I was thinking of spraying the engine and engine bay of my 5th gen with WD-40 silicone lubricant spray, to prevent against corrosion (part of their new specialist line, this is not standard WD-40). The bottle says safe to use up to 500 degree F and that it is safe to use on plastic and rubber.

Are there any reasons why this would be a bad idea?

I see Ronny Dahl (youtube guy, has a 4x4 channel) spray down his engine bay with some stuff they don't sell in the US; I figured this would be about the same. Fluid film would be a disaster on the engine (I think), and this stuff seems to dry and not leave a film.

Thoughts?

If this is a horrible idea go easy on me.

😲...

that bad huh

But seriously, if I stay away from spraying into anything electrical, stick to the bolts, nuts etc., sheet metal, it seems like it would help protect against corrosion. Maybe apply to rag and wipe around the more potentially sensitive areas.

I've been winterizing the truck and I'm wondering about the engine bay.

So far I've done eastwood internal frame coating in the frame, applied por15 top coat to the rest of the frame (which is glossy and shiny when dry, makes the frame look great in my opinion), and fluid film on top of everything to finish it off. So far I think I'm in pretty good shape for winter.

Those (plus regular car washes) should be more than enough....just wondering about any finishing touches.

I spray mine at least once a month with regular wd40 and have for all my cars. After spraying just wipe up excess. Never had any issues.

Looks like a very similar product to what I spray the powerhead of my outboard motor with (it literally looks brand new under the cowl after 16 seasons). Outboard + brackish/salty water and it makes sense to use something like this in such a harsh environment.

On the 4Runner, the only thing under the hood I wouldn't spray would be the accessory belt. I would also test an area first to see if it attracts and holds dust. On the other side of the coin- there really isn't any need to do this ...

@adam.friedman.33

@Antman

Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts.

I'll try a small test area and see how that goes.

Maybe something like this: Gunk Engine Brite Engine Protector Shine, 15 oz. - Walmart.com

Go to amazon and buy spray CPC. Corrosion preventive compound. Fluid film protectant. Good to use on chassis as well. It will help.

I coated my frame and everything under with Chassis saver paint. Very nasty stuff but works great.

No, not necessarily horrible. Personally I like to keep all additional chemicals away from rubber hoses and grommets. Bi-annual spray down with soft water and a towel dry is all I do to my motor. Good luck!

I prefer to keep a consistent coating of mud on my 4x4s, but thats just me

dust is just going to stick to it probably. I imagine its going to be like tire shine on your wheels when you go down a dirt road, attract every single ion of dust.

......."If it ain't broke, DON'T mess with it." ....My mantra.

I like to keep my engine fairly free of dirt so I wash it with simple green and spray that off then dry it with air. Just doing this as needed. Been doing the same with all my trucks for years. Is as clean as from day one. A simple pleasure of seeing a clean engine when I pop the hood. My last vehicle was an "04 Tacoma, you could'a ate of that engine. The buyer was impressed when I sold it. Down the road from me was a guy who had a 10 year old Tacoma 4x4 that looked enjoyed and well used. He was outside one day with the hood up so I stopped to talk to him. He had 240K on the clock and his engine was dirty as shit, dust caked on top of dust, just lots of dried on filth. I was a tad shocked till he told me the mileage and said he had nothing but minor stuff over all those miles to fix. Said it was the best truck he ever owned and he was never getting rid of it. In fact he was checking the oil and tires right then because he was hitting the road over the mountains to Portland. Oil looked pretty dirty to me.
I've never really had issues with my 5 clean engine toyotas since 1974. He hadn't had any with his 240K filthy engine truck either. Morale of this story is if the dirt doesn't get inside the engine your golden. Outside dirt don't mean crap.
I'll keep washing mine.

Growing up in MI in the 1970's cars were coated every winter with this stuff, if you had a had a nice car you wanted Zeibart

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Things are going to get sticky. I would stay away from doing it. However, there are products out there that you can use that will be much better for the job.