Customize Your Subaru's Engine Bay This Upcoming Car Meet Season

 

 

The 2025 car meet season is officially here as we are rolling into spring. This means that many of us are washing off all of winter’s road grime and having our cars detailed. Many of you are also taking advantage of your tax returns to get your favorite mods whether it be those wheels you’ve always wanted or that titanium cat-back to make your Subaru louder. However, with meets, you always have inquiring enthusiasts who want to see what the latest mods that you got done to your WRX or STI, and that means that you have to pop your hood.

Truth be told, a stock engine bay in any generation Subaru isn’t the most attractive mechanical thing to look at. Those with ADHD will see the top mount intercooler, the tallow oil fill cap that sticks out in a sea of black vacuum and coolant lines, then walk off. And those with an eye for detail will look at how dirty your engine bay is. They will look at your belts to see if there are any cracks which is a representation of how your car is maintained honestly. And they will look for signs of leaks. You will be judged.

But it’s true, someone with a clean engine bay really shows how much they care about the overall maintenance and running condition of their vehicle no matter what they drive. A clean engine bay also makes working on the car a little easier, and it can also be easier to spot leaks instead of looking at caked-on wet grime in your engine bay. Now yes, we know that your engine bay can’t be minty all the time. The bottom side of your engine is exposed to all of the dust, dirt, weather conditions, along with rocks and pebbles from the road. But there are things you can do to really clean up your engine bay, and we are here to help. So, let’s start from the beginning. How do you get a fresh -looking engine bay.

 

START WITH A GOOD ENGINE DEGREASER

Engine degreasers are designed to cling onto caked-on engine grease, oils, and chemicals that have settled on crevices in your engine. Your local auto parts stores will carry a proper engine degreaser. The first thing you need to do before using an engine degreaser is to cover your air filter if you have a cold air intake. Otherwise, you’ll be sucking in dirty water through your turbo. You can simply cover your cold air intake with a plastic grocery bag and wrap it around the filter or filter box. MAKE SURE YOUR ENGINE IS COOL BEFORE SPRAYING DEGREASER. Some degreasers may be flammable and if you spray too much on your turbo or exhaust while the engine is still hot, you might as well grab the hot dog buns because you’ve got yourself a BBQ. Spray the degreaser on your engine, try not to focus on electrical parts, we don’t want to get these parts too wet especially if you have a pressure washer. Get the degreaser on the front of your engine where all the pullies are, on the intake manifold, on the shock towers, the fender rails, the back of the motor where it meets the transmission, everywhere. Get yourself a detail brush while working and agitating the grease and dirt as loose as you can get it. Do this for about 15 minutes to allow the chemicals to do their thing, and then you’re ready to hose off the engine. If you have a pressure washer, you will get the best results as the pressure can really blast through thick grime. But if you have a garden hose, a nozzle will work just fine. Again, make sure you are not focusing the water pressure on electrical connectors, wires, harnesses, we are mostly looking at areas that have a lot of grime. The most important part is allowing the engine to properly dry. If you have an air compressor with a hose, spray off any water that has collected in puddles. This will mainly be beneath your intake manifold on EJ engines. A leaf blower also will do the trick. If you have neither of these, grab microfiber towels, terry cloths, or shower towels and soak up any areas with water buildup. And let your car out in the sun with the hood popped for an hour.

 

 

NOW YOU’VE GOT YOURSELF A CANVAS TO START

Now not all of the engine dress-up upgrades may apply to everyone. Because there are some things you can do that are simple such as an alternator cover, but then there are other mods that you can do that are a little bit more involved. However, some of these upgrades also count as preventative maintenance which you would have to do otherwise. With that being mentioned, we are going to begin with the hard stuff first, but it will be more rewarding later.

 

 

SILICONE COOLANT HOSES

 

If you haven’t already upgraded to silicone coolant hoses, at some point you will. Because the OEM rad hoses are made using fiber infused rubber. And because these hoses experience countless heat cycles, they always expand and contract. Over time, the fibers will stretch and break apart allowing the rubber to expand to the point to where it will tear at the clamps, or it can make contact with your electric cooling fans. Silicone radiator hoses feature multi-layered silicone construction that won’t expand and are more heat-resistant. The reason why these are also aesthetically pleasing, is that they are available in a variety of different color options to suit the theme of your engine bay. In terms of this being a little labor-intensive when compared to other upgrades, you must drain out your coolant so take this opportunity to do a proper coolant flush.

 

 

PULLEYS

 

As far as difficulty to make your engine look good in terms of ‘bolt-on’ mods, this will be the most difficult. But this is an upgrade for those who have an eye for detail. There are certain areas that really help clean up your engine bay. Degreasing your engine removes caked-on dust from your timing belt covers. But the OEM pulleys in front of those covers are very generic-looking and if you have a bugeye or a 2004 STI, these cars are 20+ years old, and the OEM pulleys should have a little surface rust on them which is normal. Now 30 years ago when lightweight pulleys were a thing in the sport compact scene, they fell off the map because crank pulleys are called harmonic balancers because they help balance the rotation of the crankshaft. Lightweight crank pullies were designed to help remove rotational mass for faster revs, but the concept didn’t work out so well for other models and could trigger a check engine light. With a Subaru, the flat-four crankshaft is shorter than most vehicles so it’s okay to use a lightweight crank pulley, as well as upgrading the rest of the pulleys with lightweight aluminum units. So, there is a performance advantage, as well as an advantage of making your engine bay look cleaner. But take the preventative maintenance initiative and replace your accessory belts if they haven’t been done in a minute.

 

 

THE HARD STUFF IS KIND OF OUT OF THE WAY

Silicone hoses require you draining your coolant, replacing the hoses, refilling the coolant, and burping out your coolant system of any air pockets. Overall, not too bad and can be done in a few hours. Replacing pulleys will be much more challenging and requires decent mechanical skills. You may need a pulley puller for some stubborn units, and the hardest pulley to remove will be the crank pulley because the crank pulley bolt will be the tightest and can be 200+ ft-lbs. of torque to remove. These two upgrades will be the most intensive components to replace as far as adding more color and style to your engine bay, the rest of the upgrades are very simple, and are direct replacements for your OEM components for the most part.

 

 

CLICK HERE FOR ALL ENGINE DRESS UP ACCESSORIES

Now that you’re ready to do more to your engine bay, there are several options available for you to explore. All of which will also really spruce up your engine bay and get those “clean” complements the next time you’re at your next car meet. For now, let’s highlight some of our favorite choices.

 

 

RADIATOR SHROUDS

 

 

These are awesome because they cover the space in your engine bay just above your radiator, but they serve a few great purposes. The most important function of the radiator shroud is to prevent the incoming air from billowing and deflecting off the face of your radiator while your Subaru is in motion. A radiator shroud will keep the incoming air channeled so that the air stays in direct contact with your radiator or front mount intercooler to improve the overall cooling efficiency. Also, radiator shrouds also make for a great place to set your tools while performing maintenance, and of course, it makes your engine bay look much cleaner.

 

 

ALTERNATOR COVERS

The OEM alternator cover is one of the ugliest most bland-looking pieces in the engine bay. It is a black plastic piece that covers the alternator from any elements that could make it through your factory hood scoop. However, when the hood is up, it can be unsightly to look at. Virtually any alternator cover we carry will be a better option. You can choose from many different powder-coated colors, and we have carbon fiber units as well. It is one of the easiest ways to make your engine bay look nicer, and most units can be installed in 10 minutes or less.

 

 

OIL CAPS

Another great upgrade to enhance your engine bay. The Subaru OEM oil cap is a faded yellow unit, and it particularly sticks out in the engine bay because it is yellow. We have many custom units available that are simple direct replacements. Just know that because most units will be made from solid aluminum, have a rag handy because they will be hot to the touch.

 

DIPSTICKS

Just like oil caps, the oil dipstick handle will always be a dirty oil-covered yellow unit in the engine bay. You can try to clean the handle all you want with simple-green, but the stains will be permanent. We have aluminum dipstick handles that you can install that are available in several powder-coated finishes and designs because the devil is in the details in your engine bay, especially if you’re sticking to a color theme. Choose the right color that will match your alternator cover, oil cap, and the rest of your engine bay accessories.

 

 

DRESS-UP CAPS

Now this is a great and easy way to really improve the overall visual appeal in your Subaru’s engine bay. Many of these will be direct replacements, while others will fit on top of the OEM caps. Awesome yet simple upgrade to perform to really enhance the overall color theme of your engine bay.

 

 

ENGINE BAY HARDWARE

 

This is the author’s personal favorite choice, because it’s the final garnish to add on a fancy dinner plate. If you have an older Subaru and you pop the engine bay, it’s the small details such as your OEM hardware that can develop the typical surface rust. We carry titanium hardware kits brought to you by Dress Up Bolts, and this is for the enthusiast who are a little OCD and has an eye for detail while appreciating the expensive titanium tidbits in the engine bay. These are available in several anodized finishes that will replace the unsightly old OEM bolts that are visible in your engine bay.

 

 

These are some of the ideas that you can perform to the engine bay of your Subaru to make it more attractive, custom, and more colorful for this upcoming car show season. All of the examples that we carry are only brought to you by the most trusted brands in the Subaru industry and will add more value and style to your engine bay, while adding more happiness to your personal life. Have a happy and safe car meet season, and we are always happy to help.