Engine bay and dashboard

[NickS13]

Hi Jem what products would you recomment for getting some life back into my dash?

and ive been entered into local car comp for cleanest engine bay, so again what can i use that will bring the plactics back to a shine that lasts a few weeks and again what about silicone hoses, what is there that will make then shiny again ??

and if possible they need to be something halfords will have as the comp is on sunday. so cant buy online..

Thanks
Nick

[Jem]

Hi Nick,

Given the time scale, to be honest I'd use normal furniture polish on the dash. Get a clean microfibre cloth and spray furniture polish on the cloth to make it quite damp with polish, then wipe over the dash, making sure you don't miss any awkward corners, then with a second microfibre wipe off any excess.

For the engine, if it's dirty, oily or greasy, something like Autoglym Engine and Machine cleaner, Gunk or Muck-Off will work well, just spray on a cold engine, leave a couple of minutes, agitate with a brush and rinse off with a hose. But be careful of the electrics, especially the HT leads, coil and spark plug holes. Remove the leads and coil, putting a plastic bag over the remaining connections. Tape over the spark plug holes to prevent water getting down them. Once it's all clean, dry off what you can with an old drying towel. For dressing the engine, pipes, plastics etc, again normal furniture polish works wonders. It;s also brilliant at removing grease and oil. Spray it onto textured black plastic liberally, and the buff to a nice black finish with a microfibre cloth. More fiddly areas are best tackled with a cloth damp with polish and then buffed off with another microfibre.

I hope that helps