I was invited up to Bristol VA by my good friend David Purser of Unique Mobile Detailing to help work on this Ferrari 458 Italia. Surprisingly, with only 600 miles on the car, these cars do not get delivered to the customer in perfect condition. There were lots of paint defects and sand scratches and buffer trails all over the car. This car received a full paint correction and a quick interior clean up, so with that being said, let's get this write up going.
We pulled the car outside to see what exactly we were working with. In these pics you can see all of the holograms and buffer trails not only on the black, but you can see them on the while also.
buffer trails on the roof
also on and around the doors
So for the Wash process, it's always good to start with cleaning the wheels first. This will help prevent water from just setting on the paint surface increasing the chances of causing water spots on the paint and glass.
First the wheels were pre-rinsed to dislodge and loose debris
Then we Used some Sonax Full Effect wheel cleaner to clean the wheels. This is a pH balanced wheel cleaner that is safe for all types of wheels and brakes and when sprayed on the wheels, it will activate with the iron particles and turn to a red color letting you know it is working.
after the wheel cleaner was left to dwell for a few minutes, we then agitated them with various wheel brushes such as the EZ detail brush and the Swissvax brush to get deep into the wheels and all the tight areas.
Next we pre-rinsed the car down making sure that all loose debris were knocked off, this helps make sure your not grinding anything into the paint when washing.
as you can tell from the water beading, there was some type of protection on the car, so it is a important step to remove all of this, so we will get a Tru correction later when the car is buffed on.
To strip the protection off of the car, we used a mixture of Dawn Ultra concentrate and some Degreaser mixed in the Foam canon.
Then all crevices were agitated
Then the car was washed using 100% sheep skin wash mitts and the two bucket method with Grit Guards in the each bucket.
Then the car was rinsed
but beading was still there, So we gave it one more foam bath with extra foam this time letting it dwell for a short time
This time we got what we were looking for, no water beading
While David was using the Metro Air Force Blaster to get all of the water out of the cracks and crevices, I dried off the car using a micro fiber towel.
Next we clayed the car using Clay Magic Blue Fine Clay
Then we began to tape it up
Just to make sure the paint was safe and thick enough to buff on, we took Paint thickness measurements all over the car, The average was about 9mils thick all over. which let us know we had plenty of room to work with.
Now that she is all taped up, we can began
here are some of the swirls and defects found using our Brinkmans Swirl finder light.
Testing out the new Meguiars DA system (Which worked amazingly)
great correction was achieved
For the Correction process, I used the Griot's 6in DA with the Meguiars DA system and David chose the Flex 3401.
here are some more of the buffer trails and holograms that came from the factory....
here is a hard to see 50/50 shot
and here it is after the cutting disc and D300
we had the music going and we were getting in the zone!
Here are some sand scratches left behind from the factory. These were on the rear lower side skirt on the passenger side.
Looks great. I can't believe the owner is ok with Duplicolor touch up on his brand new Ferrari, though. He should really have insisted that the dealer repair that properly, IMO!
I'd have told the owner to have the dealer fix the paint that flaked on the rear vent with a proper re-spray. Must be under warranty with such a new model, but perhaps the owner did not want to bother and just wanted it done.
Great job!
If that is his garage and all his cars, I can't imagine a better customer to have if he gives you all the work!
For everyone that is freaking out over the touch up paint in the rear vent. The owner just wanted somthing that would make it look better for the time being. The distance that he is away from nearest Ferarri dealer is a great distance. So having them come and pick up the Ferarri in a enclosed trailer for that is just crazy.
