Hello everyone. Today I am posting a detail that I did awhile ago but is worthy of another look. It was in the worst condition that I have ever worked on at that point in time and probably even to this day. Thankfully it was a 1996 Toyota Corolla and not a Suburban or something. The car was trashed and abused during its life of 184,000 miles. The detail was spread out over two days with several hours each day. I put less than 6 hours into the car and the results were very dramatic. I surely could have spent another 6 hours sanding and polishing but sadly the owner wouldn’t notice and the car would probably return to the condition it was in before. Exterior Process: Wash Clay Optimum Hyper Compound, rotary @ 1200-1500 RPMs, LC 7.5” orange light cut pad Optimum Polish, rotary @ 1200-1500, LC 7.5” white polishing pad Wolfgang Sealant, PC @ speed 3, LC 7.5” blue finishing pad Let’s start off with the interior. I did the interior first to get it out of the way on day 1 after washing the vehicle. The owner was more interested in getting the interior cleaned than the exterior, which is funny because that usually contradicts my feelings. I would much rather have a perfect exterior than a clean interior but you have to satisfy the customer. The owner found ants in the vehicle so the owner decided to spray some liquid ant deterrent inside the vents … there was a coating of the stuff everywhere on the dash with a nice thick layer of dust and dirt. Very nasty indeed! All cleaned up using APC diluted as a cleaner and topped with Poorboy’s Natural Look: Before, not so bad right? Wrong! Heavy marring and deep scratches on the trunk: Poor paint blending: After the full sun inspection it was time for the halogens. For once a vehicle looked worse under the halogens than it did in the full sun! There was no shine to the vehicle and it was hard to tell what color it actually was: Out came the Optimum Hyper Compound (original), a Lake Country 7.5” orange light cut pad and a HF rotary. After a pass here were the results: Some of the deeper RIDS remained since only wet sanding would have removed them, which wouldn’t have been worth it for this vehicle (184,000 miles … ): You can even see the metal flake : And some side by side before and after shots: And the fender, wheel well, wheels and tires. The wheels (I mean hub caps) were a major PITA. The brake dust was embedded into the plastic and was virtually impossible to remove. I tried Eagle One Wheel and Tire cleaner but that only put a dent in it. Next I tried clay and KAIO to limited progress. Finally I used Poorboy’s ProPolish and a terry cloth towel and was finally, slowly removing the brake dust. The wheel wells were scrubbed and dressed with NoTouch tire dressing.
Great job. I always think the most impressive turnarounds are on the older cars. You did fine work on that one!
Thanks everyone! I do agree that the results from older, trashed vehicles are much more satisfying than working on newer cars. It's just a matter of getting the owners to understand that the car is horrible and should pay you $$ to fix it ... I just wish M105 were available back then, that would have made life a lot easier . Just for kicks, here is a 99? Toyota Avalon that wasn't much better that received almost the same treatment I believe:
I like 7.5" pads for a few reasons. First of all, I like 7.5" pads because the backing plate is completely surrounded by the pad: Secondly, I was using a rotary and some believe that the larger the pad = the more it corrects. I have used 7.5" pads plenty of times with a PC and have gotten nice results as well. Because of their nature, the backing of the pads are essentially molded into the pad making them last for a very long time. I have had my pads for 2-3 years and they are still in very good condition. I don't have any of the new CCS variable contour 7.5" pads though. Also, The ones that are rounded aren't very friendly via rotary either. Most of the ones I have are concaved but half way in it is flat and there is a 'pocket' to the middle of the pad, which makes them easier to control via rotary. 7.5" pads are a tad large to use via DA so I have been trying to get LC to make a pad slightly smaller, with the same design. If they do so, those pads will outlast any other pad on the market. A 6.5" total OD with a 5" BP and a 5" total OD pad with a 3.75 - 4 " BP would be ideal, IMO. I'm sure they would cost more that comparable pads but they'd surely be worth it. Here are the ones I like the best: Compared to the new CCS curved ones ...
