Merc ML/C Class vs worst interior ever!

A

AndyC_1

New member
First up the C Class. Colleague of GF and last cleaned just before Christmas. Car never hand washed by owner - always uses jet wash or automated car wash so hideous amount of marring, esp to bonnet, roof & boot. Only 1 before shot as camera batteries died!



Process;



- wash with Pro Finish shampoo

- clay with erazer polyclay

- wheels with Pro Finish acid free cleaner & clay to remove pitting

- OPT via rotary/DAS orange/1800rpm

- DACP via rotary/DAS green/900rpm

- RMG via PC/Megs yellow

- Megs #21 by hand

- OCW by hand

- tyres/wells TW Wet & Black



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Next up GF's boss's ML. Did this car 5-6 weeks ago but he's just returned from a trip to France with his family and, well, photos speak for themselves really!



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Process on interior;



Vacuum, vacuum & vacuum! Lots of sand and grit everywhere

Autosmart Brisk dry foam to all carpets, spot stain removal via APC+ @ 10:1

Seats with TW Leather Care

All interior plastic with PB NL

Glass inside/out with Megs Pro Glass Cleaner



Afters



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Struggled with a few marks on the hard trim around seats - any ideas?



Exterior - wash process as C Class (but Virosol to wheels as previously sealed), then;



- VMW hand glaze by hand

- OCW by hand

- Z16 to tyres



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Looking good Andy, out of interest though how long did it take you to do the C Class as I notice there are five polishes/sealants on it!



For the stubborn stains I use APC and an interior scrub brush.



Ben
 
Ben - total time for the exterior was around 4 hours. When I last did the car the guy complained (i.e. didn't want to pay, as some scratches were left - he didn't want to pay out for machine polishing!) so I decided to detail the **** out of it this time. The DACP was to remove the hazing left by the cutting pad/OPT and the RMG was to add some wetness to the paint. Still not entirely happy - it really needs a day long session on the paint alone as there's marring like you wouldn't believe from frequent car wash use. Mind you, he's getting a new one shortly I believe with the ceramiclear paint.



Synthetic - you're quite right - latex gloves were hauled out for the interior!
 
[quote name='AndyC_1'] When I last did the car the guy complained (i.e. didn't want to pay, as some scratches were left - he didn't want to pay out for machine polishing!![/QUOTE

I think this is where the education of clients comes in! The 528i I did last week was never going to get back to a really decent condition with the amount off tiime I had on it. I explained this to the client who fully appreciated this, but couldn't really see the defects that I could so it was all OK.



Ben
 
Hi Andy,



Great work again......you're getting to be a "threat" :grinno:



On the hard plastic areas that you had a few stubborn marks...you can try, in extreme cases, a high grit sanding paper, like 4000 grit. Again only in extreme cases as it can also level out any texture on the plastic pieces.



What many people here stateside use are those Mr. Clean scrubbing pads. They are a material, of which I forget the name now, but what you do is wet them or soak them in warm water, squeeze out excess water and scrub the area with or without a cleaner. They work amazingly well at removing heel marks and such on hard plastic trim.



The material can be bought at a great savings from the right places but darn it I can't remember what the material is called!! :wall



Anyway I hope that helps,

Anthony
 
I believe it's made of melamine, which in a non-foam form is incredibly abrasive. You have to be careful with it on surfaces with a sheen. It sure does remove stains, though.
 
Picus said:
I believe it's made of melamine, which in a non-foam form is incredibly abrasive. You have to be careful with it on surfaces with a sheen. It sure does remove stains, though.
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YES :clap: That's it! Man I was racking my brain out for that name, thanks Picus :)



Anthony
 
Very nice work! The paint on both looks terrific. :)



BTW, you could have gone with Optimum and a polishing pad to remove any haze you got using Optimum with a cutting pad. ;)
 
Thanks gents. In no particular order;



G35 - I used RMG to bring some depth & gloss to the paint as it's worked well on dark colours for me before. I like it a lot but that said, I also like hand applying VMW hand glaze - therapy I find :grinno:



Anthony - I'm not worthy but if I could move to the US and get away from this damned British weather I'd be a happy boy! Ruined a GTD40 trackday at Goodwood today (plus at 6' 3" I couldn't even fit in one anyway)



Scott - doh! should have realised to switch pads



Ben - you're quite right mate. I also wanted to make a bit of a point as he'd whinged before!
 
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