Sure appreciate your sharing that. Seems obvious after you put it out there. I have been dreading my first engine detail, feel better now.
Mike, What's the story with WD-40?
- Thread starter Chrisquickshine
- Start date
Sure appreciate your sharing that. Seems obvious after you put it out there. I have been dreading my first engine detail, feel better now.
alexjn1
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- Jul 21, 2009
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We always kept WD-40 around a touchless car wash that I used to work at part time. Every week or so someone would spray there engine and then the car would not start or run really rough.
We always went to the spark plug cables everytime. You could see it sparking with the moisture that was trapped where the plugs and cables met. One quick whoosh with WD-40 an all was better.
Did the same thing for farm equiptment. Sprayed WD-40 first then washed then re-sprayed.
i've used WD40 on the inside of our jetskies for over 12 years after washing them out. it displaces the water from the metals & electrical. i've seen WD40 make dead spark plugs work, clean grime & rust, etc (its always in our toolbox).
i also have a locksmith friend that swore against WD40 and locks, apparently the oils mix with dirt and ultimately jams the lock (dry lubs like white lithium were perfered).
but i've heard you dont want it on the paint. i'm not sure if the concern is its attraction to dirt or the oils/materials in it. it doesnt really make sense since most waxes contain various oils...
spray the engine down w/cleaner (i.e. diluted DP cleanse-all or dawn water)
brush bad grim spots
air compressor w/engine cleaning gun w/bucket of dawn water
hose rinse
WD40 on metal & electrical
air compressor/air gun blow dry
cloth wipe plastics & painted surfaces
before i started using WD40 on the engine, i'd periodically have the sputter and difficult start that alexjn1 mentioned on my '91 jetta.
i also have a locksmith friend that swore against WD40 and locks, apparently the oils mix with dirt and ultimately jams the lock (dry lubs like white lithium were perfered).
but i've heard you dont want it on the paint. i'm not sure if the concern is its attraction to dirt or the oils/materials in it. it doesnt really make sense since most waxes contain various oils...
i clean my engines:
spray the engine down w/cleaner (i.e. diluted DP cleanse-all or dawn water)
brush bad grim spots
air compressor w/engine cleaning gun w/bucket of dawn water
hose rinse
WD40 on metal & electrical
air compressor/air gun blow dry
cloth wipe plastics & painted surfaces
before i started using WD40 on the engine, i'd periodically have the sputter and difficult start that alexjn1 mentioned on my '91 jetta.
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Just out of curiosity, if you were going to use this as a way to keep bugs from sticking to the front of a car wouldn't it be safer to use somthing like a straight weight 30 oil? I would think that if you used the one with no detergents or additives it would be safer for the paint. I would still prefer to use somthing like dg 105 or fk1000, but in a pinch I think it would be safer than the wd-40.
Superdutytd
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- Apr 8, 2009
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PAM works too I think. But don't blame me if your paint falls off (which I find highly unlikely) Im the MAN
Anthony Orosco
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- Dec 17, 2006
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Here in Texas WD-40 is the favorite choice for men as an aftershave......and in all truth many use it to repel bugs while out in the field.
Be cautious when using WD-40 on re-paints. It can possibly soften paint as I found out the hard way one time.
Generally it is safe, even on skin to repel pesky skitters, so it should not be harmful to cured painted surfaces.
Anthony
Be cautious when using WD-40 on re-paints. It can possibly soften paint as I found out the hard way one time.
Generally it is safe, even on skin to repel pesky skitters, so it should not be harmful to cured painted surfaces.
Anthony
some people used to use old gasoline to clean their hands of oil too.... i wouldnt say wd-40 is a good choice to use on your skin to repel skeeters though... id be worried about possible chemical burns from letting it set on your skin and evaporate.
Matt
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- Aug 25, 2008
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Well I've used it to clean the grease/ dirt off the door hinges on my mums car which were filthy and I was amazed when the dirt trickled away with the WD40 as it ran down the doorjam. Like magic haha.
I also used this to clean the paint on the underside of her hood around the outside edges where there is no hood lining and I haven't noticed any problems yet.
+ I use it often as a lubricant for my door hinges and have noticed no ill effects to the paint around there. Looks the same as the rest of the paint in the door jams (like new....as all of us Autogeeks have it)
On an unrelated note (not to hijack) but can someone recommend a lubricant for my window tracks? I'm planning on just using some grease after exams finish because I think that's what the dealer used when the passengers window triggered the safety auto lowering thingy when the car was new (after about 6 months the window started screwing up!!!! but his "greasing" of it fixed it for a couple years now- no problems yet but I want to "prevent" it ever happening again haha). I've tried WD40 but it doesn't seem to do the trick
I also used this to clean the paint on the underside of her hood around the outside edges where there is no hood lining and I haven't noticed any problems yet.
+ I use it often as a lubricant for my door hinges and have noticed no ill effects to the paint around there. Looks the same as the rest of the paint in the door jams (like new....as all of us Autogeeks have it)
On an unrelated note (not to hijack) but can someone recommend a lubricant for my window tracks? I'm planning on just using some grease after exams finish because I think that's what the dealer used when the passengers window triggered the safety auto lowering thingy when the car was new (after about 6 months the window started screwing up!!!! but his "greasing" of it fixed it for a couple years now- no problems yet but I want to "prevent" it ever happening again haha). I've tried WD40 but it doesn't seem to do the trick
On an unrelated note (not to hijack) but can someone recommend a lubricant for my window tracks? I'm planning on just using some grease after exams finish because I think that's what the dealer used when the passengers window triggered the safety auto lowering thingy when the car was new (after about 6 months the window started screwing up!!!! but his "greasing" of it fixed it for a couple years now- no problems yet but I want to "prevent" it ever happening again haha). I've tried WD40 but it doesn't seem to do the trick[/QUOTE]
At work we use either Kent total rubber care or wurth rubber care. Both work quite well at freeing up sticking windows. As long as there isn't too much old grease and dirt in the tracks. I use it bi weekly on my fit as maintenance. I just give it a light spritz along the track and get the excess out with q tips. Both products work pretty much the same. Both of them even smell the same. Also neither contains silicone so they shouldn't attract more dirt.
At work we use either Kent total rubber care or wurth rubber care. Both work quite well at freeing up sticking windows. As long as there isn't too much old grease and dirt in the tracks. I use it bi weekly on my fit as maintenance. I just give it a light spritz along the track and get the excess out with q tips. Both products work pretty much the same. Both of them even smell the same. Also neither contains silicone so they shouldn't attract more dirt.
If I presprayed everything before covering the obvious with plastic. would that be overkill? Thanks for the info from all us newbs.
My patio door installer recommended a dry lube for the rollers for the same reason--
Liquid Wrench Dry Lube: ....helps protect against water and corrosion.
[Doesn't say anything about displacing water.]
I haven't heard anything either way....hopefully it's not an issue unless your careless.
Matt
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- Aug 25, 2008
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alexjn1
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- Jul 21, 2009
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WOW, I forgot all about the gasoline cleaning until you mentioned it. That is the way I first learned hand cleaning for grease, oil, paint & brushes while growing up on the farm.
We always had to wash directly afterward with soap and water at the outside facuet.