DetailedByPrecision: Not always about paint correction. Showed a friend how to maintain his Lotus. SF Bay Area Auto Detailing

[DetailedByPrecision]

A longtime and good friend of mine recently acquired a new to him car, which is a 2005 Lotus. He wanted to learn how to clean it up and maintain. I offered him to teach him on a weekend where I was free. He gladly accepted my offer and we set up a day. The car only had a single owner before he bought it so it was in good condition to begin with. After a couple of hours of hard work on his part of course we took it for a drive to get a feel of the car. We took it to some back roads and surprisingly the car's power to weight ratio feels really good. Had a blast and grabbed some food to catch up and parted ways. Onto the pics....






Started with wheels, applying Hydro afterwards




DetailedByPrecision2795 by Limny Kuang, on Flickr




DetailedByPrecision2803 by Limny Kuang, on Flickr




DetailedByPrecision2799 by Limny Kuang, on Flickr




Followed with foam, clay, iron X. For protection, applied Hydro to all surfaces




DSC_2809 copy by Limny Kuang, on Flickr




DSC_2810 copy by Limny Kuang, on Flickr




DetailedByPrecision2822 by Limny Kuang, on Flickr




DetailedByPrecision2812 by Limny Kuang, on Flickr




DetailedByPrecision2826 by Limny Kuang, on Flickr




Applied Wolfgang Trim Sealant to trim pieces as well




DetailedByPrecision2804 by Limny Kuang, on Flickr




DetailedByPrecision2840 by Limny Kuang, on Flickr




DetailedByPrecision2806 by Limny Kuang, on Flickr




DetailedByPrecision2842 by Limny Kuang, on Flickr




DetailedByPrecision2853 by Limny Kuang, on Flickr




Finished pics:




DetailedByPrecision2833 by Limny Kuang, on Flickr




DetailedByPrecision2837 by Limny Kuang, on Flickr




DetailedByPrecision2836 by Limny Kuang, on Flickr




DetailedByPrecision2835 by Limny Kuang, on Flickr




DetailedByPrecision2830 by Limny Kuang, on Flickr




DetailedByPrecision2843 by Limny Kuang, on Flickr




DetailedByPrecision2852 by Limny Kuang, on Flickr






What I learned from this detail:

Cannot spray water around rear tail lights. The design of it will allow water to seep through and flood the trunk area.




Thanks if you guys read the whole thread. Any comments or input are always welcomed.

[Mike@DedicatedPerfection]

Beautiful work Limny! Nice pictures as well.

Thanks for sharing.

[lawrenceSA]

Beautiful work Limny! Nice pictures as well.

Thanks for sharing.

I agree.

Glad to see you 'sharing the knowledge' with your friend!

[BrutalNoodle]

These things are so tiny! Smaller than the Miata! I couldn't believe it when I saw both parked next to each other.

Anyways, thanks for sharing, Limny. And I really appreciate your What I learned from this detail:. Very informative.

ps
I spy STi wheels.

[Shark Politur]

The rule Number 1 never use pressure water on the headlights & rear (Porsche, Mercedes, BMW etcetc) all got this quality issues with all their lights as less & less headlights are being made in W. Europe, Japan, UK, USA & most are made in Asia & E. Europe, most after such "wash" will have mist & humidity inside, same like after cleaning the engine & then without drying it completely, after starting the engine humidity will enter headlights even without closing the bonnet.
I don't go here by car manufacturers logos but if you want to try it & then see a face of a customer after such "detailing" & pretend you are a pro & water in the headlights is a factory mistake, not yours then good luck.
It looks like left from the front Lotus headlight is misty inside, once it happens you'll not get rid of it, it will always circulate inside. People who got cheap "water resistant" watches know what I am talking about.
My friend with SLS Brabus showed me once his headlights after by mistake (he said I had a bad feeling don't know what happened with me this day) some guy with dirty pads & such car wash style pressure washer "polished" his Gullwing, there was not only humidity & mist inside the headlights but also dust & dirt.
The best way to insure yourself is simply not using pressure washer on no lights, front, side, rear (side little lights even from a hand wash can get water drops inside), it's better to make less show & demonstration of skills & talent rather than returning a car with wet-wet-wet looking headlights ( I mean from the inside )

Considering most people are stupid about detailing & don't understand that water CAN enter the lights because car manufacturers save on everything, but instead of explaining that you are smart ass & Porsche headlights are low quality & not hermetic, don't you think it's better to avoid such situation copletely?
When I detail cars it's always my responsibility, it's me vs a very expensive car & a friend who trust in me, I don't want to be in situation explaining (even if I know he/she will understand) myself why water is inside the lights, I am very careful when it comes to lights because I know how they are being made today, so should you.

[coles_paint_correction]

That's cool you guys could buddy it up and have a good time.

Never know you might of got him into or think about it more down the road.

[BadgerRivFan]

The rule Number 1 never use pressure water on the headlights & rear (Porsche, Mercedes, BMW etcetc) all got this quality issues with all their lights as less & less headlights are being made in W. Europe, Japan, UK, USA & most are made in Asia & E. Europe, most after such "wash" will have mist & humidity inside, same like after cleaning the engine & then without drying it completely, after starting the engine humidity will enter headlights even without closing the bonnet.
I don't go here by car manufacturers logos but if you want to try it & then see a face of a customer after such "detailing" & pretend you are a pro & water in the headlights is a factory mistake, not yours then good luck.
It looks like left from the front Lotus headlight is misty inside, once it happens you'll not get rid of it, it will always circulate inside. People who got cheap "water resistant" watches know what I am talking about.
My friend with SLS Brabus showed me once his headlights after by mistake (he said I had a bad feeling don't know what happened with me this day) some guy with dirty pads & such car wash style pressure washer "polished" his Gullwing, there was not only humidity & mist inside the headlights but also dust & dirt.
The best way to insure yourself is simply not using pressure washer on no lights, front, side, rear (side little lights even from a hand wash can get water drops inside), it's better to make less show & demonstration of skills & talent rather than returning a car with wet-wet-wet looking headlights ( I mean from the inside )

Considering most people are stupid about detailing & don't understand that water CAN enter the lights because car manufacturers save on everything, but instead of explaining that you are smart ass & Porsche headlights are low quality & not hermetic, don't you think it's better to avoid such situation copletely?
When I detail cars it's always my responsibility, it's me vs a very expensive car & a friend who trust in me, I don't want to be in situation explaining (even if I know he/she will understand) myself why water is inside the lights, I am very careful when it comes to lights because I know how they are being made today, so should you.

You have an interesting way of offering "helpful" advice...

Maybe try a different tact when attempting to provide criticism.

Or maybe I'm just stupid and don't understand the point you are attempting to make.

In any case most of us are here to learn and receive support from fellow car enthusiasts who share our passion for detailing.

I think the Lotus turned out nice. Thanks for posting Limny!

[fly07sti]

That's the best. Cleaning up a nice car then going out for a ride right after. I'm sure it was a good day all around.

[Marc08EX]

Great work Limny!!! It's very nice of you to teach your friend on how to detail his car.

How did it drive? Is he planning to bring it to the track?

[DetailedByPrecision]

Beautiful work Limny! Nice pictures as well.

Thanks for sharing.

Mike, appreciate you checking in.

I agree.

Glad to see you 'sharing the knowledge' with your friend!

Lawrence, how you been doing lately? Great to see you active again.

These things are so tiny! Smaller than the Miata! I couldn't believe it when I saw both parked next to each other.

Anyways, thanks for sharing, Limny. And I really appreciate your What I learned from this detail:. Very informative.

ps
I spy STi wheels.

It's his weekend car so he's careful about where to park. Glad you learned something as well. He mentioned it to me beforehand so we were good to go!

The rule Number 1 never use pressure water on the headlights & rear (Porsche, Mercedes, BMW etcetc) all got this quality issues with all their lights as less & less headlights are being made in W. Europe, Japan, UK, USA & most are made in Asia & E. Europe, most after such "wash" will have mist & humidity inside, same like after cleaning the engine & then without drying it completely, after starting the engine humidity will enter headlights even without closing the bonnet.
I don't go here by car manufacturers logos but if you want to try it & then see a face of a customer after such "detailing" & pretend you are a pro & water in the headlights is a factory mistake, not yours then good luck.
It looks like left from the front Lotus headlight is misty inside, once it happens you'll not get rid of it, it will always circulate inside. People who got cheap "water resistant" watches know what I am talking about.
My friend with SLS Brabus showed me once his headlights after by mistake (he said I had a bad feeling don't know what happened with me this day) some guy with dirty pads & such car wash style pressure washer "polished" his Gullwing, there was not only humidity & mist inside the headlights but also dust & dirt.
The best way to insure yourself is simply not using pressure washer on no lights, front, side, rear (side little lights even from a hand wash can get water drops inside), it's better to make less show & demonstration of skills & talent rather than returning a car with wet-wet-wet looking headlights ( I mean from the inside )

Considering most people are stupid about detailing & don't understand that water CAN enter the lights because car manufacturers save on everything, but instead of explaining that you are smart ass & Porsche headlights are low quality & not hermetic, don't you think it's better to avoid such situation copletely?
When I detail cars it's always my responsibility, it's me vs a very expensive car & a friend who trust in me, I don't want to be in situation explaining (even if I know he/she will understand) myself why water is inside the lights, I am very careful when it comes to lights because I know how they are being made today, so should you.

An average person might misunderstand you easily based on your approach to reply to topics. But I am not someone with a soft mind and heart. I can handle constructive criticism. thanks.

That's cool you guys could buddy it up and have a good time.

Never know you might of got him into or think about it more down the road.

We had a great time taking it on the back road mountains. The motor is from a Celica but the weight of the car helps maintain good ratio.

You have an interesting way of offering "helpful" advice...

Maybe try a different tact when attempting to provide criticism.

Or maybe I'm just stupid and don't understand the point you are attempting to make.

In any case most of us are here to learn and receive support from fellow car enthusiasts who share our passion for detailing.

I think the Lotus turned out nice. Thanks for posting Limny!

Thanks Badger! Everyone have their own style of expression. Ill just leave it at that and nothing more of it.

That's the best. Cleaning up a nice car then going out for a ride right after. I'm sure it was a good day all around.

That's how it should be. Get your ride all clean and go out for a spin!

Great work Limny!!! It's very nice of you to teach your friend on how to detail his car.

How did it drive? Is he planning to bring it to the track?

Thanks Marc!! He's more of a mechanic but he understands some basic detailing. The car feels strong and solid even going full throttle uphills.