Dawn dish washing liquid mixed with warm water in a spray bottle works wonders. It's a bit aggressive on gelcoat, so easy does it and make sure you spray everything down with clear water when you're done.

Remember to turn off the bilge pump and pump the water into a container for proper disposal.

The hotter the water, the better. BTW, Dawn is by far the best brand. Not much concerns on spraying around the engine as long as the dipstick is in and the oil filler cap is on tight. Do minimize spraying into the alternator and any electronic gizmo that might be mounted in the engine compartment. Give everything a good chance to dry.

One of the best cleaners we discovered a few years ago was Awesome from the dollar store.

Great article here about how Dawn really IS the best brand for oil:
[url]http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=127999735[/url]

Also remember that once you have mixed detergent into your bilge, an oil absorbing pillow / sock will no longer work properly and to keep the environment clean you'll have to dispose of *all* of that wastewater somewhere.

[QUOTE=KnotDoneYet;21798]Any suggestions for how to get the oil out of the wood at the base of the engine cover? The forward edge has oil soaked in about 1/2" up. It's leaving oil marks when I set it down.

Cosmetically, it is going to have to be covered as the laminate was already chipping off in many parts. I suspect that most have encountered the laminate being pulled off from the bottom from taking the cover off and putting it back.[/QUOTE]

This is a guess; but you might try oil dry (or kitty litter). Oil dry will suck oil out of concrete almost completely. If you set the bottom of the engine cover, which is also porous, it just might pull the oil out. Of course,, you'd have to make a little pile of oil dry the whole way around where the cover will sit; not quite as easy as throwing in an oil spot on the garage floor.:rolleyes: