Will this yellowing come out of engine bay paint?

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kimokalihi

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This is the engine bay of my 91 Subaru Legacy SS. It's supposed to be pearl white. So is the exterior but I'll get to that in another thread when I get a chance to snap some pictures of the 23 year old paint and post them in another thread on the car when I'm ready to work on the outside.

I'm slowly getting the car ready for a car show in september so I've got some time but I'd like to know if you guys think this nasty yellow will come out of the paint of the engine bay and what the best approach to getting it looking as best as it will would be. I was thinking one of those powerball minis and maybe the cone shaped one for tight areas with a compound. I have M105, M205, Ultimate Compound and a bunch of other random compounds and polishes.

You can see both on the fender and the area between those two bolts the color difference of what it should look like and how it's somehow gotten yellow in a bad bad way. I think this is from repeated exposure to oil. At one point the engine blew up and covered most of the bay in oil while driving it home on 3 cylinders. But it was yellow before that as well.

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I would try working that with a chemical polish. Something like Poorboy's Pro Polish or even a metal polish would chemically work at the contaminates in the paint and possibly bring the paint back to it's original color or closer to it. It's been my experience that chemical polishes work better at removing stains that abrasive compounds don't really do so well with removing.

Do you have any metal polish to try?
 
Just an idea, try a weak of bleach and water. Let is set a bit then agitate, rinse. Like I said, this just an idea. Oil staining is a bear to remove from clothes (read-white T-shirts), but sometimes adding bleach to the wash water can help.

What have you tried already?

Bill
 
You'd better be careful when going over whatever that sealer is in the corner. If it's soft you might pull the paint off of it.
 
I can't believe I myself am suggesting it, but since I just picked up on it, I will suggest claying it. Safest technique to start and see what happens. Maybe some Meg's moderate clay for some bite, or if you cannot get that, try the mild. At least this is what I would try. I, too, have a white car so I'm sure this will happen to me too. -Ed
 
Thanks guys! Its actually yellower in real life but I couldn't get my phone to accurately capture the nastiness. I soaked and scrubbed with meguairs apc+ before taking those pics so its in the surface pretty good.

That cosmonot sounds pretty promising. I think ill try that.
 
Setec Astronomy said:
You'd better be careful when going over whatever that sealer is in the corner. If it's soft you might pull the paint off of it.
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Its not that soft. Its factory stuff under the factory paint and its all over the bay on all the seems.
 
tuscarora dave said:
I would try working that with a chemical polish. Something like Poorboy's Pro Polish or even a metal polish would chemically work at the contaminates in the paint and possibly bring the paint back to it's original color or closer to it. It's been my experience that chemical polishes work better at removing stains that abrasive compounds don't really do so well with removing.

Do you have any metal polish to try?
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I do have a bottle of meguiars all metal polish.
 
FUNX725 said:
Unless Subaru had a footprint where you live back in 1991...
Your vehicle was probably shipped across the open seas from its assembly plant.
Fight like with like!

Prima Cosmonot Cosmoline Remover, Prima cosmoline cleaner

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Bob
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Thanks for the remedy to the situation. My wife's Mini Cooper S has got cosmoline all over the hinges under the hood and door areas and APC would not work, going to give the prima a try.
 
Alright funx725, I ordered the prima cosmonot product. Hoping it helps. What is cosmoline anyways?
 
I see. No reason for it to be on the paint then and we don't get much rust in the PNW.
 
kimokalihi said:
I see. No reason for it to be on the paint then and we don't get much rust in the PNW.
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Cosmoline also protects from: Sea-Salt-Spray-Rusting-Conditions.
Where was your Subaru assembled/shipped-from?

FUNX725 said:
Unless Subaru had a footprint where you live back in 1991...
Your vehicle was probably shipped across the open seas from its assembly plant.
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Maybe Indiana?


:)

Bob
 
Hahaha. Its not waxy feeling at all as I've been reading. Could it still be cosmoline? I want my cosmonot now! Lol autogeek takes forever to ship to me in washington. 10 days is a long wait.
 
kimokalihi said:
Hahaha. Its not waxy feeling at all as I've been reading. Could it still be cosmoline?
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It's been drying-up/yellowing-out for at least 22 years now.

kimokalihi said:
takes forever to ship to me in washington.
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HMMM...Since you live pretty close:
I wonder if Richard Griot would have a solution to the "yellowing", as well as the shipping-time-frame issues.

:)

Bob
 
I'll be interested to see if the Prima CosmoNot (great choice of name) works for you. Since full strength APC didn't show any removal power (BTW, try some mineral spirits if you have it), your options are dwindling.

Are you the original owner, so you can say for sure the engine was not, at one time, coated in greasy gunk that was later cleaned? Having the greasy gunk sit for years can stain.

In any case, there are a lot of greasy gases floating around in the enclosed engine bay and films will build up and potentially (permanently)stain if you don't frequently clean the engine bay. On a 21 year old vehicle, there have likely been leaky gaskets or cracked crankcase vents that add to the mix, and can deposit stains.

I might have a couple more suggestions if the CosmoNot doesn't work, so keep us posted.

PS, does it look like raw (non-clearcoated) paint in the engine bay? I imagine it is, but just wondering. That might affect your other options if the cosmonot doesn't work.
 
D-limonene based degreasers work well on removing cosmoline, if that's what it is. Only problem is that after over 20 years I'm not sure how well any of the solvents will work. I've had to sand blast it off of an engine block it had backed on to.
 
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