11-01-2010, 06:50 PM
So this past weekend saw Mobile Image's 1st detailing adventures for the new year...and what a way to get started!
1st up was some spot repairs to a Porsche 997 GT3 RS in silver with orange accents. Not my 1st choice of colour when it comes to these cars, but hey, it's a frikken GT3 RS
The beast as she arrived
Overall the car was pretty clean aside from some dirt from being driven in the wet..
As I mentioned this particular car was in for some spot repairs and will probably get the full treatment shortly. The owner had an unfortunate incident with the xenon headlight washers which sprayed the roof and drivers side door. Whatever was in the wash tank wound up etching the paint quite badly and despite having tried various home remedies, had came up empty handed.
Some close ups of the etching
The second area of concern to the owner was the rear plexiglass window which was badly scratched at some point. Someone tried to fix the scratches but only wound up causing further damage
Having been over the defects the client left and I got on with the wash process...
1st up (surprise surprise) was the foaming step
Hyperwash/APC/Shampoo Plus combo
Lots of dirt in the runoff
Those of you who regularly read my write-ups will probably be wondering about the Sonax wheel cleaning steps...This particular vehicle was fitted with the optional carbon ceramic brakes which leave very little in terms of brake dust. All it took was some Sonax Hi -Gloss shampoo in a bucket with the usual brushes and they turned up good as new
Once the car was foamed I pressure washed the entire car down before foaming again and washing using the TBM. After a final rinse the car was clayed with Meg's fine clay and then dried using the super plush drying towel of Polished Bliss origins
This particular towel has really impressed me with it's ability to soak up water and provide streak free drying of all surfaces. Expect to see some available soon
With the wash process completed I set about measuring the paint with my Paint Detective PD7 coating thickness gauge. I'm really enjoying the added confidence that comes with knowing exactly what you have to work with in terms of paint thickness and integrity!
Calibration
And some measurements...Drivers side door
And roof
At this point unfortunately the pics run out
The etching on the roof were corrected to around 90% with a combination of multiple passes with FCP followed by SIP and 106FA whilst on the drivers side door we weren't so lucky! The etchings on the door were too deep to significantly remove without resorting to more aggressive forms of correction such as wet sanding.
The rear plexiglass window also turned out to be incredibly hard and will require wetsanding to correct to a decent level.
After doing what I could for the time being the car was rewashed and dried upon which the owner gratiously took me for a 'test drive'...All I can say is HOLY MOTHER OF BATMAN, the GT3 RS is an incredible machine
Having returned from the test drive I completely forgot about taking after pics, hence the need to cut this one short and continue another time
1st up was some spot repairs to a Porsche 997 GT3 RS in silver with orange accents. Not my 1st choice of colour when it comes to these cars, but hey, it's a frikken GT3 RS
The beast as she arrived
Overall the car was pretty clean aside from some dirt from being driven in the wet..
As I mentioned this particular car was in for some spot repairs and will probably get the full treatment shortly. The owner had an unfortunate incident with the xenon headlight washers which sprayed the roof and drivers side door. Whatever was in the wash tank wound up etching the paint quite badly and despite having tried various home remedies, had came up empty handed.
Some close ups of the etching
The second area of concern to the owner was the rear plexiglass window which was badly scratched at some point. Someone tried to fix the scratches but only wound up causing further damage
Having been over the defects the client left and I got on with the wash process...
1st up (surprise surprise) was the foaming step
Hyperwash/APC/Shampoo Plus combo
Lots of dirt in the runoff
Those of you who regularly read my write-ups will probably be wondering about the Sonax wheel cleaning steps...This particular vehicle was fitted with the optional carbon ceramic brakes which leave very little in terms of brake dust. All it took was some Sonax Hi -Gloss shampoo in a bucket with the usual brushes and they turned up good as new
Once the car was foamed I pressure washed the entire car down before foaming again and washing using the TBM. After a final rinse the car was clayed with Meg's fine clay and then dried using the super plush drying towel of Polished Bliss origins
This particular towel has really impressed me with it's ability to soak up water and provide streak free drying of all surfaces. Expect to see some available soon
With the wash process completed I set about measuring the paint with my Paint Detective PD7 coating thickness gauge. I'm really enjoying the added confidence that comes with knowing exactly what you have to work with in terms of paint thickness and integrity!
Calibration
And some measurements...Drivers side door
And roof
At this point unfortunately the pics run out
The etching on the roof were corrected to around 90% with a combination of multiple passes with FCP followed by SIP and 106FA whilst on the drivers side door we weren't so lucky! The etchings on the door were too deep to significantly remove without resorting to more aggressive forms of correction such as wet sanding.
The rear plexiglass window also turned out to be incredibly hard and will require wetsanding to correct to a decent level.
After doing what I could for the time being the car was rewashed and dried upon which the owner gratiously took me for a 'test drive'...All I can say is HOLY MOTHER OF BATMAN, the GT3 RS is an incredible machine
Having returned from the test drive I completely forgot about taking after pics, hence the need to cut this one short and continue another time