335i Polish and Detail - My First Paid Detail

[zmcgovern45]

So I have been keeping my cars (and other family members cars, of course) in great shape for quite a while. I've owned a PC7424 for a couple of years now, but have only recently started expanding my knowledge of various products, techniques, etc.

I just bought my new Lexus IS250 about 3 months ago and did a full paint correction with fabulous results, so I thought I would reach out to a local car enthusiast forum to see if there was any interest/need for a detailer. I received several interested individuals, and this was my first job.

This is a 2008 335i that has been kept fairly clean, but not properly taken care of, if that makes sense. This paint is FULL of metallic flake and looks great in the sun, but the owner was noticing a good amount of swirls and simply wanted to reduce them. We weren't out to get a perfect, show car finish, as this car had a good amount of heavier scratches to go along with the swirls, but I'd say it was about a 75% correction overall. The owner was very pleased with the results, but it was hard for me to only do a one-stage polish when the perfectionist in me wanted to sit there for hours to make the car perfect.

Alright, enough intro, on to the pictures.

- Washed with Chemical Guys Citrus Wash diluted to remove any protection still on vehicle... but I found out there was none :eek:
- Dried with Soft Microfiber Towels
- Clay Bar using Detailed Image Gentle Fine Grade Clay
- Single Stage Polish with M205 on LC white pad with PC7424XP DA Polisher (remove 75%+ of swirls, but unable to correct deeper defects)
- Waxed with NXT Tech Wax 2.0
- Wheels Dressed with Megs Endurance Gel
- Basic Engine Cleaning and Dress all plastic engine components w/ 303
- Quick interior vacuum and dressed all vinyl with 303

Before: You can easily see the swirls in the paint
https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/539558_10151221470617363_407463754_n.jpg

https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/404169_10151221471067363_1207430436_n.jpg

https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/527188_10151221471362363_1032459377_n.jpg

https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-snc7/304953_10151221471992363_2047024672_n.jpg

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/558224_10151221472342363_160217673_n.jpg

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/560472_10151221471697363_29384741_n.jpg
^bugs guts and stains on the front

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/523220_10151221472892363_1890603099_n.jpg
^Dirty wheels, but not too bad given it was a BMW.. I've seen much, much worse.

https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/264151_10151221473212363_22330190_n.jpg
^Example of a deeper scratch that was unable to be removed

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/424741_10151221473532363_423508404_n.jpg
^Some water spots lightly etched into clear coat

https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/564362_10151221474202363_1462208258_n.jpg
^Scratches Under Driver's Side Door Handle (no after pic, but removed ~75% of them)

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-snc6/217933_10151221475577363_629310731_n.jpg
^Hard water stains on paint - thanks Illinois Rain

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/557335_10151221476102363_1949480341_n.jpg
^Absolutely no water beading meaning car had ZERO protection (wax or sealant) on it. Shame Shame Shame!!!

https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/527058_10151221476657363_1357393066_n.jpg
^Wheel Cleaner going to work

https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-snc7/392462_10151221477592363_278464591_n.jpg
^Working with the clay

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/538873_10151221478092363_2021796485_n.jpg
^Dirty clay after going over the hood.

https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/400893_10151221477782363_942939080_n.jpg
^Checking out the damage under halogen lights after being clayed - more swirls

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/527109_10151221478437363_1336732841_n.jpg
^Taping off anything that may be damaged from polish or wax

https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-snc7/391714_10151221478622363_1911334615_n.jpg
^More taping

https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/563223_10151221478767363_1395274552_n.jpg
^Taping off my test location

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-snc7/303506_10151221478892363_460890670_n.jpg
^Test spot before correction

https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/564375_10151221479047363_1085380392_n.jpg
^After correction - most of the swirls/scratches removed

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/285494_10151221479962363_154131207_n.jpg
^Checking out the test spot in the sun, looks good enough to me

https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/421675_10151221480167363_1681650541_n.jpg
^Fender Before

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/303501_10151221480357363_1645361098_n.jpg
^Fender After

[zmcgovern45]

https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/644514_10151221480662363_727359133_n.jpg
^Engine Before

https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/418843_10151221480857363_1850116383_n.jpg
^Engine After

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-snc7/391626_10151221481022363_1376085663_n.jpg
^Hood After

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/601453_10151221481222363_805881830_n.jpg
^All Done

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/560419_10151221481602363_1325774001_n.jpg
^Trunk looked great afterwards

https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-snc7/297767_10151221481762363_263083096_n.jpg

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-snc6/260074_10151221481957363_1525693453_n.jpg
^All cleaned and dressed

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/644117_10151221496327363_315812910_n.jpg
^Paint just looks dripping wet, turned out great.

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-snc6/264106_10151221496497363_1948398084_n.jpg
^Hood is a ton better, but not flawless. It was the worst part on the whole car.

https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-snc7/423713_10151221496667363_512595189_n.jpg
^Happy with the results

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/539202_10151221496802363_1723193287_n.jpg
^Some reflection shots

https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-snc6/223911_10151221496942363_1671199533_n.jpg
^Crystal Clear Reflections

All in all, I know it was not perfect, but I'm glad the owner was very pleased. I learned a lot, as this paint was not near as easy to work with as my Lexus (or previous Honda and Acura). I will continue to practice. Any tips or comments are greatly appreciated!

Thanks for looking!

[Mike Phillips]

The owner was very pleased with the results, but it was hard for me to only do a one-stage polish when the perfectionist in me wanted to sit there for hours to make the car perfect.



You did the right thing and you still did an AWESOME job!

Just like I describe here...

A few tips on starting a part-time detailing business (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/how-make-money-detailing-cars/27827-few-tips-starting-part-time-detailing-business.html)
Match your services to your customer






Any tips or comments are greatly appreciated!




Yeah... get ready for more work to come your way via word-of-mouth advertising...


Nice work, beautiful color now that everyone can see the flake POP!



:dblthumb2:

[vet]

Looks good!

[zmcgovern45]

You did the right thing and you still did an AWESOME job!

Just like I describe here...

A few tips on starting a part-time detailing business (http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/how-make-money-detailing-cars/27827-few-tips-starting-part-time-detailing-business.html)
Match your services to your customer


Yeah... get ready for more work to come your way via word-of-mouth advertising...


Nice work, beautiful color now that everyone can see the flake POP!

:dblthumb2:

Thanks for the compliments and the advice!! I've been a long time 'browser' of these forums and it's great to have a response from the famous Mike Phillips!


Looks good!

Thank you!

[Jomax]

Great job. IMO for a DD it's not worth removing the Deeper scratches. You need all the CC you get get for a car that spends most of its time outside.


Sent from my iPhone using AG Online

[AutowerxDetailing]

Nice write up & great work! :props:

[g26er]

205 on a white pad / PC... I don't give 205 enough credit!

Great job, looks really good! :dblthumb2:

[LPfromNJ]

Car looks incredible. Wow.

[FraziersEVO]

You did an excellent job and i'm sure it feels great knowing that you did. Couple of things I would suggest to you, just from one detailer to another! First, I love the Porter Cable but the Flex 3401 VRG runs circles around that machine. Not only does it remove twice as many imperfections as the Porter Cable, it does it in nearly half the amount of time that the Porter Cable does still without the risk of damaging the paint. Cleaner, scratch free paint in half the amount of time = extremely happy customer. Again not knocking your work by any means the car looks amazing and I am sure the customer is stoked about the outcome. I personally started on the Porter Cable and loved it and used it for so many things up until I purchased a Flex, now my Porter Cable sits in a box and never gets used. Ok now that that's out the way on to the wax. Tech wax is great for many things and I have used it over the years with very good results but one thing I have learned about using wax is that I only use it when I am doing basic detailing jobs. For jobs like this when you are restoring paint, whether its pulling scratches, removing swirls, or simply polishing the paint I would recommend using a paint sealant opposed to a wax for many reasons. The main reason being because sealants will last 4-5 times longer then wax will, they're super easy to work with and the results are phenomenal. I recommend Wolfgang Deep Gloss Paint Sealant 3.0, its extremely durable and not too bad on your pocket either and it turns your paint into a mirror. All in all you did an excellent job on the vehicle and it came out great, if you have a chance to try the machine and product I mentioned do so, you will not be disappointed! :xyxthumbs: