Check this out! 11-year old car, like new! From drab to fab...

[FlaresideLariat]

Sunday was a blast for me! I decided to detail my 1993 Buick Regal Limited 3800. The car is 11 years old, has had paint repair on the hood several years back, and just got brand new tires put on.

For courtesy, I only am going to post 1 or 2 pictures of each step I did. If you want to see them all, please check them out here. (http://www.meguiarsonline.com/gallery/showgallery.php?cat=500&ppuser=407) I do apologize for some of the quality of the pics; I don't believe I was holding the cam all that steady. Anywho...

Here were my tools, first of all:
http://archive.meguiarsonline.com/gallery/data/500/407CIMG3556-med.JPG
L to R: STP Son of a Gun Tire Foam, NXT Tech Wax, No. 80 Speed Glaze, NXT Car Wash, and then below those are an array of microfibers along with my chamois.
not pictured: Turtle Wax Wheel Spray

BEFORE:

http://archive.meguiarsonline.com/gallery/data/500/407CIMG3557-med.JPG
http://archive.meguiarsonline.com/gallery/data/500/407CIMG3558-med.JPG

Step 1- Wash
I used NXT Car Wash for this, along with the 2-bucket method. Although 1 of my buckets is way smaller than the other 5-gallon, so it kinda defeats the purpose. I sprayed the car with a STREAM of water to rinse all the soap off.

Step 2- Clay
I did not dry the car before I clayed it. I took my Meguiar's aggressive clay burgundy bar D6200, and cut it in half. I placed one half, after squirting with a few mists of Quik Detailer, in a ziploc baggie. The other I did the same, but went to work.
http://archive.meguiarsonline.com/gallery/data/500/407CIMG3563-med.JPG
I sprayed the area I worked with, with Quik Detailer. When I felt it kinda stuck, I spritzed some more QD to lubricate it well, and went back and forth on each section a few times.
I put no force on the clay, but let it do its on thing. I heard a slight clicking sound (tx, deadman98 ;) ) so I knew the clay was working to get the deep dark contaminants out. A few times I came across debris in the paint that would sort of 'jarr' the clay, and scratch it. I avoided these areas by claying around them. As to how to remove them- I do not know thus far. Out of all the steps, claying took the longest. I did every part of the car, except the rocker panels and wheels. There was some spots on the windows I removed, but I didn't go all out on them. I wiped with a 100% microfiber towel.

Step 3- Re-wash
I re-washed the car with NXT Car Wash to get all the remaining clay off and to better prepare it for polishing. This time I scrubbed the wheels too, and applied the wheel spray and tire foam. The water rolled off great.
http://archive.meguiarsonline.com/gallery/data/500/407CIMG3571-med.JPG

Step 4- Polish
Now the time had come to use the PC! I was excited! :D I used a white polishing pad from Classic Motoring Accessories (CMA) on my Porter Cable 7424. This was the first time it has ever been used! I spritzed it about 3 times with QD, then applied No. 80 Speed Glaze into a big thick X on the pad. Here are the before and after pics of the trunk:

Before-
http://archive.meguiarsonline.com/gallery/data/500/407CIMG3575-med.JPG

After-
http://archive.meguiarsonline.com/gallery/data/500/407CIMG3576-med.JPG

I was amazed at the results from polishing! It made me say whoa, :coolgleam The paint felt smooth from the clay, but felt even smoother from the polish!

I polished each section with the PC on speed 5, going from left to right. I tried not to create swirls. I wiped down each section with a 100% microfiber towel, and a regular baby towel I found in the closet. Seemed to work well!

Step 5- Wax
Now was time to try out NXT Tech Wax. By now it was getting rather dark, but I didn't stop :) I used a 'grey' (black) finishing pad. I put the wax on the pad in a thin circle around the edges. BTW, I re-applied lightly, the No. 80 and the wax when the pad seemed to be drying out, and so sometimes I would just spray them with QD, and that seemed to do the trick. I set the PC on speed 3.5, and passed over each section 2 or 3 times, as it went on very easy, without much effort at all.
Waiting for the wax to dry (approx 15 min):
http://archive.meguiarsonline.com/gallery/data/500/407CIMG3588-med.JPG
After waxing, and drying with a baby towel:
http://archive.meguiarsonline.com/gallery/data/500/407CIMG3609-med.JPG
I was going to use my bonnet, but it was kinda getting around 9:30 pm so I did it by hand.
The surface felt like glass!!

Step 6- Taking more pics!
I was eager to get some day shots, so around 7:30 pm I quick took some pics. Again, sorry they are kinda fuzzy.
http://archive.meguiarsonline.com/gallery/data/500/407CIMG3617-med.JPG

Isn't it great?! I am real proud of myself for this being my first time! I would really like you to visit my gallery and check out some of the reflection shots! Let me know what you guys think! Opinions wanted! It took me about 7 hours.

Overall, it was a blast. The PC hooked me; no more doing-it-by-hand for me!

[scrub]

Very nice!! You should be proud of your work. The speed glaze before and after pics are phenomenal! What a difference.

Congrats.

[FlaresideLariat]

Thanks so much! :)


Question...
All sections of the car had a nice shine in them, except for the hood, really. It just appeared to be more 'hazy' than the other parts, even though the same treatment was done to it.

:confused:

[Mike Phillips]

Originally posted by FlaresideLariat
Thanks so much! :)


Question...
All sections of the car had a nice shine in them, except for the hood, really. It just appeared to be more 'hazy' than the other parts, even though the same treatment was done to it.

:confused:

I could be the reason the hood didn't come out the same way the rest of the panels did is because of engine heat over time.

I've seen plenty of cars where the paint has failed on the hood, but no where else because of engine heat. The parents of a high school friend of mine owned a Plymouth Volare Station Wagon where on half of the hood failed while the other half always looked pretty good. Upon opening the hood, the side that failed was the side with the exhaust manifold?

Coincidence? Maybe. Higher temperatures over time without any regular paint care? A good possibility. These were the type of people that depended upon the rain to wash the car.

Mike

[FlaresideLariat]

Mike,

That seems like a reasonable explanation. I was wondering if it was something I might have done wrong. Is there any way to buff that to a clear shine...?

From your opinion, what do you think of my work?

Much thanks,,
FL

[Rusty Bumper]

Congratulations Flareside!....I thought you did a great job for your 1st time!

I've never used #80 yet...How did it feel on the 5 setting? Did it setup fast, or could you work it in a good while?

[FlaresideLariat]

Originally posted by Rusty Bumper
Congratulations Flareside!....I thought you did a great job for your 1st time!

I've never used #80 yet...How did it feel on the 5 setting? Did it setup fast, or could you work it in a good while?

Thank you :)

I consider myself no expert but I'll try my best to answer your question. The PC felt ticklish at first on the 5 setting, lol, but it was strong enough to work in and not too strong as to be out of control. I could work it in pretty good... especially when I just applied the 80 to the pad. After I worked on a section or two, it kinda looked faded so I either spritzed the pad with QD and it brought out more of the polish, OR I added tiny dots of more of the polish, and went from there. I always kept misting the pad w/ QD though.

[f1guy68]

Great Job Flareside.....:xyxthumbs

That's a very good write up and an excellent job for your first time!



:db:

[FlaresideLariat]

Originally posted by f1guy68
Great Job Flareside.....:xyxthumbs

That's a very good write up and an excellent job for your first time!



:db:

Thanks :) :)