Steam cleaning a W211 CDI engine bay, advise wanted.
 

I would ussually not think about doing this but, I just finished rebuilding the CP3 HP fuel pump due to a long time leak and the amount of diesel crud in the bottom end is unreal. Of course the scent is not something I want to deal with for much longer.
i sprayed some degreaser and cleaned to the best of my abilities, but I am thinking steam would be more efficient and safe than water to tackle this job.

Has anyone gotten this done to any of their cars and is there anyone who knows who may be able to do it in beutiful New Jersey?

Thanks in advance

Warm water (less than 140*) and a pressure washer should do the job. The temp. limit is to protect the pressure washer, not the engine. Unless you own one, I think you'll have a hard time finding a steam cleaner- they're fraught with all kinds of hazards.

I think this topic has a lot of mixed opinions when this is discussed. There's a lot of horror stories about wiring harnesses, alternators etc. My opinion is if you're careful and cover the alternator with a plastic bag and avoid computers and don't aim your fire at those areas you should be ok. Just be careful. A steam cleaner to me is also is a bit more easing in my mind than a pressure washer anyway for some reason. Then whatever you miss with the cleaner, wax on wax off hand technique will go a long way.

Is this the W211 that only has 59K or so miles on it?

IDK which one you are thinking of, mine currently has 71500 miles.
Why, is there a set mileage in which parts should fail at?

I think Skid Row Joe as asking since at such low mileage it really shouldn't be all that grungy yet.

Steam cleaning can be a real help, when it's done right and by a pro. The actual amount of water isn't is pretty low, and I think is safer to connectors, relays, and alternators than high pressure water. It's more expensive, but if you can find it, for sure the way to go.

Thanks,
I think that parts fail regardless of mileage in all cars. Mine failed in the dead of a bad winter, and not looking to fork out $2300 for a new pump installed at the dealer, I de wait for better weather to fix it.
So 70k plus miles of driving in NJ collecting road dust got mixed with a couple of thousand miles of diesel leaking from the CP3. I think that happens rather quickly, specially with a leak that is directly behind the fan and above the drive belt.
I used a petroleum based degreaser yesterday to clean around the pump which was a bad judgement. The stench is even worse now. I am trying to find a shop that does steam cleaning but no luck so far.

I am of the opinion that part failures, excluding something that had a flaw from the start, is pretty predictable.

Petroleum solvents and their residue / associated odors, will dissipate away over time by themselves. Re-emulsifying them through detergents and heated water is the best way to rid surfaces from them.

The belly pans that the W210 I owned, and the W211 I own now have both held petroleum solvents in the past. The residue is not always able to be immediately and completely negated with heated water and detergents from the plastic pans, but will disappear over time.

I guess some can be. Leaking of the Bosch CP3 is not an anusuall thing and it doesn't happen only on high mileage vehicles. Mercedes uses it on diffrent engines, as well as Cummins (RAM) and GM Duramax, as I said a fairly common issue. May be a design flaw :confused: I don't really know. For some reason MBUSA decided not to repair them but rather replace them with new, to the point where the repair kit is not available in the US.

Thanks, and yes, the belly pans were soaked, cleaning that was the easy part.