Twin Turbo Lamborghini Gallardo Refreshed by AutoLavish

[jlb85]

Hey guys, here is one of our latest details. I was out with a bad back, so Marc and Nate handled this one on their own. Not only was I bed stricken, I missed out on this awesome car! Oh well... Still, I'm sure you will enjoy the read and pictures!



Despite being over 6 years old, the styling of the Lamborghini Gallardo still has a commanding presence on the road. Smaller, lighter, and arguably more driver friendly than the Murcielago, the Gallardo isn't only well built for an exotic (something you wouldn't say of many past Lamborghinis), it has some amazing potential if an owner is daring enough to tap into it. This Gallrdo is one such example.

We gave the estimate for this car to the owner 10 months prior to working on it. After he saw the end result (not even full correction - the goal here was presale prep), he made it known the replacement would be getting the AutoLavish treatment at the beginning of his ownership rather than towards the end. Though the PPG Cerami-clear shell has been holding up well, it was still plaqued with light swirls, excessive marring, and other problems due to improper washing techniques which overall led to a big lack of clarity. Lack of clarity and cleanness is the number one issue in a vehicle looking older than it should. The scratches, swirls, marring, and other visual impairments refract incoming light so that the color doesn't shine true to the eye. Fixing such issues allows for proper reflection of light resulting in a more vibrant appearance that looks crisp and sharp: these are the exact type of things that truly add to resale value of a car.

With Jacob suffering from badly strained back muscles (happened when we had three cars in three days which started with a 13 hour marathon on a turbo NSX), I was lucky enough to have a good friend of mine able to lend me a hand. Nate is not only a car enthusiast, but a motorcycle mechanic with a good grasp of how things work. It also helps he's dabbed into detailing a little which allowed me to be able to assign him tasks of what to use, how to use it, what to look for, and why, and he could get it done. Putting your reputation on the line as a person and business is not a light decision, so I'm glad I had someone trustworthy to lend a hand.

Upon arrival, the "pre washed" Gallardo was waiting for us.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09595.jpg

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The owner was most concerned with making the engine bay look as nice as possible. After a custom twin-turbo install, you need to be able to show off the goods. The light build up needed to be safely removed to bring back the looks.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09604.jpg

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Intake not looking as shiny as it should...

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09614.jpg

Nor did the exhaust tips.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09618.jpg

Standard build up in the gas cap area. Nothing too bad, but in need of some light help.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09620.jpg


Door jams rarely are cared for with most cars - here you can see the dirt that has settled.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09627.jpg


I began on the engine bay with a boar's hair brush and P21S Total Auto Wash to help loosen all grime. While TAW might be on the expensive side, there is little I'd trust more on an expensive customized engine bay. It is not only safe - but effective.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09635.jpg

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09637.jpg


Nate began with treating each wheel to a nice layer of P21S Wheel Cleaner Gel. The beautiful aftermarket wheels could have easily been damaged with the wrong type of cleaner, so P21S got the call to action. Not only the wheel faces and lugs, but inside of the wheel, the brake calipers, and behind the spokes were all treated. Here the calipers are cared for with a 1inch boar's hair brush

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09639.jpg

Lug's already treated and finishing off the calipers - it was a little awkward for me to be working with a right handed guy like Nate when it's normally two correct-handed individuals doing the work, but I knew I had to take it easy on him; he's still learning :)

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09642.jpg

Yes - even the emergency brake brake caliper was properly cleaned. When you come to us - you're going to have it all done, and done the right way.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09644.jpg


Steel wool (#0000 of course) and a stronger dilution of Meguiar's All Purpose Cleaner Plus helped the exhaust tips come back to life. Of course the owner is running restrictive exhaust and double cats, so I'm sure they'll stay clean for a long long time.... :lol:

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09648.jpg


While Nate played clean up with the exhaust tips, I got to the door jams and other harder to reach / sometimes over-looked areas.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09649.jpg

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http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09659.jpg

[jlb85]

(continued)


With many exterior surfaces now cleaned, we could foam down the car to help loosen anything on the paint, as well as neuturalize and remove any chemicals still on the car that weren't completely flushed.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09662.jpg

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09663.jpg


Wait 5-10 mintues (10 here as the sun wasn't out to bother us) and flush off!

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09667.jpg

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09671.jpg


Then it was time to re-foam and actually wash the car: microfiber mitts were used of course.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09673.jpg

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09676.jpg


Once finally rinsed again, the blower was brought out to assist with drying. In this case, it was only good getting standing water out of hiding places such as the inside of the mirrors as the car wasn't slick at all (rarely if ever waxed, and lots of contamination needing to be removed with clay) and thus towels truly NEEDED to be used to remove the extremely hard water. Once complete, we pulled the Gallardo inside the garage to continue to work without having to worry is the sun would come out to annoy us.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09677.jpg

The garage was also the home to the fuel used to keep this baby going strong - these two 55 gallon drums of racing fuel and another 5 or so 5 gallon jugs.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09624.jpg


Claying commenced with Dodo Juice Born Slippy and Detailedimage.com's fine grade clay on all painted surfaces to include inside the engine bay.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09678.jpg

Claying took more than twice as long as expected mainly because of the clear-bra that was installed on the car. The edges of paint protection film is known for causing headaches once dirt begins to get lodged there. Gently claying the edges in very short motions going with the cut of the film was time consuming, but yeilded great results.
Here you can see on the left the dirt layer removed, while on the right side, the line of trapped dirt is very apparent.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09680.jpg


Done, the piece doesn't stand out nearly as bad and blends in much better with the paint.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09687.jpg

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09681.jpg

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09688.jpg


Another:

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09683.jpg

Not 100%, but a lot better

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09684.jpg




Claying complete, a quick rewash removed any film of clay lubricant left behind, and once redried, we could begin masking off the car.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09693.jpg


One of the neighbors coming home after a cruise :)

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09690.jpg


The owner wanted to clean the paint up, but wasn't looking for perfection with the car potentially changing hands. He opted for like-new condition rather than better-than-new condition. Here's how that turned out.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09697.jpg


Before: missing clarity, swirls, marring, and overall a more dull look in the paint.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09710.jpg

After on the ajacent panel:

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09717.jpg


Because of the pearl color, Halogens just white-washed everything without providing the needed inspection ability like the Brinkmann Dual LED could provide.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09721.jpg

With the clarity of the paint coming back, the color nearly changed infront of our eyes. The orange was BRIGHT BRIGHT orange.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09724.jpg

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Getting close to finished!

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09733.jpg


The paint protection film needed to be treated as well (it's surface is even softer than the paint's), but needed to be done gently. I switched pads and polish to slowly bring back the clarity which made the film even harder to see.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09739.jpg


Nate helped to bring the deep black color of the underside of the hood out using 303 Aerospace protectant on a microfiber applicator. This was done in 5 thin layers.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09747.jpg


Being finally done with the hard to reach areas of the engine bay, I could finish polishing with doing the rear bumper and tail lights.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09753.jpg

[jlb85]

(continued)



The tails were tinted by one of the best guys in the nation, and couldn't quickly, easily, or cheaply be redone. I used a light polishing combination to slowly work the surface without allowing too much heat to build up. They came out much better than they started, but I forgot to get direct pics - check the finals for one or two that show the result pretty well with the halogen light hitting it :(

While I played with the rear end, Nate used NevrDull on the exhaust tips and various other metal pieces inside the engine bay.
Wiped clean, the shine was much better!

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09757.jpg


Dodo Juice Red Mist Tropical gave the first layer of protection to the paint. In the mean time, Nate applied Optimum Opti-Seal to the wheel faces, calipers, and inside the wheels. The results were really becoming apparent after being at the client's house for over 9 hours.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09763.jpg


I finally went over the entire car with Optimum Opti-seal to include the gas cap, clear bra, and all painted surfaces. Afterwards I treated the honeycomb inserts with Meguiar's Trim Detail spray while Nate used a microfiber towel to even out the sealant on the wheels to insure perfect coverage without streaking.

The finals:

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09798.jpg

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09777.jpg

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Thanks for looking!

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09788.jpg

[tuscarora dave]

Very nice work on a very nice car. and excellent writeup.

[Impressions]

great job........sweet car!

I wish I could find the time to do such a great write up like this.......let's see.....work 10 hours six days a week, quality time with the wife, quality time for me, house chores and honey dew list.....yea right

again great car and write up

[rwright]

Car turned out very well, excellent write up. Thanks for sharing.

[Marc08EX]

That's some amazing work!

[CEE DOG]

Thank you! I really enjoyed that. Great work done on a beautiful car using a few of the products I really like.

[FinalTouchAuto]

Looks real good.

9 hours well spent by two guys that look like they know what they're doing. Claying the inside of the engine bay was the icing on the cake for me :)

Well done.

[Meghan]

Very nice, I love that car!

[BobbyG]

Now that's what I call a great allot of work but also a good deal of detailed documentation of before and after shots.

Great job on the Lambo and the format, I really enjoyed this!! :props:

[nava222]

Very nice work (and the nice car). :)

[Mirror Detailing]

Great write up and amazing car...that color combo is perfect!

Also what was your process for buffing out the paint. Lambos clears are pretty hard to work with in my opinion.

[kronos]

Excellent work, you are a very meticulous detailer.


I have a question about your process you use in the pictures below. Once you spray with P21S TAW and agitate, what do you use to rinse it off? Water? Sponge? MF towels?


I began on the engine bay with a boar's hair brush and P21S Total Auto Wash to help loosen all grime. While TAW might be on the expensive side, there is little I'd trust more on an expensive customized engine bay. It is not only safe - but effective.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09635.jpg

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/2007%20Lamborghini%20Gallardo%20TT%20Detail/DSC09637.jpg

[TheGLL]

Very nice work on a very nice car. and excellent writeup.

:iagree: