How to Remove Smoke Damage from a Motorcycle Engine

When your motorcycle has a near miss with a fire, you want to remove the smoke damage as quickly as possible because, particularly with aluminum engines, the lingering mess can cause permanent damage. Fortunately, whether your engine metal is polished or not, this solution will have it gleaming again in no time.

• Extreme Simple Green Motorsports Cleaner & Degreaser
• Clean spray bottle
• Bucket
• Clean rags
• Water
• Eye protection

1. Wearing eye protection, mix a solution of one part Simple Green to one part water in the bucket.
2. Fill the spray bottle with the solution.
3. Spray down a portion of the engine. Only spray what you can clean within a ten minute period.  To best prevent corrosion on some types of aluminum, you shouldn’t leave it exposed to water longer than this.
4. Allow the solution to sit one or two minutes, then begin to wipe the soot away.
5. Reapply the Simple Green solution as necessary and replace soiled rags once they no longer have clean spots.
6. Continue to work through all of the engine parts, moving from top to bottom, until it’s clean.
7. Make a final pass with a clean rag to dry any remaining wet spots and remove stray spots of soot.
8. Follow up with any treatment suggested for your engine type by the manufacturer, such as a polish.

• For stubborn spots, cracks, or crevices, use a soft bristled brush to remove the smoke damage.
• Extreme Simple Green Motorsports Cleaner & Degreaser works on several types of automotive messes and is indicated for use on both polished and unpolished aluminum.
• Simple Green won’t cause skin irritation in most people. If you have a pre-existing skin condition or expect to remain in contact with it for an extended period of time, you may want to wear gloves while working.