'04 GMC Sierra - never been waxed!

[david b]

My inlaws(recently retired) just left for vacation so I hi-jacked his 04 pickup(54 thous miles) and cleaned it up as a birthday gift. It needed some TLC bad as it had NEVER been waxed. The paint was full of swirls, dull, and neglected.

Check out the hood while stretching the vehicle following a 2 BM wash with gg.


http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2805/medium/DSC_14082.JPG


Clayed it too. Oh brother...

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2805/medium/DSC_14101.JPG


Hit it with Pinnacle Advanced Swirl Remover and followed it up with Cleansing Lotion. I didn't have the Finishing Polish or I would have used that. Not sure if that was correct or not? Went with what I had.

Used the PC 7424xp with LC 5.5 flat pads(orange, white, & blue).

Applied #845 as my LSP(cheap, easy to apply, durable) for this dd. Finished just before dark on a pretty gloomy day so not the best reflection shots.

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2805/medium/DSC_1461.JPG

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2805/medium/DSC_1465.JPG


My first go-around on a silver vehicle. What a challenge to see where I had buffed and where I had missed.

Cleaned the inside with DP Interior Cleaner/Protectant(that stuff still doesn't smell the best IMO despite the new/improved formula).

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2805/medium/DSC_1468.JPG


Not 100% correction but much improved. About 10 hours to complete and I was moving. Can't wait for him to see it.

Two regrets - 1) I don't have Ironx in my arsenal yet and currently on backorder on AG site. This decon step would have helped I think.

2) The correction step with the PC wore me out. Seemed to take forever. Nick from AG suggested I upgrade to the Flex 3401(I may be cleaning up my in-laws 38 foot Challenger RV soon). Need more practice and confidence in what I'm doing before I take on that project.

Still learning. Thanks for looking!

David

[vobro]

That was a great birthday gift, no need to strive for 100% correction on a 11 year old neglected truck.

[Sicoupe]

Nice job!

[Jaretr1]

The truck looks much improved.

As a tip for taking pictures, take before and after shots of the same spot. You would have been able to show dramatic improvement! Although Silver is a difficult color to photograph as it hides defects so well.

[sayroger]

nice work

[Desertnate]

Great work. For an 11-year old truck which had been neglected, I'd have expected the clay to look a lot worse!

[dad07]

Sometimes you got to run whatcha brung!

Looks good!! I'm sure they will trilled with the results, great Birthday gift indeed!

[parshooter]

Looks great. My birthday is in June, and my car will be a lot easier than that :)

[GSKR]

That will be a awesome surprise looks awesome.

[petflunky]

Looks good!

[david b]

Thanks for the feedback. Here are some before/after pics of the hood/right rear.

Far from perfect although much improved(again, neglected paint that hadn't been touched in 11 yrs).

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2805/medium/DSC_14082.JPG

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2805/medium/DSC_1478.JPG


http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2805/medium/DSC_14032.JPG

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/2805/medium/DSC_1486.JPG

I couldn't get my camera to autofocus so I stuck my hand in there.

Wondering if the LC Yellow 5.5 flat pad would have been a better choice for the 1st step? The Advanced Swirl Remover/orange pad was the most aggressive combo I had at the time.

Anyone use the yellow pad?

Still a newbie trying to improve my skills and have only worked on my dd's and a couple of immediate family members' cars.

David

[Jacob Harrod AUTOCLEAN]

Excellent job brother! Nicely done!!!

[TMQ]

From looking at the before and after hood---You've done very, very well.

Key here is to leave as much clear coat on truck as possible. And for a daily driver---it's perfect!

Hats off to you!

Tom