downhuman Posted March 6, 2013 Posted March 6, 2013 Thought as the weather was 'ok' that I'd give the 350z a mini detail. Really wanted to use the Flex and properly machine polish her due to various RDS on the bonnet and general light swirling. In the end I corrected the bonnet only and, with the weather looks less decent, put off other machine work until another day. Process: Started with the interior, which looked like this: Removed mats (including boot mat) for shampooing inside the house. Then hoovered the car thoroughly. Wiped down interior plastics with APC and a microfibre, then dressed with Poorboys interior dressing. Cleaned the windows with Autolusso glass cleaner. Cleaned the leather with Zaino leather cleaner, a brush and microfibre cloth.... then, once dry, applied Zaino leather cream to nourish it again. Got inside and checked out the mats - some oil stains on the boot one and general grubbiness on the footwell mats. Got the wet 'n' dry vacuum out and cleaned with Biobrisk. Nicely shifted all the muck Next, time to tackle the engine bay - only a quick clean so no pics. Doused in Autobrite Jaffa, brushed to agitate, then jetwashed off. Now, the outside. This is how it looked at the outset: So, I know not 'awful' as I keep my car clean. But done a 500 mile trip to Crewe over the weekend so paint looking tired and in need of some attention. Snow foamed (Bilt Hamber foam) Left to dwell for 10 mins, then jetwashed to leave: Attacked the wheels with Autobrite wheel cleaner and a wheel woolie (perfect for these wheels) leaving: They need for refurb soon to be 100%, but no bad. Then, to remove any remaining fallout, used Purple Rain: I then cleaned the car using the 2 bucket method and Dodo Supernatural shampoo. Normally I hate this stuff but it is decent at cleaning without any frills, so used some. Dried off using a monster towel leaving this: Looks ok, but I can see the scratches. Hard to photo using an HTC phone, but had a go. Bonnet looks like someone used a wiper blade thing to dry it before :S I used the Flex rotary on the bonnet using Optimum polish and one of their microfibre pads - pics later. Gave up on machining due to time and weather. Really just wanted to see how she handled as I haven't used her before. So, did an IPA wipedown and applied Zaino (my favourite LSP). Used Z5 Pro with Z-FX to accelerate curing. Applied to car and left to cure - so picked up some details ... Exhaust before: Tackled with the classic steel wool and Autosol. Buffed with MF towel. Leaving: Love a shiny milltek Took the opportunity to try something new too: Spray on wheel protection - spray, buff, and allegedly protects wheels - will see if this really happens in the future. Anyway, removed first layer of Zaino, then did another. Once cured I wiped down with Z8. Then applied Zaino tyre dressing too, polished windows etc. These are the afters - not perfect, but am improvement Quote
downhuman Posted March 6, 2013 Author Posted March 6, 2013 Got to love a Zaino reflection shot Thanks for reading Rob Quote
downhuman Posted March 6, 2013 Author Posted March 6, 2013 PS please excuse pic quality - some colours went a bit funky ! Quote
Ceejay29 Posted March 6, 2013 Posted March 6, 2013 Wow! Mirror like finish, extremely tidy, looks lovely. 1 Quote
Shaun1982 Posted March 6, 2013 Posted March 6, 2013 Christ if that's not a full on attempt then god knows what is lol. Looks awesome as it is mate Quote
Louisa911 Posted March 6, 2013 Posted March 6, 2013 Wow, stunning. Black is definitely the most rewarding colour after a good clean up Quote
Arran Posted March 6, 2013 Posted March 6, 2013 Looks great, zaino is great gear I love Z8 after every wash. Makes the paint really pop with a layer of protection aswell However azure blue is the best colour to study after a good detail, the gloss and depth really is something to look at! My neighbour stood there looking at it for ten minutes last weekend Quote
gringo Posted March 6, 2013 Posted March 6, 2013 Fantastic work!!....thanks for giving me something to aspire to! 1 Quote
DoogyRev Posted March 6, 2013 Posted March 6, 2013 Looks great . . when you have some time your more than welcome to pop over to do the truck 1 Quote
LRF4N Posted March 6, 2013 Posted March 6, 2013 Nice work. I glanced at the before pic thinking it was an after pic lol looked in good nick beforehand but very tidy afterwards Can't wait to get the skyline cleaned up. Shame it takes nearly twice as long as the zed 1 Quote
stuarty Posted March 6, 2013 Posted March 6, 2013 Great job, i'd love to learn how to use a buff! Quote
downhuman Posted March 7, 2013 Author Posted March 7, 2013 If you're anywhere near West Sussex I'll show you mate Quote
glrnet Posted March 7, 2013 Posted March 7, 2013 Nice one mate, might take you up on that offer too Quote
downhuman Posted March 7, 2013 Author Posted March 7, 2013 Nice one mate, might take you up on that offer too No probs. Quote
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.