[ForestHillsJackie]

I saw a small plastic piece hanging out in my engine, and I figured it was random garbage that had gotten blown in. But when I went to pick it up, it seemed liked it might belong there, and maybe parts of it had broken off.

I would not expect a plastic part to be there, but the fact that it was so perfectly placed made me second-guess myself.

Also, should I steam-clean this area in the engine while I have it open?

(This was a job that began as a starter replacement that got combined with an OFHG and then turned into replacing the radiator and most of the hoses, as well as the serpentine belt which is covered in oil from the OFHG leak…)

[E93Seattle (Racerbruce)]

is it a cable management holder??

[jsunma]

Originally Posted by E93Seattle (Racerbruce)

is it a cable management holder??

That's exactly what it is. On my car, there's something similar on the cowl that hold some wiring for the alarm system.

OP, when you say "hanging out of your engine", do you mean laying where it is in your photos (which is not hanging out of the engine, but rather is just laying on the block OUTSIDE of the engine), or was it actually inside of the intake? If it was the former (i.e., how it is in your pics), it's just fallen there.

No biggie.

[e90yyc]

Originally Posted by E93Seattle (Racerbruce)

is it a cable management holder??

Yup!

And OP: No need to worry about broken pieces floating around. For sure wouldn’t be a bad idea to clean up the area while you’ve got access, but more for cosmetics than function.

[tcphoto]

The wire was held in place by the bracket, odds are it was a fabric ribbon that held it.

[NZE90]

That plastic piece was originally taped to the knock sensor cable right above it. I usually just use 2 small cable ties to secure the cable onto it again. It's to stop the cable from rubbing on the block and eventually through the wires.

Steam cleaning should be fine assuming you have the alternator off?