SS Black Toyota

[xebola]

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This 98/99 (I can't remember) single stage black was heavily swirled and etched. I don't have a paint thickness gauge nor do I know the history of this car so I pretty much erred on the side of caution.


The driver's side C Pillar has some funky stuff going on. It was partially repainted and clear coated and doesn't quite match. Other than that it doesn't look like anything has really been done to it. I didn't find anything that looked like holograms or buffer trails, but you never know.


After it was washed and clayed I PC'd it.


I used Meguiar's #80 on an LC Yellow pad, and 4" LC CCS Orange Pad for some of the tighter spots. Speed 5.


Then I used Pinnacle XMT-360 on a Meguiar's 8006 Pad. Speed 5.


The car sat in the garage for 24 hours.


I came back and did 2 applications of DP Max Wax with a Meguiar's 9006 Pad. Speed 3.


I used XMT 360 by hand on the black plastic mirror housings, the plastic window deflectors, the wiper arms and the A and B Pillars. I didn't touch any of the trim or plastic, or tires. The owner has something that he likes to dress them with.


The first three pictures below were taken after the car was washed and clayed. It looks like the car was washed sporadically, but aggressively, with some very hard water and never hand dried. It is completely covered with the worst hard water etchings that I have seen. It also looks like it sat for some long periods in an area with a lot of birds, sap, aphid droppings, etc.


After wash and clay:



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After M80 (below)


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After XMT-360 (pretty nice gloss)


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Got some pad cleaning to do!


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After DP Max Wax:
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If I had better pictures you would see that some of the deeper scratches remain, as well as lots of etching artifacts. As far as the overall appearance goes, I'm not really happy with it. The years and years of mineral etchings are now sort of rounded off and it looks a heck of a lot like orange peel.


The owner of the car is completely blown away. He said it was far beyond anything he could have imagined. He thought it was hysterical that I was a little disappointed. Obviously he's not one of us. LOL!


I'm gonna get another shot at it in a few months and I am wondering how to proceed. I have a PC and all of the LC and Megs pads.


I think I am going to get some Optimum Polish and The XMT line. I would have used Megs #83 with that yellow pad but I am out of it. I am looking to try something else for heavier defect removal. My MO has generally been to spend a little more time and a little less aggression but I want to increase my speed.


Any advice would be appreciated!

[Nica]

The vehicle looks good but I understand what you mean about the deeper scratches and all the etching. The thing is that if you want to do a paint correction then you will probably have to step up to the rotary and some wool pads, I never tried wool pads with the PC so I don't know how that will work. The reason I say rotary is because of the heat it generates, heat is what will help you do the correction you want and cutting wool pads are great for a full correction. As for polish, I've used the Optimum Hyper Compound and I personally feel that it dosen't compare to Menzerna Power Gloss, for me Power Gloss Compound is the way to go but that's just me. Oh and the Meg's pads are really good, I like them.

Just by looking at the picture it looks good, even though you may feel that it could be better you still made a difference to it.

Thank you for sharing.

[Tonya]

I understand your disappointment, but you are being too hard on yourself. Most of the time the customer is always right, if he is "blown away" you should at least be happy. :D You did the best you could and it looks so much better than what you started with. I think you did a great job! Remember a happy customer that is "blown away" is spreading the word to all his buds. Hopefully that mean more referral and more business!

[alban61]

You did a great job! It sure looks a lot better than it did.
I do understand how you feel. But you didn't cheat your customer. He was "blown away!" Those deeper scratches were minimized visually and so were the etchings. The vehicle is a daily driver, and to 100% remove defects would have taken a rotary, maybe wetsanding etc. Being a daily driver, it's going to receive a fair share of beating. The owner probably uses DIY car washes/automatic washes, and unfortunately by the time you get to do that vehicle in a few months, it's going to probably be swirled and spotted. I understand if it's a GQ or show car that needs to be 100%. Just like my vehicles aren't swirl free......only 80% maybe. They're outdoors 24/7 enduring the elements and flying crappers (birds). Rain and bird crap probably cooks on my hood while I'm at work, and can't get to it till I leave. So I have etching by my driver's side door, 3 small areas of CC failure on my hood and a few scratches around. So my cars aren't in show car condition. If I only had a garage!!!! Sorry for the rant/vent!
I wasn't yelling at you, Xebola :D You did a very good job on that vehicle :applause:
For heavier defect removal, go for XMT4 or Menz PowerGloss.

[supercharged]

WOW! Great job!

[xebola]

Hey thanks. I'm happy that he really loves it. I feel that it was mostly successful; I just didn't have a big enough stick. I'll call it an exploratory detailing. LOL

Thanks for pointing out that Menzerna Power Gloss Nica. I haven't gotten into the Rotary yet.

I think I might give that a try with the PC though. It sounds like it might be a good transitional product.

Should I try it first with an LC White and then work my way up if need be? Or do you have to use a more aggressive pad to break it down?

Yeah those Meguiar's pads have done fine by me. I have a few that have been to hell and back and have not failed. I'm really hooked on those CCS pads though. I feel like I can keep them cleaner for longer while working. They stay fresher.

Again thanks for the info. and compliments

[Gary Sword]

Nice job! It looks like the single stage paint did a nice job on your pads too.

[xebola]

You were right Tonya. I'm gonna do his wife's car this weekend, after we wash his car together.

I got him set up with some grit guards, Cobra wash tools/towels, and he is going to pick up some UQD.

I know exactly what you mean alban61. I think a lot of us care more about these cars than their owners. When possible I try to get people to stick around for the wash process and explain to them how careful they need to be. I will even intentionally drop a mitt or towel and then explain to them why it can't touch the car again until it is properly laundered. I'm making the world OCD one person at a time:)

BTW Gary those pads cleaned up pretty well with DP PPR.

Regards

[07ImpalaSS]

Looks Great!