Hello Fellow C3ers!

It's been a while!  Hope everyone is well!

 I recently removed my Q-Jet and had it rebuilt...sweet!  I purchased some red plug wires, red vacuum hoses and red plug wire holders.  While the carb is off, I'm looking at my manifold and thinking, "man, this looks nasty," grease/fuel/carbon stains and it's orange...I want either satin or red. 

Question for the forum: should I attempt to remove manifold and clean by hand?  How difficult a job is removal?  -or- Should I clean it while still on engine?  Tips for cleaning if left on engine?  Tips if off?  Things to watch our for?

Thanks in advance!

Stop, Step back and drop the wrench.  You are looking at the lid of Pandora's box.  Remove it when you have no leaks or vacuum problems you are tempting fate.  One, You need to remove the distributor...if you are new to this, find someone who knows how to mark the position.  You can sit with the hose and scrub brush and clean away with the manifold in place.  After it drys come back and hit it again to get the spots you missed.  After a 4-5 tries you'll have it clean enough to paint.

I was hoping I would be able to clean it in place.  I agree, if there's no leaks, may create problems that weren't there before if removed.

Right now, carb is the only thing that is removed.  Should I remove anything else before attempting to clean?  And running a hose inside the engine compartment is okay to do...seems risky?  Any particular cleaning solution you prefer, or just water?  Finally, what did you paint yours with?

Thanks! :)

I've used Gunk in the past. Seems they had two solutions, one stunk the other not to bad.  Recently I've used Eagle One "All Wheel & Tire" Walmart has it for $5.00ish.  It turns purple when it hits oil. 

Thank you for the advice! Looking forward to this project! I've seen online that people also cover the distributor and alternator with plastic just in case. Wouldn't hurt I suppose. No mention of spark plugs, so I'm guessing them getting wet isn't a problem?

+1 only on not taking it apart, very good advice if your not having any intake manifold issues. Wow John, nice looking engine compartment on that '81 !! I did a set of VC gaskets on an '81 not too long ago. Took me 2 hours to get to the valve covers and 5 minutes to replace the gaskets !! Very nice to see an extremely clean, stock engine compartment !!

As long as you're detailing...don't forget the windshield wiper area.   I've lost count of how many C3's I've judged where that area is totally grungy.  Scrub it out a few times, remove the wiper arms & hoses and get a can of Rustoleum satin black and paint it.  I did mine 24 years ago and it still looks like new.  Back then satin was not a color yet so I mixed gloss with semi gloss to come up with the match I liked.    

|UPDATED|6/20/2015 10:53:02 AM (AZT)|/UPDATED|

Good advice! The wiper area as it stands is terribly neglected. I will definitely put that in the to do list. Again, just to confirm, with washing the manifold, no need to worry about spark plugs, correct?

Spark plugs are fine, cover the distributor the best you can and don't blast water directly on it.