Detailed: 2003 Chevrolet Corvette Coupe - Anniversary Red Metallic

Marc08EX

New member
Wheels/Tires:
Sonax Full Effect Wheel Cleaner and Meguiar's Deep Crystal on wheels
Meguiar's APC on tires
Meguiar's Hyper Dressing on tires
EZ Detail brush for the barrels

Wash:
Gilmour Foam Gun
Meguiar's Wash and Wax
Meguiar's Microfiber Wash Mitt

Clay:
Meguiar's OTC Clay
Meguiar's Last Touch

Paint Correction:
Flex 3401 VRG
Meguiar's G100 / 3.5" and 5" LC Backing Plates
Meguiar's M105 / LC Orange Pads
Meguiar's M205 / LC Black Pads
Craftsman 500W Halogen Lights

LSP:
Menzerna Powerlock / LC Blue Pad

Interior:
Meguiar's Quik Interior Detailer

Exhaust:
Meguiar's NXT Metal Polish

This car was immaculate. Upon arrival, the car already looked clean and shiny. I inspected the paint and the swirl marks were very minimal. The clay barely picked up any contaminants in the paint. Imagine, the car only had 7500 miles. The interior pretty much looked brand new. I was happy knowing that this car won't require as much work. Boy I was wrong LOL!

This was a mobile job so I wasn't able to take as much pictures. I don't know why but the camera wasn't picking up the swirl marks and my 50/50 shots to show the difference. Also, I wanted to try not to waste time and just get on with detailing.

Wash:

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I completely forgot to take pictures while foaming the car!!! :(


After claying the car, I performed an IPA wipe down to see the true condition of the paint. More swirls showed up but it wasn't as bad. There were a couple of bad spots. It looked like someone dragged an object over the paint on some areas. Overall, the paint was in great shape and I was excited. Here are some pictures of the swirls I was dealing with.

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I knew that corvette's clear coats are HARD. I went ahead and used M105 right off the bat. One some areas, I even had to hit the paint 2-3 times!!! There were a lot of deep RIDS that required wetsanding but I wasn't going to do that without a paint thickness guage. Those RIDS were annoying the heck out of me! Anyway, here are some 50/50 shots that were worth posting. Most of the pictures I took didn't really show the difference because the paint was flushing the light out...

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After hitting the car with M105, I used M205 to further refine the paint and bring it up to its full potential. The difference was minimal but with a keen eye, you can tell that the paint was more vibrant. The pearl effect was literally jumping out at you. Here are some pictures after doing a 2 step polish. Keep in mind this doesn't have a coat of wax yet.

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Sealant being applied and drying:

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Here are some photos of the car after removing the sealant. I was amazed at how it turned out. The reflections were crisp and clear. The shine was amazing. Too bad I finished the detail at night so there are no sun shots yet.

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Photoshoot:

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Approximate time: 14-15 Hours. Not so bad for a Vette.
Location: Phoenix, AZ

What do you guys think? Opinions, comments and criticisms are welcome! The owner was very thrilled when he first saw his car.
 
Damn, Marc! That Vette has tons of gloss to it and looks dipped in candy! :drool:
Fantastic job, man!:yourrock
 
Marc -

This is absolutely beautiful work ! It was clean but not up to good Detailer standards before you worked your magic on it - there is no cleaner Corvette in the State of Arizona I bet !
Your Flex 3401VRG got a work out ! Excellent work, presentation, and results !
Thanks for sharing !
Dan F
 
That C5 was a bit rough around the edges and it deserved a little sprucing up to restore it like you did.. A candy apple red is one of those colors that respond very well in the right hands using the right products...........and this one did!!

Nice turn around Mark! :bigups
 
Awesome work Marc! I absolutely love this color and it looks amazing in the sun!


This pic says it all! :bigups

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This is my favorite shot. Amazing works and keep them coming.

Thank you for the kind words, agentxc! This car was definitely a pleasure to work on.

Damn, Marc! That Vette has tons of gloss to it and looks dipped in candy! :drool:
Fantastic job, man!:yourrock

Thank you so much, Mike! I appreciate the compliments! The red came out fantastic IMO.

Marc -

This is absolutely beautiful work ! It was clean but not up to good Detailer standards before you worked your magic on it - there is no cleaner Corvette in the State of Arizona I bet !
Your Flex 3401VRG got a work out ! Excellent work, presentation, and results !
Thanks for sharing !
Dan F

Thanks a lot, Dan! I appreciate the compliments! I love my Flex 3401 no doubt! I'm glad to hear you enjoyed the write-up.

That looks amazing, Marc! Nicely done, I love the way that color responds when properly polished out.

Thank you so much, Charlie! I appreciate the kind words really. Red is my favorite color to polish. The outcome is always fantastic when done properly.

Great job Marc. :drool::drool:

Thanks a lot, Pat! I wish it was my own car LOL!

That C5 was a bit rough around the edges and it deserved a little sprucing up to restore it like you did.. A candy apple red is one of those colors that respond very well in the right hands using the right products...........and this one did!!

Nice turn around Mark! :bigups

Thank you, BobbyG!! I appreciate the compliments. The owner was indeed happy of the results.

Looks great now. The paint appears a foot deep.

Thanks, Ron!

Awesome work Marc! I absolutely love this color and it looks amazing in the sun!


This pic says it all! :bigups

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Thank you so much Chad!! Your compliment means a lot coming from you man!!! I wish I was as good as you!

I loved working with this car and its color. It came out amazing.

Hope all is well with you bro!
 
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