THE OFFICIAL AutoLavish Ongoing Detail Thread - Updated every few days with new cars!

[Jacob@AutoLavish]

THE OFFICIAL AutoLavish Ongoing Detail Thread - UPDATED with Black VW CC

We posted this up on another forum to see how people responded. So far so good, so lets repeat the thread here since there will be some sick cars within I'm sure you will all enjoy.

We have lots of cars to post up for you guys to read about, but not all can be "feature" cars due to factors such as time constraints, after photos not good enough, missing pictures os steps, or just nothing extra special to write about, etc. But these cars still deserve their mention and presentation, and for this we present:


The Official AutoLavish Ongoing Detail Thread! opcorn:



This thread will get updated each time we have another car to post, so you will want to check in from time to time and get the latest. We will, of course, continue to provide our typical "featured" detailed write-ups posted on a quasi-weekly basis, as we have so far. But this thread will hopefully let us catch up!

So without further ado, lets get this going!


First off, links to previous write-ups on Motown Muscle just to have them all in one place:

'87 Grand National

'29 Ford Roadster

'07 BMW 135i

2010 Camaro brand new

2007 Porsche 996 Turbo

2010 Camaro SS

Porsche 996 Ruf RTurbo in PR

BMW X5 and Chrysler T&C

PR Detailing Trip Intro Thread

2006 Cadilac CTS-V"]2006 Cadilac CTS-V

2007 Jeep Wrangler

2007 Porsche 997

2001 Lincoln Continental

2003 Mitsubishi Evo 8

1995 Porsche RS CS Race Car

2004 Honda S2000 - Marc's car gets plenty of love

 

[Jacob@AutoLavish]

2007 Chevrolet Blazer SS


We don't do many SUVs. Twice as much time as a normal sized car, the need for ladders and climbing stuff, and typical history of swirl-o-matic car washes ensure clients get sticker shock when they ask for estimates. So yeah, we don't get to do many.

But every once in awhile there is an SUV that means a great deal to it's owner. A Blazer SS is second only to the Jeep SRT-8 in speed (and not by much), but is much more capable as an SUV (can tow a trailer). This particular was purchased used with low miles and in great shape. The owner, a loyal customer, contacted us to make it spiffy.

After compounding (still needs refining):

Fender done, door not done:

Final wash:

Pulling oils from polish residue:

Only a few Afters, it was already dark:

Thanks for reading!

 

[Jacob@AutoLavish]

1972 Oldsmobile 442 Convertible


This vehicle had been freshened up sometime in the later 80's with a new paint job and new soft-top. Overall the vehicle is in great shape. It runs very well and very often. Almost always top down, the white vinyl needed some special cleaning. The paint was in poor condition, not appropriate for the vehicle. It had solvent and contamination defects, severe spider-webbing and cracking, and the painters had failed to thoroughly wet-sand after spraying. Some of the trim was held on by hope alone, and much of it (all original trim) had lost its luster through the years. Our goal was to revive the vehicle as much as possible and get it ready for Summer Time.

http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/1972%20Oldsmobile%20442%20Convertible%20-%20April%202010/DSC04268.jpg[img]

[img]http://i485.photobucket.com/albums/rr220/jacobbunyan/1972%20Oldsmobile%20442%20Convertible%20-%20April%202010/DSC04270.jpg

The vehicle has significant orange peel and defects from the latest re-paint. It also had lots of wax residue cemented into crevices:

Marks on most sharp edges:

White vinyl top:

The paint was a dual stage, and showed severe RIDS.

Some areas had thin paint (for a re-paint)...

Right next to areas with thicker paint.

This means the finish is inconsistent and unpredictable, and care must be taken to not remove too much clear.

Fenders:

Fiberglass hood:

Wheels were cleaned first:

Getting to work on the white top:

Proceeding to wash:

Claying:

Pretty clean!

Ready to polish:

Before:

After combo one:

PC DA did meh:

Flex DA did a little better:

PFW pad improved:

Some RIDS remain, but overall the paint showed a great improvement:

You can see we were trying to keep our selection in the DA-style tool family. With delicate paint you do not want the torque of the rotary to rip off and overheat segments of paint that are not as strong as they should be. Using a DA, we assured no delaminating would occur. As the pad selection so far was not working to our expectations, we decided to go with Surbuf pads to finish down better than the FPW:

During the final wash we would tackle some areas that needed further attention:

As the sun encroached the garage, we danced with the washing to keep the suds under shade. The rear half was washed first. Then the car was turned around to wash the front:

 

[Jacob@AutoLavish]

Afters:

Thanks for reading!

 

[foncarelli]

Great work. I wish you werent so far away.

 

[Jacob@AutoLavish]

Great work. I wish you werent so far away.

Thanks! We aren't THAT far away

 

[Jacob@AutoLavish]

A 2010 Passatt CC in metallic black, with just 6200 miles. All work was performed inside the garage over night, so no sun pics, sorry.

Wheels were in great shape, of course, new car...

Water etching all over the vehicle:

Interior needed a light cleaning:

Ready to get started:

Engine needed cleaning:

And door jambs:

Engine gets rinsed:

Wheel cleaner dwelling:

Rinsing off grime:

Foamy bath:

Clay after a small segment of hood:

... and after a few other panels:

Tailpipes could use some brightening up:

Polishing: First test with PO85RD/white standard:

Not bad:

But still some RIDS:

Next polish:

Not bad:

RIDS are gone:

Inspecting further for clarity:

Still, could we do better?

Nice metallic coming through:

Ended up doing a 2-step polish. Here we are at the first phase:

Rear window trim, B-pillars, etc were straight up piano black. I would like to have this finish on the entire car!

Working the second stage of polishing:

The paint protection film was polished as well, and provided a big leap in clarity and depth of color:

Before:

After:

Night wash:

Aquapel:

Sealant setting:

... and put to sleep for the night:

FInal touches in the engine bay:

Afters:

Enzo's cameo:

Thanks for looking:

 

[Zarken]

This is a great Idea. You may want to link some of your other posts that were not part of the ongoing list here as well. That way they are represented correctly. Or you could just repost them here. But I think a link to them would be just as good. Mailnly for archivale data. Man you guys do some great work. One day I will have a car worthy of your cleaning godliness.

 

[mo_sport]

i use to detail and did it for 5 years and never saw anyone use tape to section off areas or use a paint gauge before details. don't really see the purpose of either practice, seems like more of a hindrance. and i'm looking at this thru the eyes of someone who has detailed and also works in the collision industry with paints.

 

[Jacob@AutoLavish]

i use to detail and did it for 5 years and never saw anyone use tape to section off areas or use a paint gauge before details. don't really see the purpose of either practice, seems like more of a hindrance. and i'm looking at this thru the eyes of someone who has detailed and also works in the collision industry with paints.

Sorry buddy, not the same kind of work. The right info = making the right decisions. When the cars are too valuable to "repair", there is no other way than to be well equipped and informed before taking anything that could damage a customer's car. This is the way we see it. The owners have more peace of mind. Not to say good detailers couldn't go years mistake-free on all sorts of expensive cars without a paint gauge or protecting delicate areas, but we will not. Simply not the way we work. No sense in having the largest selection of polishes and product combinations in Michigan, working to results and not to a clock, doing it right and light, and skimp out to save a few minutes or effort on small stuff like taping or measuring paint. It all reflects the level of commitment towards the customer's property.

 

[mo_sport]

whatever floats your boat kid, i've just never seen it happen with anyone who can handle a wheel. ive seen some kids fuck shit up before and that would prob warrant tape.

not sure how you say its diffrent, prior to working in the collision indusrty i worked in detailing in which i dealt with many exotic high end cars along with working for a large auto execs collection which had a veyron, many ferraris and other high end cars.

 

[Golden]

Ignore mo_sport. He is just here to argue with people. Obviously he's never heard of a test spot or anything.

I've been following the work that you and Marc do, and it's phenomenal. About the best in the game IMO. The vehicles look great, as always. BTW, is that your white Boulevard? If so....any more pics of it?

 

[Stang04GT]

Awesome work, what type of soap sprayer and soap do you use?

 

[orangejuiced86]

whatever floats your boat kid, i've just never seen it happen with anyone who can handle a wheel. ive seen some kids fuck shit up before and that would prob warrant tape.

not sure how you say its diffrent, prior to working in the collision indusrty i worked in detailing in which i dealt with many exotic high end cars along with working for a large auto execs collection which had a veyron, many ferraris and other high end cars.

whats your point? If you are just going to try and trash up his thread GET THE FUCK OUT!

 

[mo_sport]

just asking, cause everyone seems to think he is doing it the only way. i understand he has his own quirks weather right or wrong. but this isn't the only way and ive seen work as good or better without all the tape and paint gauges

 

[Mclovin]

i use to detail and did it for 5 years and never saw anyone use tape to section off areas or use a paint gauge before details. don't really see the purpose of either practice, seems like more of a hindrance. and i'm looking at this thru the eyes of someone who has detailed and also works in the collision industry with paints.

Really ?? Maybe that's why these guys pull serious bank for their detail jobs.. or have some of the most high end clients.. OR MAYBE it's why they've been pulled out of the country to detail rides over there..


Yes you're absolutely right fuck these guys they have no idea what they're doing! :banstick::banstick:





PS guys keep up the great work !

 

[orangejuiced86]

just asking, cause everyone seems to think he is doing it the only way. i understand he has his own quirks weather right or wrong. but this isn't the only way and ive seen work as good or better without all the tape and paint gauges

There you go again, lol! Sometimes keeping your opinion to your self is the best policy. These guys do top notch work. They didnt start this thread talking about how great they were, they are letting their work speak for itself.

 

[Jacob@AutoLavish]

just asking, cause everyone seems to think he is doing it the only way. i understand he has his own quirks weather right or wrong. but this isn't the only way and ive seen work as good or better without all the tape and paint gauges

Understood and agreed.

It is not for everybody. Some people don't care if their pilots use a checklist, or if their surgeons did a proper pre-op. I do, and I expect my clients to. Simple enough.

 

[Jacob@AutoLavish]

Thanks for the support, guys! Greatly appreciated! I got a special "Featured" write up just for you all getting posted in about 10 minutes

 

[FAST93]

i use to detail and did it for 5 years and never saw anyone use tape to section off areas or use a paint gauge before details. don't really see the purpose of either practice, seems like more of a hindrance. and i'm looking at this thru the eyes of someone who has detailed and also works in the collision industry with paints.

Look.....saying you're a detailer because you were a drier at the local quarter car wash is like saying you're a pilot because you've ridden on a plane. Stop being a douche.

Thanks for the thread Jacob!