References to Clean Up Engine Bay

[tokendog]

I am in the process of redoing my head gasket on my SR20 and all of the seals/gaskets. While going through the time consuming task of removing the head, I realized that there are a few things I can remove or should be able to remove that would make working on this car and this engine a whole lot easier. I want to go through the engine bay and remove the extra "fluff" or "crap" that is not needed. I want to install new parts that save room, are easier to remove, and get in the way as little as possible.

There were a lot of bolts and brackets and hoses that were in the way during the head removal process. I know that some of this is unavoidable, but I'd like to get the bay as clean and efficient as possible.

I'm hoping some of you might know of references, links, guides, write-ups, etc. that might help me do this. I've been looking through other people's builds, etc. to see how they do things, but was wondering if any one had any advice on things that can be removed and not cause any noticeable side effects.

Thanks in advance. Again, any information or references you can provide will be greatly appreciated. :>

Also one last question: I have the head off of the car - but the car itself sits outside, with the hood on, and I have a plastic bag and a towel covering the block. The rest of the open holes are closed with plastics bags, etc. - any other steps I should take or be concerned about in regards to foreign objects/water getting in to the engine block? I was thinking of masking things off with painters tape...

Thanks!

[idahotuner]

greddy/freddy intake manifold does alot for the looks of the engine. all the wires that ran ove the stock one can now run under it. cleans it up alot.

as far as the head i would make sure i have rags shoved in each cylinder and then have it covered with another rag and then the plastice bag over it, and close the hood

it should be fine.

[tokendog]

Yeah, I am thinking about new manifolds. Which ones have better bolt setups because removing the stock exhaust manifold was a PITA. Also - if I do decide to keep my manfiolds for a while but want to get them cleaned, is that some thing that a machine shop does?

Like can I take the manifolds to a machine shop and have them hot tank them to get them cleaned or is that some thing that is done by hand using degreaser and simple green?

Thanks for the response btw. I was reading through your build up earlier.

[idahotuner]

Stock exhaust manifold is pretty good no real reason to upgrade it unless you are going to a top mont.The heat sheild can be unbolted and painted if you want, just make sure to us high temp paint.

as far as cleaning them i dont think it is worth the effort to pull them off.

You could have them ran through a parts washer but i wouldnt bother.

i am not sure about simple green. you have to check the ingridents becasue there is a certain one ( i cant rember the name) but it makes aluminum pit. just check to make sure waht ever you use say it works on aluminum.

dish soap and warm water can work wonders.

[tokendog]

I'll try the soap and warm water. I didn't know that about Simple Green. I was certain it was the Universal cleaner safe for all uses. =P Thanks for the heads up. Well, the exhaust manifold is still on so is the turbo, but the intake manifolds are off. I wanted to clean those up.

I might just pull all of the parts I can and replace, clean, etc. so that its done. I dont' feel like pulling the head and all the other stuff again any time soon and I minus well do all of this while I have the extra room you know.

Plus, I want to replace parts that are hard to remove because of bolt placement, etc. with parts that are better designed and easier to remove. I was looking at the bottom mounted intensepower manifold for the T25. Its pretty basic but it looks better and the bolts are easier to get to - or so it seems.

What are some of the components in the engine bay that you can eliminate? Obviously things like power steering, AC, etc. and EGR? What else can be removed to make room and to make the bay cleaner?

Thats my ultimate goal. Clean, simple, and efficient.

[idahotuner]

opps didnt notice did you all ready pull the head? Did you pull it with the exhuast manifold on it.

yeah with it apart it is a good time to do that stuff.

as far as the manifold if it is tublare then it should be easier t oget to the bolt, but it wil laffect your spool some what. i have meagan racing manifol. the only reason i got it and didnt stay stock was casue my dad bought it for me fora birthday present.

there are 2 hoses going to the throttle boddy those can be disconected and plugged.

if you have powersteering you might want ot keep it. i dont have it and after driving my cara long way i get really tired and sore. lol as far as ac i dont ahve that either but i never use it even if i did have it so just decided if you want it or not. the egr stuff hasa thing that mong on the drivers side strut pller. it has the ignotior on it. that can be disconected and moved to under the intake manifold. I even cut the plugs off it and just left the ignitor and then mounted it under my intake manifold.

Just simply pressure washing and repainted the bay and parts i nthe bay can make i look alo better. check out mineFrom this:To this

[tokendog]

Yeah the head is off and sitting in my room along with a lot of other parts. Hehe. At this point, I'm trying to learn how to clean all the parts I pulled off and what I can eliminate while I have the room. The mechanic that did the install didn't do the cleanest job, so I am fixing the mistakes now. My pistons look clean - almost no carb build up on them and still have the rings. The valves on the bottom of the head do not look bent, either. I am replacing the head gasket because the engine over heated.

I am going to send the head to the shop to have it machined, etc. and will just polish down the block with..hmm, I'm guessing 180 grit sand paper with a light touch. I am also going to spray copper on the gasket and the block, etc. to fill in any gaps.

I am probably going to pull my wiring harness and send it to wiringspecialities to have them repair it as the mechanic probably screwed that up as well - though I did like the idea of buying a new harness to eliminate all electrical problems altogether...

So far I am getting my gasket kit, that intensepower manifold, and probably a new water pump/thermostat, and a new radiator fan (way more powerful).

Oh, one last thing, do you mind if I ask you questions now and then as I am going to need help with finding out certain parts are, what hoses go where, etc.. I will use the FSM and the forums as much as possible, but if I get stumped, it would be nice to know I can ask some one directly. :>

Thanks again.

[idahotuner]

Ican try to help as muc has i can. AIM - idahotuneras far as part numbers check out the FAQ thread i nthe sr20det rwd section.

have you check out the zer...age=1 tons of good info here. and step by step things.

what headgasket are you getting.

yeai think iu sed 180 grit on my block just enouhg to get the old head gasket residue off. my head didnt haveto be decked. casue it was perfectly straight.

I HOPE YOU LABELED EVER THING YOU TOOK OUT OF THE HEAD AND WHERE YOU TOOK IT OUT FROM> AND DONT FROGET TO TAKE THE SHIMS OUT AND LABEL THEM.I know from exerience.