Took my new (to me) 2005 driftwood pearl Prius to my local detailer. He says he can make it look like new but wont touch it under the hood. Do all detailers do this or can it cause major problems? Its pretty dirty under there.
I clean Pearl under the hood every time I wash the car. It's pretty much waterproof under there. Hose it down all the time. I even put polish on items under the hood.
Funny, when I worked downtown, I used to have my car detailed once a year. That guy charged more for the first detailing on each car because he spent extra time cleaning up the engine and engine compartment (looked showroom when he was done). That's what I do now, but only about 2 times per year. It's always pretty clean, though. I do wax the painted surfaces under the hood, inside the doors and door jambs and under the gas cap door once a year too. That way dirt and dust just wipe off.
Some would say that running a hose into the carefully waterproofed drive compartment is nuts :_> If you do it, be sure to dry around all the ignition wires before running it again.
There aren't any "ignition wires". It's coil on plug. If you think the engine compartment is waterproofed, try "accidentally" driving though a deep puddle at speed and then check under the hood. Everything under the hood is waterproof. Except for submersion. It's not a submarine.
Sorry to bump a old thread, but as a detailer I don't touch anything under the hood of electric or hybrid vehicles, and rarely have a customer ask. I asked some detailer friends and only one does, and he only does brand new still at the "dealer" Teslas. Knowing I was getting a used Prius I asked this question on a detailer forum I am on and got one answer saying stay away from orange, do it at you're own risk.
Thanks for posting that! Just to double check (because I'd hate to make a mistake here), the gen 3 engines can be hosed down without any foil or other preparation?
Well he only covered the 2nd gen. Aside from that belt (because the Gen 3 is beltless), I'd say for precautionary purposes, just cover the same things with foil that he did (which may not be in the same place). The extra effort will be worth not having to deal with water damage.
At 1:20, he talks about protecting the pulley because you cannot get the bearing wet on the Gen 2. I'll look to see if the Gen 3's have the same exposed wires that he covers, and do the same.
Given that pretty much all Teslas (including our own) have huge plastic covers that are seemingly designed to keep customers away from any actual car components, how does your friend do anything "under the hood" at all? Edit: I should add a picture.
On the Gen III, he specifically details covering over the ECU connection on the left (driver's) side of the engine bay. Other than that he talks generally about looking for electrical connectors and covering them over.
Unless you have loose connectors or use a power washer you should be fine using soap, brushes and water hose. Picture is my 05 after cleaning it. Go slow and just be careful. SM-G935P ?
I just use a paint brush, one of those duster wands, and a leaf blower. Very rarely, but it looks good anyway. Never sprayed water or applied any kind of plastic treatment.
Thanks for the input. I did it a few weeks ago and posted a pic in a new thread about detailing the car. Here is my engine bay.
