DREAMZ28

iTrader: (1)

I've been reading online about how safe it is to clean your engine bay with a little soap and water and a hose. Well I tried it, made sure to put my thumb over the hose so it sprayed a mist, sprayed the engine, headers, and slightly sprayed the intake. I tried as good as possible to miss the accesories so the soap wouldn't cause a squeal, and I tried to miss most of the wiring just to be on the safe side. Guess I wasn't safe enough..


When I went to start the car up, it basically sounded like the battery was dead. The starter tried to engage, but the motor didn't spin at all.. All of the normal interior lights come on, nothing strange there. I did notice on the 2nd and 3rd try, the starter seemed less "enthusiastic". On the third try, it was a bit slower sounding than the first time..


I checked to make sure no wiring was exposed that coulve gotten sprayed, made sure the coil packs and wires were dry and good to go, nothing obvious sticking out to me. Any tips? I can't afford to have the car down for long.

MC Ray

iTrader: (1)

Is it possible you got water in the intake? A cylinder or two full of water will keep the starter from cranking the engine and just give your one big click.

LS6427

iTrader: (2)

It needs to dry off thats all.....you might have gotten the PCM wet or maybe the fuse box.

When I clean my engine I put a plastic bag over the fuse box, over the PCM and over the IAC, TPS and MAF sensor plugs. Then I spray the hell out of everything else in sight because everything else can get as wet as can be.....

The only thing that happens to me for 1-2 days is I get over-charging on my alternator......which I take care of by just driving around with my headlights on and A/C on....that keeps the needle out of the red.....till it dries off.

.

TA_Freak

Exactly what LS6427 said... just needs to dry. I'd probably disconnect the battery. Something is loaded down which sounds why it's slow to turn over. You could use some compressed air or a blower to dry things (connectors, alternator ...etc.)

Firebrian

I've never cleaned any engine by like that. I much prefer to take a can of degreaser, Windex, soap & water, Final Inspection, and just go through it by hand. Just because someone on the internet says it's a good idea doesn't mean you won't have problems.

I like the idea of putting a leaf blower to your engine bay to get any excess water out.

elephantrider

iTrader: (2)

blow all the excess water off with compressed air ( or a leaf blower ).
that will help. i've washed my engine so many times with a husky
1200psi pressure washer and never had any issues. i do clean the water
off thoroughly, though, and finish it with a clean rag to polish things up.

DREAMZ28

iTrader: (1)

Ok so I have some developments.. Please read this whole post as everything relates to this current problem which leads me to think the problem is deeper than it seems.

This morning the problem was no better after letting it dry overnight. I made sure no water was pooled around the intake or anything like that, I know of the problem where it can leak into the cylinders so I really didn't spray the top of the motor much.

After looking the car over yesterday, I had realized the passenger door was only partially closed. I don't know whether my friend the night before did it or if I did it right before I washed the car, but I assumed that the battery was just dead.

Just pulled it out, got it tested. Battery is good, 706 CCA. So I brought it back home, cleaned off the connections/terminals with MAF cleaner, threw it back in and it started, but stuggled to hold an idle. If I gave it gas and put it above 1000 rpm, it ran fine, but once you let off the gas and let it run on its own it will die if you let it.

So, I turned it off after 30 seconds or so, and started it back up and it runs perfectly.


Now, this is where it gets confusing... The night before, I had an interesting problem. Somehow, after I locked the car, I caused the alarm to go off accidentally. I had to start the car and lock it to solve the problem. Once I got to the bar, when I went to lock the car, I'm not sure if my friend hadn't closed the door yet or what, but when I went to lock the door, the horn honked 5 times instead of the normal one time, and it stayed unlocked. Once I got into the car, I turned the ignition and saw that it was the theft prevention system, and no matter what I did, it would honk 5 times, but it would now lock every time.

I decided to leave it alone since it was at least actually locked.

Once I went to drop my friends off, we somehow caused the alarm to go off. After finally getting it to shut off (I had to randomly figure out whether I had to lock/unlock/turn on the car) everything in the car was reset (head unit, trip meters, etc). When I went to start it, it ran just like it did today once I got it to start. Some gas would have it running perfectly, but no gas would cause it to die. I turned it off and started it again, and just like today, it would run perfectly. It had about 1/8th tank of gas before the incident, and once I got back in the car, it was showing it was below E and it was saying it had 0 miles until the tank was empty so I threw gas in it just to be on the safe side (I was planning on it anyways of course).

So I'm not sure if it's an electrical problem or not at this point. I'm going to check all the wiring in the morning.


TLDR: The night before the problem, I had issues with the alarm system multiple times. Once I finally got the car to start, it ran rough just like today, and just like today it ran fine after turning off and turning back on.


Regardless, I'm pretty much certain theres a problem somewhere, whether its minor or major.

LS6427

iTrader: (2)

You got something wet.....it sometimes takes a few days to dry. It won't dry over night. Driving it and heating up the engine compartment will speed up the drying process.

.

DREAMZ28

iTrader: (1)

Yup after a few days, none of these problems have returned. Thanks for the help

ramairetransam

iTrader: (18)

thats good to hear .