I'm An Idiot!!!!!!

[nfpgasmask]

So I washed my VX today. Cleaned her up all nice and spiffy. Checked the oil and filled it up. And then shut the hood.

AND I FORGOT TO PUT THE OIL CAP BACK ON!!!

So I went for a short drive and stopped and smoke is spewing out from under the hood. I thought something REALLY bad happened. Pop the hood and I see oil all over and so I just think oil splashed out and is burning under there.

What can I do? Should I just hose it off??

JESUS I AM AN IDIOT!

Bart

[Ruflyf]

On other cars I have found that the engine degreaser at self car washes works fairly well with the pressure washer. Best bet is to borrow someones heated pressure washer if someone has one.

I am always afreid I'll do that or the radiator cap.

[nfpgasmask]

...but at least it isn't something REALLY bad. By some miricle the oil cap stayed on top of the battery where I set it and didn't fall out. I'll tell ya though, there is nothing like pulling into the garage and seeing smoke spew from under your hood. I almost lost it until I got the hood open and saw it was just my idiot self being forgetful. My garage floor is a mess now too. FARK!

So looking under the hood, the entire left side seems to have a nice layer of fresh 10W40 on it. But the smoke and steam is coming from down where the oil spewed out. Cripes. I am such an idiot. I guess I will just have to drive around with oil burning off under there. Maybe its time I take her in and get the whole VX detailed...

I check the oil level and it only lose a little bit...

Uggg.

Bart

On other cars I have fou
nd that the engine degreaser at self car washes works fairly well with the pressure washer. Best bet is to borrow someones heated pressure washer if someone has one.

I am always afreid I'll do that or the radiator cap.

[biju]

Sad news, bart. I'd freak no less if this happened to me...

if money allows, i'd suggest taking her in for a engine clean and detail. sounds like it's too much of a mess to tackle alone w/ just simple over the counter products.

best of luck.

-bej.

[Joe_Black]

Go to Wal-Mart and get a few cans of their foaming engine cleaner, apply liberally to the coated areas including the under-hood insulation. Just try to keep off exterior painted areas as it can make some waxes go milky if let sit. Let sit for 5 - 10 minutes then hose off with a medium spray from a garden nozzle until the water runs off clear. Any smoking you get will be from whatever didn't come off the manifolds and that won't last long.

I've been using that engine cleaner a lot as it's basically the same stuff as Gunk Engine Brite, and isn't particularly harsh and a very good general degreaser. As much as I've been using it on my diesels it's good stuff!

Next time you take the oil cap or anything else off that needs put-back, just place it somewhere really obvious. Like in a plastic pan in your driver's seat.

[PHO2GR4]

Dude, that is NOT what they mean by "Complete Lube and Oil Change".

On the bright side, it just means that your engine compartment now matches the rest of your midnight-black VX color scheme! TOTAL stealth mode!

Kidding, man. Seriously, this is NOT as bad as it looks right now. Think about how lucky you were to have realized your mistake so quickly! What if you'd just driven short, non-smoky distances over a period of many days! Your engine would be TOAST.

Once you get the engine all cleaned up, everything will no doubt look BETTER than it did before the mishap.

Good luck,

Eric

So I went for a short drive and stopped and smoke is spewing out from under the hood. I thought something REALLY bad happened. Pop the hood and I see oil all over and so I just think oil splashed out and is burning under there.

Bart

[Chopper]

What Joe said plus,run it through a carwash that offers an undercarriage wash. It is amazing how far a few drops of oil will spread in a few miles of 60mph driving...

[nfpgasmask]

Thanks guys. I'm up early this morning and I am going to go to the store and get some cleaners and go to work under there.

It really isn't as bad as I made it sound last night (but then again I was freaking out) so I should be ok.

Thanks for all the kind words.

Bart

[Ldub]

Might be a good thing to drive around for a half hour or so to evaporate all the moisture under the hood.

[ZEUS]

A better way to rust proof the under carriage is to use a rubber undercoating. I find engine oil to be a little messy for that... Look at the bright side, it might be easier to get some of those stubborn bolts loose now!

[Cobrajet]

Doesn't a stunt like that automatically qualfy you for a management position at Jiffy Lube?

[nfpgasmask]

Yeah, probably. I should apply. I spent about 3 hours under the hood this morning. Its actually nice and clean under there now. I used some of the foaming cleaner Joe advised and it really works good to cut the oil. Thankfully, I caught this quick enough that it wasn't really too bad, it just looked and smelled really bad at first. So basically I cleaned it up under the hood really well and most of the oil is gone. What is left will have to burn off as I drive. I must have gotten most of it cause there is no smoke coming from underneath the hood any more, just a little smell is all. Whew...I'm so glad I caught this and I am so glad it wasn't something worse.

The worse part of all this is how bad I feel for spilling oil all over the place. I need to get a bag of Oil Dry to clean up my garage floor and driveway.

And now that I have done a semi-job under the hood, I kinda wanna take my time and do a full under hood detail job once the weather gets better. Like take out as much as I can and really clean her up underneath...

Anyway, thanks everyone.

Bart

Doesn't a stunt like that automatically qualfy you for a management position at Jiffy Lube?

[cyronman]

So I bought/added a couple quarts of oil in Sacramento on my way back from Tahoe to SoCal and as I'm adding the 2nd quart my stepdad calls me.
As I'm trying to get off the phone and shut the hood all up, I knock the filler cap on the ground with the hood arm while putting it down. With all the confusion of trying to hurry and being on the phone, had I NOT knocked it on the ground I would not even of remembered it. I got right on the freeway for a 3 hour drive to Fresno where we stayed the night.
I thought of this thread the entire 3 hours!

[PHO2GR4]

So, was it an angel on your shoulder or a cell phone on your shoulder that saved you?

Either way, good CALL. Nice save. Your VX thanks you.

And Bart, how about a recent update on your own personal Valdez Oil Spill? Everything clean-n-shiny now?

[nfpgasmask]

Yeah, that was basically what happened to me. I was doing like 10 things at once, and filled up the oil, turned around, got distracted with something else. Finished that up and then turned around and just shut the hood. By some miracle the cap stayed on top of my battery the whole time I was driving around. I really don't know how it stayed up there without falling. There are three huge speed bumps in and out of my neighborhood and all sorts of up and downhill driving that I did inbetween the time I left the cap off and the time I got home.

But anyway, yeah, its all clean in there now, for the most part. Whew. Once the weather warms up a bit I am going to do a full underhood detailing job.

Bart