Mike Phillips
Active member
- Dec 5, 2022
- 51,004
- 6
Review and How-to: NEW Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner
Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner
Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner was formulated for safe engine detailing so anyone can do it without fear or risk of causing damage - Mike Phillips
Finally an engine cleaner that's both safe and effective
I know from years of teaching car detailing classes that most people are wary of detailing their car's engine and engine bay due to the common perception that it's either difficult or dangerous and usually both. The fact is when doing this type of work if you're not careful and if you are using a traditional degreaser, then you could run into trouble.
Multi-use product
Besides cleaning your engine and engine compartment, Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner is also great for and safe for the other areas of your vehicle that accumulate grease, oil and road grime like wheel wells, under the chassis, the underneath of bumpers, etc.
Most Important - This product is not caustic!
Most engine degreasers are a tick on the let's say risky side if you're not careful. That's because by their very nature they tend to be strong on the degreasing side. The downside of being strong degreaser is there's the potential for staining the various surfaces found in engine compartment is the degreaser dwells for too long or dries on the surface. Here's the deal though, most engine compartments NOW DAYS are not grease pits like old school engines inside the engine compartments found in cars from the 1960s, 1970s and even the 1980s. Engines and engine compartments have changed but most engine degreasers haven't changed.
Not so with Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner because it's doesn't use the normal hazardous ingredients found in most engine degreasers. Most engine degreasers use some form of,
The above ingredients are great if you're actually trying to dissolve or emulsify black sludge on the side of an engine block that's been building-up and baking hard for ten or 20 years. But that's not what most of you are trying to clean and thus you don't need these types of chemicals in your engine degreaser.
Bubba-Proof
I've seen my fair share of forum posts where someone cleaning an engine compartment makes a mistake. It usually involves staining some type of surface or component in the engine compartment and then the problem is... how to undo the damage. Whatever the remedy is, in most cases the person involved either doesn't have the skill or the budget to make the repair. Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner is safe enough you can spray it on, agitate it and the simply wipe the surface clean and dry. As long as your remove all the cleaner and the gunk it looses off the surface being cleaned there's no need to rinse. You can rinse if you like, that's your choice.
Avoid water damage
I teach two types of engine detailing at my Competition Ready 3-Day Detailing Classes,
If you own a car that's 10 years old or newer, chances are you don't need or even want a super heavy duty engine degreaser that has to be washed off, chances are good all you need is a safe and effective engine cleaner like Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner.
Never been touched engine compartment
Here's a 2007 Mercedes-Benz SL550 AMG engine and engine bay and it doesn't look like it's ever been cleaned. It's not covered in baked-on black oily sludge because that's not the type of build-up modern engines and engine compartments have now days. Instead, it's simply covered in a dirt and road grime build-up that is easily cleaned with Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner.
NOTE: Never work on a hot engine. Allow a hot engine to cool first and always work in a shaded area.
How to Directions
Step 1: Blow out any loose dirt with compressed air. Often times you'll find dried leaves, pine needles, dead bugs, etc., around the wiper arms and cowl.
Inside the grid pattern on the air intake manifold is some kind of brown dried-out gunk with an oily film.
Step 2: Spray on some Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner.
Step 3: Allow the cleaner to dwell for a few minutes.
Step 4: Agitate the cleaner with a medium to stiff bristle brush.
Step 5: Wipe the surface clean using microfiber towels.
Factory fresh appearance
Engine bay
Now for the plastic, rubber and painted metal surfaces surrounding the engine compartment.
Step 1: Spray Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner onto paint, plastic, rubber, vinyl surfaces surrounding the engine.
Step 2: Agitate cleaner with a brush
Step 3: Wipe the cleaner and any other residues off the surface being cleaned.
The engine bay is now clean and ready for a dressing
Not a mystery
Engine and engine bay detailing doesn't have to be a mystery, difficult or dangerous. Just stick with safe products from brands you trust. Besides doing a great job of wiping off the residues the other key to making engine and engine bay cleaning easy yet effective is a GREAT brush. I guarantee not only will you love this engine cleaner but when matched to this new SONAX Intensive Cleaning Brush. Be sure to wash the brush off after the job and it will be clean and ready to go for other detailing projects.
Traditional Engine Detailing
The above example demonstrates using Wolfgang Total Engine Detailer for Cosmetic Engine Detailing but you can certainly use Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner when doing a traditional engine detail where after applying and scrubbing with a brush you can then rinse the residues off with water.
On Autogeek.com
Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner - 16 ounce
Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner - 1 gallon
Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaning Kit
This SONAX brush works great for all kinds of car detailing jobs including engine detailing...
SONAX Intensive Cleaning Brush
You can never have too many microfiber towels
Blue All Purpose Microfiber Towels - 6 Pack
Blue All Purpose Microfiber Towels - 12 pack
Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner
Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner was formulated for safe engine detailing so anyone can do it without fear or risk of causing damage - Mike Phillips
Finally an engine cleaner that's both safe and effective
I know from years of teaching car detailing classes that most people are wary of detailing their car's engine and engine bay due to the common perception that it's either difficult or dangerous and usually both. The fact is when doing this type of work if you're not careful and if you are using a traditional degreaser, then you could run into trouble.
Multi-use product
Besides cleaning your engine and engine compartment, Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner is also great for and safe for the other areas of your vehicle that accumulate grease, oil and road grime like wheel wells, under the chassis, the underneath of bumpers, etc.
Most Important - This product is not caustic!
Most engine degreasers are a tick on the let's say risky side if you're not careful. That's because by their very nature they tend to be strong on the degreasing side. The downside of being strong degreaser is there's the potential for staining the various surfaces found in engine compartment is the degreaser dwells for too long or dries on the surface. Here's the deal though, most engine compartments NOW DAYS are not grease pits like old school engines inside the engine compartments found in cars from the 1960s, 1970s and even the 1980s. Engines and engine compartments have changed but most engine degreasers haven't changed.
Not so with Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner because it's doesn't use the normal hazardous ingredients found in most engine degreasers. Most engine degreasers use some form of,
- Butyl ethers
- Acids
- Phosphate detergents
- Solvents
The above ingredients are great if you're actually trying to dissolve or emulsify black sludge on the side of an engine block that's been building-up and baking hard for ten or 20 years. But that's not what most of you are trying to clean and thus you don't need these types of chemicals in your engine degreaser.
Bubba-Proof
I've seen my fair share of forum posts where someone cleaning an engine compartment makes a mistake. It usually involves staining some type of surface or component in the engine compartment and then the problem is... how to undo the damage. Whatever the remedy is, in most cases the person involved either doesn't have the skill or the budget to make the repair. Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner is safe enough you can spray it on, agitate it and the simply wipe the surface clean and dry. As long as your remove all the cleaner and the gunk it looses off the surface being cleaned there's no need to rinse. You can rinse if you like, that's your choice.
Avoid water damage
I teach two types of engine detailing at my Competition Ready 3-Day Detailing Classes,
Traditional Engine Detailing
This is where you use an engine degreaser to scrub the engine and engine compartment and then rinse the degreaser off with water. Modern engines and engine compartments have a lot of electrical components and if you over saturate an electrical component or use a high pressure sprayer and accidentally force water into a component or connection you can cause damage or create a problem which will require taking the vehicle to a dealership or auto repair business and then pay them to diagnose the issue and fix the problem.
Cosmetic Engine Detailing
This is where you spray in a cleaner, agitate and then wipe the various surfaces clean. It's actually perfect for modern engine bays and a heck of a lot faster and SAFER for even a first time engine bay detailer.
This is where you use an engine degreaser to scrub the engine and engine compartment and then rinse the degreaser off with water. Modern engines and engine compartments have a lot of electrical components and if you over saturate an electrical component or use a high pressure sprayer and accidentally force water into a component or connection you can cause damage or create a problem which will require taking the vehicle to a dealership or auto repair business and then pay them to diagnose the issue and fix the problem.
Cosmetic Engine Detailing
This is where you spray in a cleaner, agitate and then wipe the various surfaces clean. It's actually perfect for modern engine bays and a heck of a lot faster and SAFER for even a first time engine bay detailer.
If you own a car that's 10 years old or newer, chances are you don't need or even want a super heavy duty engine degreaser that has to be washed off, chances are good all you need is a safe and effective engine cleaner like Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner.
Never been touched engine compartment
Here's a 2007 Mercedes-Benz SL550 AMG engine and engine bay and it doesn't look like it's ever been cleaned. It's not covered in baked-on black oily sludge because that's not the type of build-up modern engines and engine compartments have now days. Instead, it's simply covered in a dirt and road grime build-up that is easily cleaned with Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner.
NOTE: Never work on a hot engine. Allow a hot engine to cool first and always work in a shaded area.
How to Directions
Step 1: Blow out any loose dirt with compressed air. Often times you'll find dried leaves, pine needles, dead bugs, etc., around the wiper arms and cowl.
Inside the grid pattern on the air intake manifold is some kind of brown dried-out gunk with an oily film.
Step 2: Spray on some Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner.
Step 3: Allow the cleaner to dwell for a few minutes.
Step 4: Agitate the cleaner with a medium to stiff bristle brush.
Step 5: Wipe the surface clean using microfiber towels.
Factory fresh appearance
Engine bay
Now for the plastic, rubber and painted metal surfaces surrounding the engine compartment.
Step 1: Spray Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner onto paint, plastic, rubber, vinyl surfaces surrounding the engine.
Step 2: Agitate cleaner with a brush
Step 3: Wipe the cleaner and any other residues off the surface being cleaned.
The engine bay is now clean and ready for a dressing
Not a mystery
Engine and engine bay detailing doesn't have to be a mystery, difficult or dangerous. Just stick with safe products from brands you trust. Besides doing a great job of wiping off the residues the other key to making engine and engine bay cleaning easy yet effective is a GREAT brush. I guarantee not only will you love this engine cleaner but when matched to this new SONAX Intensive Cleaning Brush. Be sure to wash the brush off after the job and it will be clean and ready to go for other detailing projects.
Traditional Engine Detailing
The above example demonstrates using Wolfgang Total Engine Detailer for Cosmetic Engine Detailing but you can certainly use Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner when doing a traditional engine detail where after applying and scrubbing with a brush you can then rinse the residues off with water.
On Autogeek.com
Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner - 16 ounce
Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaner - 1 gallon
Wolfgang Total Engine Cleaning Kit
This SONAX brush works great for all kinds of car detailing jobs including engine detailing...
SONAX Intensive Cleaning Brush
You can never have too many microfiber towels
Blue All Purpose Microfiber Towels - 6 Pack
Blue All Purpose Microfiber Towels - 12 pack