My latest detail: 1999 Corolla SSR2.5 + EX

tkr128

tkr128

New member
I've been neglecting the other cars since I got my own car, so I thought it was about time to give the Corolla some attention. The last time I washed it was about 3 months ago.



Exterior got:

- P21S wash, APC+ in wheel wells and undercarriage

- Claymagic

- SSR2.5 with a yellow cutting pad

- EX

- Tires got Bold n Brite, Windows got AIO and Z2 (except the windshield, that only got AIO), and the hubcaps got Z2. Light housings were polished with Professional Polish.



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There was some really bad damage on the hood from tree sap. That's what I get for not washing it for 3 months. I made multiple passes with SSR2.5 and a cutting pad before getting it down to an acceptable level.



The whole interior was cleaned with Meguair's new Detailer APC, diluted 1:10. This stuff is awesome! It smells better than APC+ and foams up easily when using a brush. Cleaning power is excellent. 1Z Tiefenpflegar was used to treat the interior panels.



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And...my first engine detail! In the 5 years we've had the car, the engine has never been cleaned. I used APC+ 1:1 with a brush on everything and finished off with Engine Kote. EK is very interesting stuff, It did a good job, but I'm not sure how I like spraying it, I can't get an even coat on everything.



Before:

enginebefore2.jpg




After:

engineafter2.jpg
 
Buick_guy said:
Are those fricken headers on that car?!?! Why the hell would you put headers on a Corolla?



Looks great btw :D
Click to expand...





Technically it would be a "header"...singular...only one of them.

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Car looks great!



Is that your daily driver? What ratio of APC+ did you use for the wheel wells? Do you like it better than a dedicated rim/tire cleaner?
 
Thanks for the compliments everybody! They really mean a lot!



I'm hoping to top it off with either S100 or Natty's. Any suggestions on which one to use?



Buick_guy: Like SpoiledMan said, they're for the intake. Toyota calls them "Intake Manifold Runners". Why would someone put "headers" on a Corolla? Same reason someone would do it on a different car.



GSRstilez: It's my mom's car (she likes small cars for some reason). Since she doesn't drive it much, my dad and I use it to commute cause it gets great mileage and barely has over 35k miles on it. I use 1:2 APC+, it's a bit strong, but really works well at getting stuff clean. A brush is really necessary though since it still leaves behind a bit of road film if not scrubbed. I still prefer a dedicated wheel cleaner on filthy wheels, but usually just go with a car wash soap on decent wheels.
 
I've had occasion to top AIO with S100 on a silver car and the results were a very wet looking silver. Never used Natty's but it's been getting favorable recent comments.
 
maybe you can try both S100 and Natty's on the hood, and see which one you like better?



nice job, i especially like the 2nd picture, the silver really shines. and the engine, nice clean up. are the valve covers stained? any idea how to clean it up?



and those "Intake Manifold Runners" look cool. :cool:
 
Thanks for the suggestions and compliments! I really appreciate the help.



hirosh: The "valve cover" is metal and I'm not sure if it's stained or not. I scrubbed it forever trying to get it off. Some metal polish might take it off, I'll have to try. Good eye for noticing that!
 
Hmmm...thanks for clearing that up....I just was thinking in terms of power, since I Think some back pressure is good for small output engines....I know that on the LS regals, headers just screw up the bottom end, and the top end. Just not enough pressure for some reason....



But thanks for clearing that up either way.
 
heh heh....i feel bad about pointing that out on an otherwise really nice job. :o is APC similar to simple green? i wonder if simple green might work? but if you do find something that does clean it up, can you let us know? thanks! :)
 
Thanks again everybody!



Buick_guy: No problem! Actually, a lot of people think that when they see the engine of a Corolla for the first time.



Hirosh: It's no problem! Yup, APC+ is a lot like Simple Green though I might give it a try the next time around. It was my first time cleaning an engine bay, so I might of been overly cautious.
 
are the "valve covers" aluminum? i've read Simple Green may discolor aluminum. for my Mach1, i believe the engine is aluminum, so i might have to find something else. :(
 
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