Best thing to clean engine bay/engine down with?
 

Not trying to have it show ready or anything just wanna get a majority of the dirt and grim outta there so it looks half way decent...Baby whipes? Damp Towel?

Simple Green and some rags.

Simple Green and a power washer work well.....or foamy engine bright. Or if you want to spend a little money and have it come out very clean you can have a professional detail place steam clean it....you'd be shocked how well it works.

Foamy Engine Brite. Cover all electronics and fuel intake with plastic and secure with electrical tape. Spray on, hose off, let dry, and then detail with Armorall for a clean finish.

If this is for the LT1 KEEP ALL WATER AWAY FROM THE FRONT OF THE ENGINE!!!!!! IGN. Module and Opti CAN NOT GET WET! Use as little water as possible, I perfer damp cloths over any type of pressured wash.

Simple green and a small brush will work well on the Aluminum parts. Delute it for the fender wells and such. The engine bay paint is simply base coat without clear so using a cleaner that's too strong can discolor it. Likewise be careful around the stickers as they can be damaged.

Armoral cleaning wipes do a nice job on hoses and plastic. Armoal shine on the weather stripping, and plastic if you want to brighten them up a bit more.

what everyone said. simple green, foamy engine brite, rags, wire brushes, whatever you got. just be very careful with overspray and moisture around the electronics especially the opti. a dirty running engine > a clean broken engine

And not to rain on your parade, if your planning on cleaning the LT1, its an exercise in futility. Give it a week, and it will be back to being a grimy oil covered engine.

its like an auto armor all. just gotta keep the dirt and dust off of the fresh coat of oil.

need to be careful with steam cleaning though.... some cars depending how the wiring runs i refuse to steam clean.... if you dont want to spend the money simple green or cd-2, and i forget the name i want to say purple power all work very well in that order.

Simple green, a small water bottle sprayer and rags. Don't even think about putting a hose near that engine bay.

Maybe Castrol Super Clean? I think that's in a purple bottle...

Could possibly be i picked it up otc one day when i couldnt find my bottle of simple green... worked well but i like the others better. Normally i just cover everything that shouldnt be wet spray it with a light coat of diluted simple green and hit it with the steam cleaner then just do a light rinse and wipe down with some damp towels

They have a new automotive simple green in a spray bottle wouldn't mind giving that a shot.

I've used simple green and a power washer as well as engine brite and a tooth brush. Both work well. Engine Brite and a tooth brush gives better control and is less messy. The critial thing is to cover all electronics. Not sure how to cover the opti though....