In-Progress: 1986 Porsche 951 (Guards Red)

**Slowcorrado** · 07-18-2018, 10:46 PM

Thanks for the kind words everyone. I feel like I need to post a disclaimer though: The pictures make it look better than it really does in person. :-) There are still flaws all over. I'm sure my work isn't as even as it could be, etc... in my defense though, I'll refine it further when I do the polish step. Heh.

Couple days worth of update:

I got the driver's door, mirror and glass finished. The mirror housing isn't as nice as I'd like and I'm having a hard time getting the tight details around the window trim, door handle and mirror. I would have pulled the handle off; but I don't trust the plastic linkage inside to go back on properly or not break. The last picture is of my 1st thin paint mistake (kinda). The upper rails are aluminum and were already buffed really thin by a previous owner. I figured a light pass wouldn't do much, but was WRONG. LOL. Literally a single quick pass took it down to the sealant where it was thin. I'm disappointed, but want to be honest with everyone and show you the bad with the good! As a possible solution, I received my 2oz of single-stage touch-up today, so I may be able to remove the rails and airbrush them to restore the color. If that doesn't work, I'll have them painted when I get the front fender painted. Of course, I'm itching to test the touch-up on my dozens of chips! I think I'll do some testing on the most hidden blemishes as my next project to see if it's going to give a good enough result. As always, thanks for reading and your support. On to the pics for today!

Click the pics to see them in full size/resolution

View of the finished door/side

Another shot

Burnt through roof rail fail!

**Sizzle Chest** · 07-19-2018, 07:34 PM

I'm still telling you this is an epic rehab and you are doing a very, very good job. It looks so much better than before, even with any 'mistakes/learning moments'.

**Slowcorrado** · 07-19-2018, 11:07 PM

Thanks Scott! I get excited about the results and then demoralized by the damage found under the coating of flat red. It's been a great learning experience so far and I'm not even half done.

Today's update will be split into two posts.

I spent like 4 hours on it and got multiple things done. At the end of my last post I said I may move on to touch-up paint testing... it didn't happen yet. Instead I decided to take it a little easy and do the windshield. A cleaning, clay bar and cut pass with the UC made it look and feel amazing. See the pics below (and yes, every 944/951 dash is cracked, another project). After that, I noticed that someone in the past had bent up the lower skirting at the bottom of the front fender by incorrectly putting it up on a lift. (Common on this chassis if you don't know where to raise it) So, I pulled the trim, re-bent the bracket, used the heat gun to release the incorrect bend and reinstalled the trim. It came out pretty nice; of course I just noticed the other side needs it too. LOL. On to the pics!

Click the pics to see them in full size/resolution

Bent-up trim panel before:

Straightened trim:

Windshield before:

Windshield after: (LOL, you can see my natural gas furnace intake and vent lines in the reflection!)

**Slowcorrado** · 07-20-2018, 09:18 PM

2nd half of the day's work:

I decided to start on the hood. It's a mess. It has the worst original paint on the car and is the largest panel. I'm doubting my ability to bring this back! To simplify things I removed the washer nozzles. That was a treat! They are installed in typical German fashion with stainless clamps, braided hose and manually-pinned wiring that isn't safely removable. When I got them out I was thinking... "Hmm, this was touched last by a West German craftsman before the fall of the Soviet Union" HEH! Using the same process as before I've cleaned, clay bar, hand rubdown with Meguiars #7 and let it sit for 24 hours. It's improving but wow; the 1st coat of M7 soaked in so fast it was crazy. I think I used 1/8 a bottle just for that coat. Pics!

Click the pics to see them in full size/resolution

Closeup of the paint's color and condition:

The paint under and around the nozzle!

Hood "Before"

Hood "After cleaning and clay bar" Not much visual improvement?!

Hood after 1 rubdown of M7 and 24H

**Sizzle Chest** · 07-20-2018, 11:14 PM

Drastic difference! Keep on slathering it on and letting it sit! Again, such a cool project!

**RippyD** · 07-21-2018, 09:40 AM

Some great work going on here. I'm learning a lot. Thanks for sharing.

**Slowcorrado** · 07-23-2018, 09:48 PM

Thanks for the comments, I'm learning a lot too! Today's job was to finish the hood. It took a couple of evenings because I ended up doing 2 complete passes on it with the UC. The pics make it look a little better than it really looks under my LED lights. There are still lots of mid-sized scratches, lots of pitting, and some blemishes where something (tar, bird droppings, etc...) had been over the years. However; it's now RED and SHINY! :-) I discovered more burn through on the trailing edge where it's 'raised', and on the hood crease left side. This time I was REALLY careful to avoid those areas and I think I've improved. Heh. The next step is the front bumper/hood blend. Pics for today:

Click the pics to see them in full size/resolution

'After' pic

Another angle, yes you can still see my furnace vent pipes in the reflection

**RippyD** · 07-23-2018, 09:56 PM

Wow... looking great. On the remaining scratches, pitting, etc: that can't be helped. What can be helped you're doing an amazing job of.

btw, we all suffer from being familiar with every square inch of of the cars we work on and we see every little defect. And most people are looking at it from a few feet away, not 6". Everybody else is just going to see how much better this car looks.

**LEDetailing** · 07-23-2018, 10:13 PM

This thread just keeps getting better with each panel. Awesome results. Lifting off that sprayer nozzle must have made you smile knowing what potential was there on the hood

**LSNAutoDetailing** · 07-24-2018, 12:40 AM

Originally Posted by RippyD

Wow... looking great. On the remaining scratches, pitting, etc: that can't be helped. What can be helped you're doing an amazing job of.

btw, we all suffer from being familiar with every square inch of of the cars we work on and we see every little defect. And most people are looking at it from a few feet away, not 6". Everybody else is just going to see how much better this car looks.

So true Rippy, so true...

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