The AutoLavish depository: A Living, Continuous Thread

[jlb85]

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, etc. For these car who deserve their mention we present:



The Official AutoLavish Ongoing Detail Thread



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 with all the other worthy details!





First, to serve as a repository, here are links to our other posts on the forum:



Twin Turbo Lamborghini Gallardo



1987 Buick Grand National



1929 Ford Roadster



2008 BMW 135i



2010 Chevrolet Camaro RS



2010 Chevrolet Camaro SS



Porsche 996 Turbo



Cadillac CTS-V



VW Collection



2006 Audi A8L



2009 Porsche 997



Mitsubishi Evo X



Porsche 996 Ruf RTurbo



VW Collections



Second Detailing Trip to Puerto Rico - Intro Thread



Audi RS4



Acura TL



1993 Mazda RX-7



2007 Jeep Wrangler



Ford GT and Lamborghini LP560 - both Twin Turboed!



2007 Porsche 997 Carrera S



Mitsubishi Evo 8



Marc's S2000 gets some love



Mitsubishi Evo 8



2001 Lincoln Continental



Porsche 997 Carrera



Porsche 993 RS CS Race Car







So without further ado, lets get this going!



I will post up a few vehicles done, consecutive, to get this thread "up to date". Then, every few days I will add new ones, and update the title.



Enjoy!

 

[jlb85]

2003 Berlina Black S2000 Detailed by AutoLavish





This was the last car we detailed during the Trip to PR in December 2009. The owner of this vehicle is a talented videographer, and works in the local press. He offered to shot some videos of us working on the car, which turned out great (see them on our YouTube Channel). Marc had returned to Michigan already, so I have few pictures of the process. This also means it would take longer than with both of us, meaning there would be no sun shots after completing the detail.



If you have been following our work in PR, you can probably expect this vehicle to be severely swirled. Berlina Black, need I say more? The paint was in severe shape.





Upon arrival, the car was ready to go. Aresk1 had his cameras up and ready, and a blue screen with ideas of filming stuff for an intro and effects and stuff...

Engine needed some cleaning:

Notice the swirls in the paint:

After an initial wash we proceeded to tape it. Here Aresk1 is setting up the GoPro for some shots...

... while I take paint thickness measurements:

Polishing consisted of a mix of Menzerna Intensive Polish via the Porter Cable 7424 on an orange pad, followed by Menzerna Nano Polish 106 on a white pad, and Menzerna Final Finish PO85RD on a black pad. Polishing would span a few days, as the weather, being nice but unpredictable, did not cooperate. Here are a few shots after the front portion of the vehicle was polished:

The next day available (the following weekend) we took the car to Predator Performance where we would have more space for filming. We worked on an Orange Evo X here at Predator Performance, and they really took care of us. I asked if they would be interested in letting us use the location for filming some How-To Videos, and they agreed.



Here we are setting up the cameras and the tent:

Shots taken during filming:

Engine afters:

 

[jlb85]

(continued S2000 thread)





The sun was gone by the time I finished up, so here are some long exposure shots:

Lights, Camara, Action!

The S2000 next to Predator's Gorgeous Genesis:

Happy owner riding in the cool tropical night:

The next day, Aresk1 took his S2000 to Isla De Cabra (isle of the female goat) for some more shots:

Thanks for looking! We hope you enjoyed it.

 

[jlb85]

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.

 

[jlb85]

(continued Blazer SS)

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!

 

[jlb85]

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:

 

[jlb85]

(continued Olds 442)





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:

 

[jlb85]

(continued Olds 442)





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:

 

[jlb85]

(continued Olds 442)





Afters:

Thanks for reading!

 

[jlb85]

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:

 

[jlb85]

(continued Passat CC)





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:

 

[jlb85]

(continued Passat CC)





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:

 

[jlb85]

Brand New Metallic Black 2010 VW GTi



After working on his fiance's Passat CC (the black manual CC posted above), the owner of this GTi knew what the first thing he would do with the car once he bought it: bring it to us, of course



Straight off the dealer floor, less than 40 miles on the odometer, the owner hands over this stunning black GTi. It is in great shape! This dealer took much better care of the vehicle overall than some other dealers we have seen, but still wiped the car down with, what seems to us, a dirty wet towel. It didn't wreck up the paint too much, but it did its damage. There were a few scratches that needed spot correction, though, probably from the factory or transport.

Fresh, new, almost perfect paint All this was going to need would be a light refining to maximize gloss.

Clean engine FTW:

I love these wheels! Here they are with P21S Gel dwelling, and Marc rinsing:

Yummy foam for the loose stuff:

Random scratch from who knows where:

Marring/scratches from wiping something:

 

[jlb85]

(continued 2010 Golf)





Polishing the gem... here Marc is spot correcting the scratches with the Flex rotary and a 4" white pad, followed by a black pad as an intermediate step:

The rest of the vehicle got burnished with 3M and the Makita:

Final washing prior to sealing:

Wheels getting some Migliore Wheel Sealant we have been testing:

Top of the wheels have been wiped off, sealant is still set on the lower parts. Nice gloss:

Jambs clean and sealed:

Paint getting Menzerna Power-Lock:

Beautiful interior got the 1Z treatment. I love the plaid seats!:

Stunning, deep gloss after the reveal wipe, with some sweating from the very fresh sealant, sorry

 

[jlb85]

(continued 2010 Golf)





Some final pics at Meadowbrook:

Wheels are dirty after 6 miles of Adams Road:

We hope you enjoyed reading!

 

[Deep Gloss Auto Salon]

C00l thread.. great way to get caught up



Great work as always!

 

[Labster]

Amazing work as usual guys. I might have to make a trip up to MI to meet you guys when I visit my buddy at University of Toledo in September/early October.

 

[2007TBSS]

Love the SS polish. I need to get started on my own if everyone else would stop asking me to polish theirs.:waxing::rofl



Haha, I recognized the S2000 from your 2 bucket wash vid. I send that to everyone that asks me how to wash properly. Great video!



BTW, My computer had a heart attack when I opened that first page.:chuckle:

 

[jlb85]

C00l thread.. great way to get caught up



Great work as always!

Thanks Jason!

Amazing work as usual guys. I might have to make a trip up to MI to meet you guys when I visit my buddy at University of Toledo in September/early October.

Thank you, and sure thing! Whenever you plan on being in MI just PM me or Marc

Love the SS polish. I need to get started on my own if everyone else would stop asking me to polish theirs.:waxing::rofl



Haha, I recognized the S2000 from your 2 bucket wash vid. I send that to everyone that asks me how to wash properly. Great video!



BTW, My computer had a heart attack when I opened that first page.:chuckle:

Wow, thanks! I'm glad the videos are popular! It was the first time doing any video and I was quite nervous, had a few mispronunciations and mixups,



Sorry for the strain on CPU or memory! But I can't promise it won't keep happening



EDIT: I tried opening this thread from tapatalk on my phone, and the thread won. My phone froze and had to be soft-booted. That first page is picture intensive! Sorry!!!

 

[Barry Theal]

This thread is a fine example of the contionious stellar work provided by AutoLavish. Its one thing to do a great job now and then, but when you constantly continue to out perform your last detail like Autolavish has been. Its a true showing of knowledge, passion, desire. Outstanding!