Advice for a Lincoln Zephyr

[waelwell]

A good customer dropped off a Lincoln Zephyr at the shop today. I think it's a '37. It's been converted to a street rod, complete with a Ford Lightning engine. I've worked on this guy's cars before but this one is different. He's taking it to auction in late April and wants it looking it's best. He's really hands-off and doesn't want to get involved with decisions about how I prep the car. He just wants it to look great.

With that said, the paint is flawless. It really only needs a wash and wax. I'll hit the interior, trunk and engine compartment too. Cost isn't an issue. So the fact that this car has an enormous amount of painted surface and will take ages to wax isn't an issue. Also, it doesn't have to look great forever, just for a couple months. I think that coating the car is way more than is necessary. Using a product like Hydro2 would make the car look great and it would be easy to clean up when it rolls off the truck at the auction. But it's an old school car and something tells me that I should go old school and wax it.

This is right up your alley, Mike. Do I wax it or use something else like Hydro2?

Bill

Oh yeah, here's the car as he brought it in.

[lane5515]

Do whatever you did to your 1985 Porsche 928S - that looks like black glass!!

[waelwell]

I washed it and used Hydro2 on my 928.

Bill

[AeroCleanse]

I would use Gtechniq C2v3, but use what you like.

[GSKR]

A good customer dropped off a Lincoln Zephyr at the shop today. I think it's a '37. It's been converted to a street rod, complete with a Ford Lightning engine. I've worked on this guy's cars before but this one is different. He's taking it to auction in late April and wants it looking it's best. He's really hands-off and doesn't want to get involved with decisions about how I prep the car. He just wants it to look great.

With that said, the paint is flawless. It really only needs a wash and wax. I'll hit the interior, trunk and engine compartment too. Cost isn't an issue. So the fact that this car has an enormous amount of painted surface and will take ages to wax isn't an issue. Also, it doesn't have to look great forever, just for a couple months. I think that coating the car is way more than is necessary. Using a product like Hydro2 would make the car look great and it would be easy to clean up when it rolls off the truck at the auction. But it's an old school car and something tells me that I should go old school and wax it.

This is right up your alley, Mike. Do I wax it or use something else like Hydro2?

Bill

Oh yeah, here's the car as he brought it in.

Just wax it.Hydro 2 and all the others are problematic.The new mckees spray hydro isn't as bad as streaks compared to others.I would wax it so you can be focused on the chrome and intricate areas.

[DARK HORSE]

This would be a GREAT choice in this particular case...
Four Star Ultimate Paint Protection. 4* UPP is a poly charged synthetic sealant with carnauba. The look it leaves behind (on perfected paint, especially darker paints) is incredible. It looks every bit as dripping wet and deep as any expensive botique carnauba I've used (I've used many, I'm the guy who waxes my sway bar, and other engine bay parts with Swissvax Crystal Rock, lol). Try it, you won't be disappointed. Here's an "Old School" review from my buddy Corey Curruth courtesy of the "Way Back Macine". 4*UPP is truly a forgotten about and hidden gem. If you want to try it, PM me your address and I'll send you enough to do the car with.

Review: Four Star Ultimate Paint Protection

[Mike Phillips]

A good customer dropped off a Lincoln Zephyr at the shop today. I think it's a '37. It's been converted to a street rod, complete with a Ford Lightning engine. I've worked on this guy's cars before but this one is different. He's taking it to auction in late April and wants it looking it's best. He's really hands-off and doesn't want to get involved with decisions about how I prep the car. He just wants it to look great.

With that said, the paint is flawless. It really only needs a wash and wax.

Very cool car. I worked on the original called Scrape.



While it may and probably does look great... nothing looks as good as a freshly machine polished and waxed car. Machine polishing will amp up the gloss on all of the gloss points and gloss panels. (I cover this in my how-to book).


IF you want to keep it simple, then get a bottle of McKee's Jeweling Wax and machine apply it. Wipe it off and then stick a fork in it and call it done.

A jeweling wax is a unique product. It's like a cleaner/wax but unlike the zillions of cleaner/waxes on the market, a true jewelling wax will maximize gloss and DOI.


We used the McKee's 37 Jeweling Wax on


McKee's 37 = Winner BEST PAINT!







I'd consider HD Speed a jeweling wax too... it has more cut than the McKee's Jeweling wax but man it does finish out nice...


Something else I wrote on this topic - every detailer should have a jeweling wax in their arsenal of products.


Jeweling Wax - Definition

[Mike Phillips]

The car Terry Cook built called Scrape, which is now in the Petersen Museum, is the way I met Chip Foose and Christopher Titus back in either 1999 or 2000


Scrape, Terry Cook, Chip Foose, Christoper Titus and the Titanic






Here's the one we did here at Autogeek a few years ago...


1939 Lincoln Zephyr - Swirls Removed - Modeled by Nicole



Yeah if it was me? If the owner wants it to be eye candy for the auction... then machine polish it.

This is the kind of gloss you create from a fresh machine polishing using great abrasive technology...

[Mike Phillips]

.


Hey Bill!


Whatever happened to this project?


Pictures?