The pics I promised of my paint job on my engine.

Nothing fancy...but I like it

looks good! i like that!

time to paint the engine cover

Corey was nice, yall!

Drakhan, you did do a good job there. Nice color scheme. Now paint the block and heads. Very clean bay.

THX
And you guys can call me Patrick

I was going to paint the cover. Gonna take off the K&N sticker, first, then reapply after I'm done. I'm still thinking about how I want it to look.

Block and heads? sry I'm still a bit green when it comes to finding my way around the engine bay...

ah. block is what the cam, crank, pistons, cylinder, oil, and pretty much everything else is in or on. heads are mounted on top of that. on top of the heads are the valve covers.

aha...So how would I go about painting something like that?

How many miles is on that thing? The engine looks brand new, no deposits or corrosion on any of the exposed metal (alternator, engine mounts).

Junk that battery first chance you get, and seal your passenger headlight. Then you'll be golden.

THX again!

It has 78k going on 79k right now and it's a 2003 model GT. I try to take care of it as best I can.

The battery is brand spanking new. Or were you saying that because of the brand?
I know, I know. That actually happened after a little fender bender. So far all I've replaced is the front bumper. The whole headlamp assembly on the passenger side is bent up (I tried to fix it...it's ok now, relatively speaking) and there's still a few dents in my hood and the latch, I think, is a little crooked but it closes just fine.

paint looks good, paint that engine cover, and your valve covers, it will give it a nice touch......going for a new look on your sig rook?

where are the valve covers?

You mean like the oil cap?

kinda its the whole thing that the oil cap goes into ... they have little ridges in it ... there is one in front and one in back they look like a real dirty white or a graysh color

AHHH! I know what you're talking about.

How do I do the block?

you would have to take the motor out ... so if you blow it ... then paint it

you would have to remove it from the car... the block is the starting point of the engine... i think he was being sarcastic about both block and heads... you could do heads though...

I like those brackets, sort of like mine, but with the colors flipped!
Looks like you are pretty good with tape, too.
Looks fantastic!

nEverStart is one of the worse batteries out there.

What would you recommend?

Optima Red top.

I saw some optimas at the parts store by me. Those things are expensive! But I guess you get what you pay for.

I hate to push Duralast batteries, but they're good. Diehard are made by the same company, so they're another good choice. I've got an Interstate in my GP and they're hard to kill. I also don't see many Autocrafts dieing too easily.

Optimas are hit and miss these days. They work fine in the summer, but have a decent failure rate come winter. They come with a 3yr free replacement, but it can be a hassle. If you get one of the good ones, they'll last you over 5yrs without issues.

Huh..ok...neway.
Any suggestions on how to paint my engine cover?

Looks great to me. Always nice to see someone taking pride in their ride, even where it doesn't usually show.

I'm kinda the opposite. I clean up after myself as I go, but I want everything running perfect before I start with the cosmetics. Guess that comes from becoming an old goat, too lazy to raise the hood for anyone except myself.

Oh, wait, I did raise and straighten the exhaust tips and polish them. I retract my previous piece of idiocy.

I polished those too

I'm going to try and make a decision on the cover next week when I have off work. I'll also do the valves like you said. I don't, honestly, want to paint too much. I just want to leave the blue as an accent to the black and gray.

Look good man. Fairly original and very clean.

I make a connection with the cleanliness of a car and its mechanical condition. A clean car seems to break less. Maybe its because the owner is taking good care of it overall, and maybe its psychological (fine with me). I also much rather repair a car thats clean (I'm talking rust, underhood, and overall) than a filthy grimey car.

I try to keep it in the best condition possible. It's taken me from A to B and even C and has served me well since I bought it back in '05 and i just like to return the favor ^^

Anybody else thing a shiney set of coated headers would like nice in that engine bay?

no, I wasnt being sarcastic, but I do realize the intense work that goes behind painting the block. the heads are ALMOST the same way. Thats alot of work to jsut paint something thats hard to see in the first place.

im never mean...

just honest

I can pull the engine out at the Auto Craft Shop on base and paint it there. But I'd need time and money to do that and I can't afford to ask for alot of time off, at the moment. Good suggestion and I'll keep it in mind.

Coated Headers, huh? I'll look some up.

I rented a power washer not too long ago to clean the mildew off the north side of my house.

While I had the thing, I jacked up the GP and power washed the underside to get all the "mud and the blood and then beer", ect. off the underside, from the firewall back, and then more gently from the engine forward.

My gf thought I'd gone nuts, but it sure made it nice when I changed out the fuel filter the other day.

Wouldn't be easier just to stop offroading the GP? Those drunken bystanders can't run too fast.

Put some skid plates on there; it'll clean up easier..

OK, Johnny, go ahead and move outta Gatlinburg. Or dont drive right about mid-July.

I wish I wasn't so I tired all the time so I could clean mine.

I think power washing under the car was just a sure sign I'm getting senile. OTOH when I get around to replacing the DP I'll probably be glad I did it.

Or not. Who really cares, the old one will be a cast-iron b..ch to get off anyway.