replacing (not the outer head gasket) where the left cylinder meets the engine (a job I’d hire out), how labour intensive would that be (hours) for an experienced BMW mechanic?

 

The only other area which could cause such a mess might be the sight glass. I doubt this as most of the mess was under the backend of the left cylinder close  to the engine.

 

Opinions? 🤷‍♂️
 

Paul

 

[Skywagon]

2 hours ago, dirtrider said:

Unless your are using aviation aluminum-safe Simple Green

^^^^^^^That.  I just use dawn dishwashing soap and a sponge.  It's a pretty good degreaser.  I use it on all vehicles I wash.  Now you are going to wake up @rougarou who it going to scold us all for washing our bikes.

[JamesW]

6 hours ago, dirtrider said:

Afternoon James

 

Unless your are using aviation aluminum-safe Simple Green you might want to research allowing it to soak on your alloy engine or transmission cases.  

 

You might have a point.  I did a bit of looking into this issue and aluminum isn't really fond of water (corrosion or oxidation)) and simple green can accelerate the process.  Not a good idea to let simple green soak for more  10 minutes it seems.  I would imagine an older airhead bike might be especially prone to damage but in the case of my oilhead engine cases seem to be coated or painted so this is good but still something to be cautious about. Thanks for the heads up D.R. I will keep this in mind.  Amazon sells Aviation Simple Green for $26/gal.  Going to give it a try sounds like good stuff.

[plepper]

I just went through this and used Simple Green Pro HD ( It's purple not green ) and Muc-Off and am happy with the results. The Simple Green Pro HD is formulated to be non corosive to aluminum as opposed to the regular simple green.