#174
Finally got round to doing this on Sunday, was struggling for time a little but I'm pretty pleased with the results! I must of had my detailing kit for a while now, and this is the first time I've detailed my own car! I've owned the car for about 2 months now, and I'm loving every second of it!
I would have liked to have taken more pics of the different stages, but as said I was stuggling for time.
General dirt at the start of the day (No, that's not me in the background!):
Snowfoamed:
Left for 10 minutes (Snowfoam 'holds' much better to the car than general shampoo IMO):
Jetted off:
The car was then washed using a sheep skin wash mitt, megs shampoo plus and the 2BM. Sills washed:
The door shuts wern't too bad, but I gave them a spray with some APC diluted 4:1 anyway:
They were then aggitated with a detailing brush:
Then rinsed off with the PW (a tough job trying to get water inside the car!):
Boot shut also APC'd:
Wheels cleaned with I4D Bright Wheels diluted 4:1 and a Vikan Wheel brush:
I went over them with some bilberry wheel cleaner after, which I think brought the shine out that little bit better, although maybe if I used the bright wheels neat they would also be able to produce this finish.
Arches were scrubbed with APC 4:1.
The whole car was then rinsed again:
I'd clayed the car a few weeks back, but I'd run out of my usual stuff so ended up using the meguairs smooth clay kit, which I personally find too mild. I'd bought some Bilt Hamber hard clay that I wanted to try out, which seemed to do the job well:
Clay after half of the roof:
I personally think that claying is the most boring part of detailing, but it has to be done and does make a difference!
I used 2 pieces, leaving one in a tub of warm water and alternated between the 2. This keeps the clay warm and easier to work with:
Most of the other panels came out like this; not too bad to be honest:
Lower half of the car was pretty bad though!
There was quite a bit of dirt and grime stuck inbetween the letters on the side bullets, so I gave these a blast with some APC 4:1:
After claying, the car was foamed again (not necessary, just for the fun of it!
):
Then shampoo'd again, and dried using a miracle dryer and megs last touch:
I then dressed the tyres using a CYC tyre applicator and megs endurance tyre gel (this was done later in the day, but I put it in here anyway). I apply it early on to give it time to dry so that it doesn't splash when you drive off!:
I only used last touch on the wheels, as I had applied 3 coats of PB wheel sealent to the wheels several weeks ago, which is still going strong!
Arches dressed with AG Vinyl and Rubber Care.
Taped up (wonky sticker on splitter FTL):
Thickness readings were taken recently and were all around 170 - 180 microns which I was quite pleased with. No signs any resprayed panels either. There were the odd lower spots on the front of the bonnet which were about 120 microns. The bonnet and front bumper are being resprayed next year anyway, so I wasn't too fussed about this.
The swirls arn't very evident due to the colour of the paint, but there were a few scratches here and there. Unfortunately I couldn't pick these up with my camera!
I started out with menzerna PO85RD and a lake country blue (finishing) pad. This removed the swirls but didnt budge the scratches. I stepped up to a white then orange lake country pad, but they stil didn't get rid of some of the deeper scratches which were annoying me!
Time to go for a more abrasive polish, so I chose menzerna 106FA which I love using. The white pad pretty much sorted most of the RDS's, but seeing as the paint was plenty thick I wanted it perfect to stepped up to the orange pad again. This combo did the trick, so I stuck with it
I used a megs G220 and CYC orange microfibres to buff off. I start out by putting a line of polish along the diameter of the pad, then after that just 3 pea sized blobs. If the polish starts to build up on the pad I used a megs hard bristle brush to get the majority of it off (without damaging the pad).
I start by doing 2 quick passes at speed 2 to spread the polish in a 12" x 18" area, then another 2 passes at speed 4. At this stage I tend to put enough pressure on so that the pad spins once or twice a second (I put a mark on the backing plate so that I can see this). I then move the pad over the paint at around 1 to 2 inches a second. I then move up to speed up to 5.5, doing 4 passes. I then buff the polish off to check the paint, and if more correction is needed I'll do a few more passes, usually 2 at a time. This is the combo I tend to use, and it seems to work so I stick with it!
Bonnet after:
Headlights were given a polish which removed some light scratches although a few deeper chips remained. Ideally I think they need wetsanding to get them perfect:
I was keen to do the bumper, as it was pretty badly stone chipped and I was interested to see how it would turn out.
Before:
After (a little better, but still not great):
Front wing (love the way plastic comes up!):
Driver's door:
Door and wing done, rear quarter untouched:
There's definately a difference, but it's not that evident without decent sunlight.
Another pic of the front:
Compared to the other side which I'd not yet done:
The cups come with a wider track, which while is beneficial to the handling, leaves you with stone chips!
This was easily sorted with a few extra passes at speed 5.5:
Rear quarter corrected:
I then decided to give the side strips a polish with the DA. I'd planned on getting these resprayed as Renault don't lacquer them on the cups for some unknown reason (weight save? lol). This is how they looked before:
After several hits with the G220 on speed 6, using an SFX-1 spot pad and 106FA:
Well pleased with them! Has definately saved me getting them sprayed! They need a bit more work on them just to bring the finish up a little more IMO.
A few more pics:
Corrected side:
Other side:
Yes, I realise I'm using the wrong sized backing plate, this is because I'd forgot the tool to change to my 3.5" backing plate
Rear bumper (few polish mark trails I've left before taking the pic:
Rear quarter corrected:
Some light scratches on the door I'd wanted to have a go at for a while:
A few extra passes later:
Sorted
Stone chips again!
Corrected:
By this time it was getting late, dark and cold and I really had to rush so there's no pics of the next few stages unfortunately! I did try but my camera isn't exactly good at taking pics in the dark, so there's little point posting up what I had.
I finished correcting the roof and the rest of the passenger side of the car, which all went well
I'd wanted to try some Lime Prime Lite I'd bought at this stage, but I'd left it at home (didn't put it with my other detailing stuff!) so couldn't try it unfortunately
I went over the car with a microfibre to remove all the dust, and to make sure I'd buffed off all the polish.
I was tempted to go with some collinite 472S seeing as winter is approaching, but seeing as I'd bought some Dodo Purple Haze recently I decided to use that. I would of like to applied it by hand, but I simply hadn't got the time so I used a foam applicator.
I then left the wax on for about 15 minutes or so, before buffing off with a CYC microfibre. I then gave the car a quick going over with some last touch, just to remove any marks or holograms left from buffing.
Windows were treated to AG Glass Polish, which was applied then left to haze, then buffed off with a microfibre.
Final pics, only 2 as they were the only good ones I got (I couldn't find my tripod). I'm really pleased with the result though! Think the paint almost has a glow to it (wishful thinking lol). I'm hoping to find some time before the end of the week to get some good daylight pics, so I'll post them up when I get some!
Apologies about the blurring, I didn't have the tripod so had to lie on the floor and hold the camera lol. I think the wax is an ideal choice for the colour!
And that's it! This is only my third detail, and my first write up so any comments/criticism welcome! I would of liked to have done a few extra bits such as waxing the door shuts, but time got the better of me!
Must of burnt a fair few calories today, I was absolutely knackered!
Time taken: 11 hours (plus a pizza break)
I would have liked to have taken more pics of the different stages, but as said I was stuggling for time.
General dirt at the start of the day (No, that's not me in the background!):
Snowfoamed:
Left for 10 minutes (Snowfoam 'holds' much better to the car than general shampoo IMO):
Jetted off:
The car was then washed using a sheep skin wash mitt, megs shampoo plus and the 2BM. Sills washed:
The door shuts wern't too bad, but I gave them a spray with some APC diluted 4:1 anyway:
They were then aggitated with a detailing brush:
Then rinsed off with the PW (a tough job trying to get water inside the car!):
Boot shut also APC'd:
Wheels cleaned with I4D Bright Wheels diluted 4:1 and a Vikan Wheel brush:
I went over them with some bilberry wheel cleaner after, which I think brought the shine out that little bit better, although maybe if I used the bright wheels neat they would also be able to produce this finish.
Arches were scrubbed with APC 4:1.
The whole car was then rinsed again:
I'd clayed the car a few weeks back, but I'd run out of my usual stuff so ended up using the meguairs smooth clay kit, which I personally find too mild. I'd bought some Bilt Hamber hard clay that I wanted to try out, which seemed to do the job well:
Clay after half of the roof:
I personally think that claying is the most boring part of detailing, but it has to be done and does make a difference!
I used 2 pieces, leaving one in a tub of warm water and alternated between the 2. This keeps the clay warm and easier to work with:
Most of the other panels came out like this; not too bad to be honest:
Lower half of the car was pretty bad though!
There was quite a bit of dirt and grime stuck inbetween the letters on the side bullets, so I gave these a blast with some APC 4:1:
After claying, the car was foamed again (not necessary, just for the fun of it!
):Then shampoo'd again, and dried using a miracle dryer and megs last touch:
I then dressed the tyres using a CYC tyre applicator and megs endurance tyre gel (this was done later in the day, but I put it in here anyway). I apply it early on to give it time to dry so that it doesn't splash when you drive off!:
I only used last touch on the wheels, as I had applied 3 coats of PB wheel sealent to the wheels several weeks ago, which is still going strong!
Arches dressed with AG Vinyl and Rubber Care.
Taped up (wonky sticker on splitter FTL
):Thickness readings were taken recently and were all around 170 - 180 microns which I was quite pleased with. No signs any resprayed panels either. There were the odd lower spots on the front of the bonnet which were about 120 microns. The bonnet and front bumper are being resprayed next year anyway, so I wasn't too fussed about this.
The swirls arn't very evident due to the colour of the paint, but there were a few scratches here and there. Unfortunately I couldn't pick these up with my camera!
I started out with menzerna PO85RD and a lake country blue (finishing) pad. This removed the swirls but didnt budge the scratches. I stepped up to a white then orange lake country pad, but they stil didn't get rid of some of the deeper scratches which were annoying me!
Time to go for a more abrasive polish, so I chose menzerna 106FA which I love using. The white pad pretty much sorted most of the RDS's, but seeing as the paint was plenty thick I wanted it perfect to stepped up to the orange pad again. This combo did the trick, so I stuck with it
I used a megs G220 and CYC orange microfibres to buff off. I start out by putting a line of polish along the diameter of the pad, then after that just 3 pea sized blobs. If the polish starts to build up on the pad I used a megs hard bristle brush to get the majority of it off (without damaging the pad).
I start by doing 2 quick passes at speed 2 to spread the polish in a 12" x 18" area, then another 2 passes at speed 4. At this stage I tend to put enough pressure on so that the pad spins once or twice a second (I put a mark on the backing plate so that I can see this). I then move the pad over the paint at around 1 to 2 inches a second. I then move up to speed up to 5.5, doing 4 passes. I then buff the polish off to check the paint, and if more correction is needed I'll do a few more passes, usually 2 at a time. This is the combo I tend to use, and it seems to work so I stick with it!
Bonnet after:
Headlights were given a polish which removed some light scratches although a few deeper chips remained. Ideally I think they need wetsanding to get them perfect:
I was keen to do the bumper, as it was pretty badly stone chipped and I was interested to see how it would turn out.
Before:
After (a little better, but still not great):
Front wing (love the way plastic comes up!):
Driver's door:
Door and wing done, rear quarter untouched:
There's definately a difference, but it's not that evident without decent sunlight.
Another pic of the front:
Compared to the other side which I'd not yet done:
The cups come with a wider track, which while is beneficial to the handling, leaves you with stone chips!
This was easily sorted with a few extra passes at speed 5.5:
Rear quarter corrected:
I then decided to give the side strips a polish with the DA. I'd planned on getting these resprayed as Renault don't lacquer them on the cups for some unknown reason (weight save? lol). This is how they looked before:
After several hits with the G220 on speed 6, using an SFX-1 spot pad and 106FA:
Well pleased with them! Has definately saved me getting them sprayed! They need a bit more work on them just to bring the finish up a little more IMO.
A few more pics:
Corrected side:
Other side:
Yes, I realise I'm using the wrong sized backing plate, this is because I'd forgot the tool to change to my 3.5" backing plate
Rear bumper (few polish mark trails I've left before taking the pic
:Rear quarter corrected:
Some light scratches on the door I'd wanted to have a go at for a while:
A few extra passes later:
Sorted
Stone chips again!
Corrected:
By this time it was getting late, dark and cold and I really had to rush so there's no pics of the next few stages unfortunately! I did try but my camera isn't exactly good at taking pics in the dark, so there's little point posting up what I had.
I finished correcting the roof and the rest of the passenger side of the car, which all went well
I'd wanted to try some Lime Prime Lite I'd bought at this stage, but I'd left it at home (didn't put it with my other detailing stuff!) so couldn't try it unfortunately
I went over the car with a microfibre to remove all the dust, and to make sure I'd buffed off all the polish.
I was tempted to go with some collinite 472S seeing as winter is approaching, but seeing as I'd bought some Dodo Purple Haze recently I decided to use that. I would of like to applied it by hand, but I simply hadn't got the time so I used a foam applicator.
I then left the wax on for about 15 minutes or so, before buffing off with a CYC microfibre. I then gave the car a quick going over with some last touch, just to remove any marks or holograms left from buffing.
Windows were treated to AG Glass Polish, which was applied then left to haze, then buffed off with a microfibre.
Final pics, only 2 as they were the only good ones I got (I couldn't find my tripod
). I'm really pleased with the result though! Think the paint almost has a glow to it (wishful thinking lol). I'm hoping to find some time before the end of the week to get some good daylight pics, so I'll post them up when I get some!Apologies about the blurring, I didn't have the tripod so had to lie on the floor and hold the camera lol. I think the wax is an ideal choice for the colour!
And that's it! This is only my third detail, and my first write up so any comments/criticism welcome! I would of liked to have done a few extra bits such as waxing the door shuts, but time got the better of me!
Must of burnt a fair few calories today, I was absolutely knackered!
Time taken: 11 hours (plus a pizza break
)
