Correction on a Classic Saab 900
Show N' ShineDiscuss Correction on a Classic Saab 900 in the Auto Detailing Forums forums; Correction on a Saab C900 convertible:
Another beautiful day in Socal, I had a fellow Saab owner ask about a ...
Another beautiful day in Socal, I had a fellow Saab owner ask about a tuition detail so I planned for him to come over so that I can show him the ins and outs of polishing with a DA. This was meant to be a one step polishing session with the intent that a later date would be scheduled when there was more time to address more severe defects and to allow for a jeweling stage. He had warned me that the paint was not in the best shape but I told him not to worry. The car was washed and clayed before hand, which he did a great job of. He arrived around 10:45 and we immediately began taping. This is a very important step because of all the badges and trim that are on this car. We polished for about 5 hours and finally took a nice photoshoot while the sun was still out. I hope you enjoy this writeup, it was very rewarding for me to see the car's owner smile for the afters. A 20+ year old car doesn't have to look its age!
Products and Process:
-Menzerna Power Finish (203s)
-Makita Rotary (piloted by me)
-PC7424 (used by the car's owner)
-Orange and white lake country pads
-IPA wipedown
-Z***l Concours wax
-Tires: Autosmart #9 Tire+Trim Shine
-Trim: Poorboy's Trim Restorer
-Glass: AG Fast Glass
-Previously applied by the owner: 303 Fabric Guard to the soft top per my recommendation
Initial Inspection: the sun is a cruel mistress
Under the halogens: lots of haze, swirl marks, and RIDs
And my trusty "Swirl Finder"
Clearcoat issues:
I stepped up with the rotary and went for an initial correction pass to gauge the depth of the defects and the hardness or softness of the paint. Since this was a one stepper, I used a white CCS pad with Power Finish:
The owner's first pass with a PC: the right side was polished by him, very good results:
There were severe scratches in that area of the trunk, so I took another pass to knock those down just a bit further:
A 50/50 of the owner's DA work: some deeper swirls remain but the intent was never to achieve full correction, the left is done. Notice the increase in clarity-
The rear driver's side quarter panel had some very deep scratches that will need to be addressed at a later date, but they are improved: Before
After:
50/50 of the passenger door and the rear quarter. Left side done, right side has not:
The owner's handy work:
I was busy with the rotary (4" white CCS pad, 3" Uber backing plate) taking care of those deeper scratches on the drivers side: a shocking 50/50:
Before:
After:
Drivers door with the rotary: Before:
After: significant improvement, but deeper marks remain.
Before:
After: I love mirrors
I corrected the arches with the rotary:
Onto the hood: the hood had the worst damage without a doubt; it was hazy and oxidised with deep swirl marks and RIDs. I tackled this with my Makita and white CCS pad. The paint threw me a curve ball because it was super sticky and was causing my pad and polish to gum up like crazy. I slowed the speed down to 900rpm and put a dot of po87mc on to help with extra lubrication.
These are the money shots, and show what kind of drastic improvement we achieve. The 50/50 is down the center of the hood, right side done but not the left.
Left side:
Right side:
Left side:
Right side:
This is what makes you smile:
Left side is now done:
The passenger's side was done by the owner; he did a great job knocking down the heavy swirls and haze with the PC and Lake Country flat orange pad: Note that there is still some haze, this was polish residue that was later removed with IPA wipedown.
One of the gals here at work just bought a black Saab Convertible, you'll probably see it in a write-up soon.
If you resize our pictures, you'll make it easier for your reader to see all of the pictures without having to horizontal scroll. 800 pixels wide is a pretty good standard width for anything on a discussion forum.
That right there shows you it does not matter the age of a car, that paint can still pop when in the right hands. Very nice detail, I am sure the owner fell in love with that Saab all over again!
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