2013 GMC Terrain Detail with PBL Coating

[FrankS]

This is one of my neighbor's GMC. He has his own aluminum screened patio business. He gave me a great deal on installing a metal roof on the side of my carport and in return he wanted a coating on his 2013 GMC Terrain, which was a great deal for me considering how much I saved on the metal roof.

The complete detail on the GMC took about a month since I do this on my spare time and he also needed to use it on some weekends since his kids are involved in soccer. Therefore whenever I got the car I had to work on a section at a time.

Condition of the Terrain

The owner has had the car for about a year and he takes good care of it. He washes the car by hand almost every week. I did give him some advice as to proper technique, such as using quality soap, quality wash mitt, 2 bucket method (2BM) with grit guards and quality drying towels.
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Just had some minor swirls and scratches and difficult to see on white paint.
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The owner was using a tire dressing on the tires but they were to receive Tuf Shine Tire Clearcoat.
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1st the Wheels & Tires

Wheel wells were cleaned with Meguiars APC+ diluted at 4 to 1.
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Time to clean the tires with TS Tire Cleaner & TS Brush.
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TS Tire Cleaner working even before brushing.
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After brushing with TS Tire Brush.
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Had to scrub the tires about 5 or 6 times to get them completely clean - until I saw white foam on the tire and brush was clean.
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Next up was the WG Uber Wheel Cleaner for the wheels & hubcaps.
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Daytona Speed Brush to get the barrels.
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Mother's Wheel Brush for the hubcaps.
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Here's one coat of TS Tire Clearcoat.
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The owner preferred a shinier look - here's two coats of TS Tire Clearcoat.
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Water spots were on the hubcaps, the last time the owner brought the car. Carpro Water Spot Remover was used to remove the spots. (used the wrong white balance setting on the camera by accident).
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Here's how the hubcaps looked after using the Carpro WSR. TS Tire Clearcoat, 2 coats, about a month later.
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Engine Detail

This is how it looked when I first got the car. Not too bad.
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This is after, after using Megs APC+ (4 to 1) with various brushes and dried with a Master Blaster.
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Washing the Car

Pre-soaking with CG Citrus Wash Red, via pressure washer & foam cannon.
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Then washed with CG Citrus Wash Red via 2BM.
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Since I wasn't able to completey finish the car in one day, I used various methods to clean it when I got it. Here's using the Rinseless Wash Method using 2BM, ONR (Opitmum No Rinse) and micro-chenille wash mitt.
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About 2oz of ONR to 3 Gals of water.
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Rinseless wash.
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Sometimes I used the Waterless Wash method if car wasn't too dirty.
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Decontamination

First up was Iron-X to remove iron particles. Iron-X turns purple when dissolving iron particles.
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Close up. Can really see it working on a white car.
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Especially heavy on the rear passenger door. Found out later that this part of the car was wet by the owner's sprinkler system which uses well water. Well water in South FL contains a lot of iron.
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After Iron-X, decontaminated further by removing above surface contaminants using the speedy prep towel and Nano-Shock as the lube. Here's my other neighbor Eddie helping out.
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Polishing Paint

Since there were only minor swirls and scratches, WG Finishing Glaze was used with white CCS polishing pads.
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Here's Eddie using the PC with 5.5" White CCS pads.
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While Eddie was using the PC, I was using the Flex 3401 with 6.5" White CCS pads. Here's all the tools and pads used for polishing. 3" GG was used with a 3" GG Orange pad on smaller areas.
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Preparing for Coating

Since I was running out of time, Carpro Eraser was used to prepare for the PBL Coating instead of PBL Surface Cleansing Polish. (Pardon the poor pictures, I must have accidently hit the wrong white balance button on the following photos).
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PBL Surface Coating

Time for the coating. I really like how you can use this coating on different surfaces and I also like the ease in application.
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Coating on the headlights. The headlights were already in good condition but were lightly polished with the 3" GG and the 3" orange pad and WG Finishing Glaze just to remove any dirt and road grime before applying the coating.
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Coating on the windshield.
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Coating on the paint.
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Coating on the hubcaps.
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Removing high spots with soft MF towel.
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Inside of Car

Door jambs were cleaned with damp MF towels and then sealed with Chemical Guys V7. Inside was in good condtion, therefore it was just thoroughly vacuumed.

Beauty Shot

Unfortunately this was the only decent beauty shot. The other pictures are not worth showing.
The paint came out looking shiny, wet and glossy and now has good protection, which is what the owner wanted.
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[jamesboyy]

A excellent job well done on that GMC

[antti@561detailing]

Nice job Frank...paint looked dull when you started...and awesome write up...white paint not easy to show

[dc52nv]

Hubcaps in California mean something totally different.

Great job on the detail.

[Mike@DedicatedPerfection]

Outstanding work Frank! Thanks for sharing.

[FrankS]

A excellent job well done on that GMC

Thank you.


Nice job Frank...paint looked dull when you started...and awesome write up...white paint not easy to show

Thanks Antti.


Hubcaps in California mean something totally different.

Great job on the detail.

Thanks, what's the meaning of hubcaps in California? To me it means the wheel cover that attaches to the wheel (or rim).


Outstanding work Frank! Thanks for sharing.

Thanks Mike.

[dc52nv]

Same meaning here that is why I'm confused with you calling them hubcaps when they look like wheels to me.

[FrankS]

Same meaning here that is why I'm confused with you calling them hubcaps when they look like wheels to me.

At a distance they look like wheels but they are actually plastic hubcaps.

[dc52nv]

At a distance they look like wheels but they are actually plastic hubcaps.

Interesting. Those are the best looking hubcaps I've seen. Usually can't see the brake caliper and rotor behind the hubcaps. Thanks for the explanation.

[Chris@AutoCleanse]

Beautiful work Frank. The documentation was right on along with the picture taking. Great job buddy. Cars looks good.

[FrankS]

Beautiful work Frank. The documentation was right on along with the picture taking. Great job buddy. Cars looks good.

Thanks Chris.

[Tato]

Very nice work!, thanks for sharing.

I'd suggest for you to try using Clay towel folded in half instead of 4, just a variation that I do often and like to glide it over surface this way.

What do you feel about GG 3" paired with PC and Flex 3401? Does it hold the job presenting fair results compared to other areas?

Congratulations on your work,

Kind Regards.

[FrankS]

Very nice work!, thanks for sharing.

I'd suggest for you to try using Clay towel folded in half instead of 4, just a variation that I do often and like to glide it over surface this way.

What do you feel about GG 3" paired with PC and Flex 3401? Does it hold the job presenting fair results compared to other areas?

Congratulations on your work,

Kind Regards.

Thanks Tato, I'll try the towel tip next time. The GG 3" does a good job on tight and smaller areas with good results. Like any other DA, you have to use proper technique and not press down too hard and keep the pad flat against the surface in order to keep the pad rotating.

[Tato]

Thanks for tips on GG3! I'm to place a new order at AG and I believe that at $100 bucks a kit this little thing is worth a try...

Some more info on vibration and noise, please?, I'd appreciate. In your honest opinion, it looks more like a toy, or a tool? Do you 'double yours as a sander'?

Have I said you done an impressive job on this GMC? I can say it again, and again, beautiful work.

Kind Regards.

[FrankS]

Thanks for tips on GG3! I'm to place a new order at AG and I believe that at $100 bucks a kit this little thing is worth a try...

Some more info on vibration and noise, please?, I'd appreciate. In your honest opinion, it looks more like a toy, or a tool? Do you 'double yours as a sander'?

Have I said you done an impressive job on this GMC? I can say it again, and again, beautiful work.

Kind Regards.

Thanks Tato, I really didn't notice any excessive vibration or noise. The Rupes mini maybe smoother but it's more expensive. Personally, I like the GG, it may look like a toy but it gets the job done and it's got a lifetime warranty. I've used it for sanding on the Thursday night makeovers, works good as a sander too.