So last night my good friend and NAM member, Monica, brought her '07 MCS for her annual detail. We had tried to get together so many times over the last several months but either rain or our own schedules conflicted. So finally, it all came together and it ran from 10am until 12:30 midnight. And yes, she stayed with me the entire time! What a gal!

So here's her car before washing. It looked pretty good! She's been doing a wonderful maintenance job.

Process was:
Rotary with LC White/LC Orange and Swirl.
PC with LC White and Swirl.
PC with LC White and Amigo.
PC with LC Black and Epic.





Upon closer inspection, you can start to see some of the issues..wheels need cleaning. Lots of brake dust....good sign that she's been driving! And her newly installed Wilwoods! Nice touch!


Paint is hazy..room for improvement




Some water spots and light swirls visible




Rear bumper is hazy


So the detail began with a wash using 10 gallons of Sparkletts Distilled Water and my Nomad Pressure Washer.



Each 3.5 gallon bucket was filled with distilled water as well as the Nomad Pressure Washer.


The super concentrated soap I used...needs less than 1oz for the bucket. If this were a maintenance wash, I would use Mystique but since I'm preparing for polishing, a good cleaner without beautifying properties is what I'm looking for.


After the wash, it was evident the paint only needed spot claying, so the trim and emblems were taped off. I used thin plastic tape to fill the crevices.









The black pinstriping was taped off to prevent polish from sticking to the edges

Filling the gap prevents residue from getting inside the bonnet scoop crevices.



The rubber gaskets need taping too.

The arches has Black Wow so they weren't taped off. I opted to clean them with Pre Wow and do Black Wow afterwards.


Using my lighting rig, the paint looked like this


Using Swirl and a white pad on my rotary buffer, I got the paint clear. I opted to use the orange pad only where necessary to minimize paint loss.

Not totally obvious but on the untouched right hand side of the bright spot you can see it's hazier than the polished left hand side that is far more distinct and sharp. That's what we are striving to achieve. To polish the clear coat so that it reflects light without any aberrations that would detract from optimal reflections and light transmission for maximum color and depth.


Reflections looking pretty good so far for the first pass of polishing



Water spots were dealt with as seen here using Vinegar




Yes much better now


Found some tar on the passenger side door. Goo gone didn't do anything, and neither did most of the chemicals I tried.


Clay bar did the trick with a lot of effort.


For the wonderful English Leather, I used Nourish and a Microfiber round applicator sponge




So here are the final pix...sorry it was midnight..no daylight pix.




















What's not shown:
Polish: Amigo
Wax: Epic
Tires: Hyperdressing
Wheels: Hydro for protection
Door jambs: Hydro
Skirts and arches: PW and BW
Under bonnet cleaned with APC and waxed with Hydro
Engine bay: Hyperdressing

Tools: Makita Rotary Buffer and Porter Cable Random Orbital

 

Great detail, OG! Amazingly, I thought the car looked pretty good in the before pictures (aside from the break dust). But what you guys did was amazing.

I just got my MINI 6 weeks ago. It's the first time I've had a car that I really care about keeping it looking good. Please let me know the next time you're having classes, if you do that sort of thing. I'd hang out for 12 hours too just to see how you work your magic.

 

Thanks! Yep we took the car from a 10 footer to a 2 incher, lol. There was a lot of grease under the bonnet that was also removed. Everytime the owner opened the bonnet her hands got black. No part was left untouched.

I won't be having classes for awhile. The new shop location isn't conducive to classes. It's fine for small private, maybe no larger than 5 persons, but that's about it.

If you want to learn about taking care of your paint, come on by the shop..I'll show you what Prima can do and the best and worst things you can do for your new MINI.

I'm out of town tomorrow for 3 weeks though until after May 19.

Richard

 

Nicely done. Good to see your work with a CR as that is what I have. I feel like I've managed to keep it in pretty good shape for the first year, but I can it is getting close to time for some additional attention. Will definitely refer back to this for hints.

 

Have a great trip, Richard! I'll catch up with you when you get back. June looks like a good month for me to have some free time...

Bon Voyage,
Mark

 

Masterful!

 

Richard, as usual, very well done

Pre-Black-Wow, eh. Must be nice to have the connections to get some of that

Mark

 

Thanks! Hahah it sure is!

 

wow! looks fantasticalized by the OG. nice job.

man, wat's with that hazy dull look before the detail? was that just rain gunk in the air or contaminants from nearby fallout?

 

Thanks! I think this picture says it pretty well. Look at how the surface imperfections affect the reflection of the light bulb. The haze is a combination of light scratches and surface impurities. Hit that with a stronger light such as the sun and a larger area looks hazy and diffuse. Compare that to the next picture where the same area was polished with Swirl.

 

yah, looks high definition in the 2nd pict.

 

Really looks great! Thanks for all the before and after pictures

 

Very nice.

I hope I can keep mine looking good. I wash every week and use all Prima products on it. I really like em. I was able to experiment on my wifes car with other products and have come to the conclustion that Prima works best.

Regards,

Pat

 

Richard, that is stunning!!!

Do you make house calls, to Canada

Just a couple of questions, what is the white and blue tape that you use for masking?

 

Of course I do!! $$ talks.
Thanks for the kind words. The blue tape is just 3M/Scotch blue painters tape, medium tack. Available at places like Target, Home Depot, Lowes, etc..

The white tape is proprietary...something that isn't readily available as it was used in another industry that I'm repurposing.

Richard

 

that's just packing tape for Octane, no?

 

Shhhhhhhhhh!! No really, it's special.
But you're right, it was used for packaging in its previous life, just not packing packages.

 

Looks great - What does this sort of session co$t?

 

<= in his sig.

 

Although I suspect eh fuel from FL to CA and back might be a bit pricey.

 

Last time I flew to Florida was around Thanksgiving and it cost less than $400 for a flight. Pay my flight and fee, and I'll bring my tools and spend a day, lol.

 

Now that's an offer! I just checked and round trip flights LAX-Orlando can be had for less than 300 at the moment - of course, that's in coach, not up front as your recent travels have allowed you!

 

Great writeup OG, like the white tape! I'm saving up for a new vert, can't decide on color. After this writeup CR is back on the list.

 

Haha yeah,the airlines spoiled me, I gotta travel biz class at least,
Thanks! Yes, CR is a great color! Cool on the new vert...how long do you think it will be??

 

OG why banana gloss on the side skirts and as used on the rest of the car?