Spent time with an GT-R (120 pics)
 

Hi guys, I know it's no 370 but I thought you guys might enjoy seeing some godzilla eye candy.

Anyway I honestly don't know how to start this so let's just get straight into it.

So I was contacted initially for advice on how to deal with the swirls with the Porter Cable, Optimum Polishes, and some Lake Country Pads but along the conversation when I mentioned how long it would take we just decided that I would take it on.

Upon the GT-Rs arrival I had a chance to properly inspect the paint with my Sun Gun. At first in my mind I honestly thought that just a 1 step or 2 step polish at the most would be needed but taking a closer shocked look I realized that this was gonna need a full paint correction.

Anyway, here we go hopefully you guys enjoy the pics and possibly catch some tips.



Lets start with the basics. I don't approach a vehicle with anything on my clothing that could accidently scratch the car for example zippers, a belt buckle, watch, rings, etc.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...iladsgtr/1.jpg



Got in and backed it out.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...iladsgtr/3.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...iladsgtr/2.jpg



And here she is.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...iladsgtr/4.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...iladsgtr/5.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...iladsgtr/6.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...iladsgtr/7.jpg



My routine is to start with the wheels and engine generally because if you have already washed the car and then have to do either you will get the car dirty all over again.

Sprayed p21s Wheel Gel on the rims and tires. What's great about this wheel cleaner is it is non-acidic, meaning if you got ceramic brakes they won't damage them as say an acid based wheel cleaner would.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...iladsgtr/8.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...iladsgtr/9.jpg

Let those soak and sprayed Meguiars All Purpose Cleaner cut 50/50 with water into the wheel well and let those sit and eat into the grime while I moved onto the engine.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/10.jpg



Engine was not to bad at all just dusty at the most so nothing hardcore here other then a Meguiars All Purpose Cleaner spray, light rinse off, a blow dry with my Chemical Guy's Blow Dryer, and then dressed it with Meguiars Hyper Dressing cut 25/75 water. Turned on the engine and let the engine warm up for about 10 minutes or so.

Before
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/11.jpg

After
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/12.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/13.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/14.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/15.jpg



Now addressed the wheels with my E-Z Brush which is pretty cool cause it can be bent so that you can get it into different places. I really love the way these 2 pics with the E-Z Brush turned out!
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/16.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/17.jpg

Now this is what the rim should look like after using the brush properly.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/18.jpg

Did the rim face with a microfibre mitt solely dedicated for the rims, which I prefer cause on those stubborn spots I can really apply some hard pressure.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/19.jpg



Finally after all of that on to the washing. Chemical Guys Citrus Wash + Gloss was the car soap cut to strip anything that may have been on the car's surface(wax), I forget the ratio to be honest.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/20.jpg

Two Bucket Method. One soapy water the other just water for rinsing so you don't contaminate the soapy water with dirt.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/21.jpg

Started rinsing off the car to wash off as much as I could of any loose debris. Bottom line the less dirt on your car when you start washing means that there will be less dirt that may get potentially dragged on the paint causing swirls.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/22.jpg

Sheepskin wash mitt this time starting with the roof.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/23.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/24.jpg

After each panel or even half a panel you should be rinsing off your mitt in the water only bucket. The reason you do this is because you do not want to be using one bucket and dragging that same dirt filled water all over the paint causing swirls. Common sense and pretty simple no, but surprisingly people don't do it. Also you may have to rinse along as you go cause this will make washing a little longer.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/25.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/26.jpg

Also forgive me for not being able to explain this next part it is just habit now already that I learnt years ago but hopefully someone can cover for me. All panels facing the sky should be done back and forth like in this pic hopefully you can see the pattern of the suds.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/27.jpg

And all side panels should be up and down. The bottom half should be saved for last as usually those sections are the dirtiest.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/28.jpg



Did the final rinse down and dried the car using a waffle weave towel. These towels are far superior to a chamois because of a couple things, they absorb water alot faster, they have these pockets which dirt or dust blown on the car can escape into and not be dragged on the paint, and I could go on and on but you get the point if you have or get one I am sure you can find more things to appreciate about them.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/29.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/30.jpg



Finally finished. Some may think that shines nicely but I am not finished with this car yet.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/31.jpg



Pulled it into my garage and got ready to clay with Riccardo Clay yellow.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/32.jpg

My last bar.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/33.jpg

Now if your planning on claying your own car without any polishing involved and it is not a mild clay like Sonus Green Clay, you are gonna get clay bar marring but general proper clay bar procedure is to avoid the cold. What you can do is have something with high lubricity like Megiuars Last Touch cut 50/50 with warm water to help you out but sometimes it just can't be avoided.

Oh yeah and the reason you clay is because even though you have washed your car there are still tiny debris that get embedded into your clearcoat called surface contaminants that only a clay bar can sheer out. If after you wash your car and run your hand along the paint you will notice that it still feels rough(even new cars that get rail dust from being transported by train) but after a good clay bar only a baby's skin feels more smooth then your paint, honestly.

Started claying and it was not bad at all as expected but as usual some lower parts on the door were a little bad and the whole back end had quite a bit.

Claying the hood.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/34.jpg

Nothing really.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/35.jpg



After the clay barring I want to mask the car with blue painters tape to protect rubber trim from being burnt. I like using two kinds of width.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/36.jpg

It's 3M tape and the product number is 2090 which is medium adhesion, nothing to strong.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/37.jpg

Here are some pics of the masking.

Put the thick tape over the edge of the clear bra.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/38.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/39.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/40.jpg



And now time to measure the paint with a paint thickness gauge for any possible low spots and also to report to the owner if any panels have been repainted(I never thought anything would be repainted here though but just to look out for low spots).
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/41.jpg

Measured the paint in microns which is a thousandth of a millimeter or .001 of a mm. Generally in my experience OEM is 100 to 130 microns.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/42.jpg

Measurements were looking healthy and very consistent around 140 more or less with maybe only 2 or 3 panels showing 130 or 150.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/43.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/44.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/45.jpg

Even though I am only showing one measurement per panel what I am actually doing per panel is doing at least 10 more or less measurements. It's kind of weird but I kind of imagine the paint as a plain and imagine the different grooves of where it is high and low kind of like a field with hills.



Anyway with all the prep work finally out of the way we can now begin polishing. Imagine and no disrespect to anyone but if you go to a hack shop they just wash your car and get straight into polishing, it's kind of scary especially if you prize your car and have to leave it in their hands what is happening to your baby.

So back to things here is what I was pretty much dealing with under 500 watt halogen lighting.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/46.jpg

I went straight into it with Menzerna Super Intensive Polish, a 6.5 orange Lake Country Pad, the Meguiars Solo Backing Plate, and the Makita Rotary.

I used the Zenith Point Technique where 5 beads the size of a skittle were spread out at 600rpm, broken down at 1200rpm, then polished until clear at around 1700rpm. Then back down the scale from 1700rpm to 1500rpm, and then refined at around 1100rpm over a 12 x 18 area.

Here are some before and afters.

Before
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/47.jpg

After
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/48.jpg

A 50/50 shot with the right side polished and the left side not.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/49.jpg

A shot of me polishing.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/50.jpg

Before
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/51.jpg

After
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/52.jpg

Another 50/50
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/53.jpg

Before(this one was bad)
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/54.jpg

After
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/55.jpg

Before
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/56.jpg

After
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/57.jpg

Before(this one was pretty bad to)
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/58.jpg

After
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/59.jpg

Before
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/60.jpg

After
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/61.jpg



So after the cutting stage I also polished the tail lights as they had swirls on them as well but with a forced rotation dual action polisher(the new Flex 3401). Here are some before and afters.

Before
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/62.jpg

After
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/63.jpg

Before
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/64.jpg

After
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/65.jpg



Now after all that was said and done the hard part comes. Chasing all what is called rds or rids random deep scratches or random isolated deep scratches by wetsanding. Now just a 2 step polish will get the paint in the 95% range more or less perfected(which is in my opinion perfectly fine for a daily driver) but deeper stuff will be left behind. How deep the scratches are varies some you can feel with your nail others you can't but with spot wetsanding you can either get them out completely or at the least round off the edges so that the sunlight is dispersed in a way to not make them so noticeable or not noticeable at all even though they may be there.

Now excuse me please because 1 this was very labour intensive and 2 my photography skills are not on a level to capture these fine scratches.

The process was to wetsand with either 2000 or 2500 grit then cross hatch sand with 3000 grit. Basically when you sand with either 2000 or 2500 grit you sand in the motion vertically then go back over with 3000 and go horizontally to cross hatch making polishing out the wetsanding marks easier.

Here is a rid.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/66.jpg

Wetsanding it out.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/67.jpg

And gone.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/68.jpg

Here are some during shots. I honestly just wanted to get it done and spent a good couple hours going through this process.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/69.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/70.jpg



Now with that tedious stage done I could finally jewel the paint, but first a couple things.

Unmask
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/71.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/72.jpg

Dust out the crevices.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/73.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/74.jpg

And finally an alcohol wipe down. The reason you do this is because the polishes contain oils that can fill very very light scratches so the wipe down allows you to properly check your work.

So alcohol cut 50/50 with water wiped on with a plush microfibre cloth, and a 3M Sun Gun were used to check my work.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/75.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/76.jpg

The Sun Gun for those that don't know omits they same spectrum light as the sun and I believe is 99.3% similar. There are some reflections in the paint that may seem like something but are not.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/77.jpg



Finally the last stage of polishing which is the jeweling or burnishing stage which is a very light cutting polish and light cutting pad which burnish the paint to a very high gloss(they don't do this at the factory).

Tools for this job were my new Flex 3401 which I have been dying to use and this is the first time, Menzerna P085RD, and a white Lake Country pad.

A during shot.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/78.jpg

Some amazing reflection shots!

Look at the gloss and there isn't even a wax on yet.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/79.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/80.jpg



After spending a couple hours refining the paint another alcohol wipe down was done not only to inspect for defects but to also create a clean surface for the wax to bond to.



Wax of the day was Swissvax Concorso. For dark colors a carnuba based wax gives on amazing glow but for light colored cars I suggest a sealant like Zaino Z2 or Werkstatt.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/81.jpg

Your supposed to apply it by hand because it is heat activated but I just warm my applicator every panel(this stuff is not cheap you know).
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/82.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/83.jpg



I let the wax cure for about an hour or so, so in the mean time I did other things like polish the mufflers.

I did that with Meguiars Super Degreaser and 0000 steel wool to clean it up, then polished with Meguiars NXT All Metal polish. Here are some before and afters.

Before
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/84.jpg

After
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/85.jpg

Here is a closer look of the driver's side.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/86.jpg

And the passenger's side.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/87.jpg

I also put Poor Boy's Wheel Sealant on the rims to protect against brake dust and also on the newly polished mufflers.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/89.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/90.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/88.jpg

No pics but I applied Blackfire Long Lasting Tyre Gel to the tires.

After everything I finally wiped off the wax, sealant, and cleaned the windows.

And now ladies and gentlemen.... the eye candy.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/91.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/92.jpg

It was cloudy which was great and not so great cause the sun was playing hide seek but I was getting some beautiful cloud reflections.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/93.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/94.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/95.jpg

Tree reflection shot.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/96.jpg

This pic is so cool!
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/97.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/98.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...ladsgtr/99.jpg

My signature reflection shot.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...adsgtr/100.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...adsgtr/101.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...adsgtr/102.jpg

Another tree shot.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...adsgtr/103.jpg

Gloss, clarity, shine, everything looking perfect.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...adsgtr/104.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...adsgtr/105.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...adsgtr/106.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...adsgtr/107.jpg

Sun came out for a bit so I raced around to get shots of the sun on the paint to show no swirls.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...adsgtr/108.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...adsgtr/109.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...adsgtr/110.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...adsgtr/111.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...adsgtr/112.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...adsgtr/113.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...adsgtr/114.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...adsgtr/115.jpg

http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...adsgtr/116.jpg

And finally my favorite shot.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...adsgtr/117.jpg



I also got to go for a little cruise around my block.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...adsgtr/118.jpg

Got to feel some g-force go through my body and experience the torque and braking power.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...adsgtr/119.jpg

Dropped back home and there goes a shiny black GT-R.
http://i300.photobucket.com/albums/n...adsgtr/120.jpg



Thank you very much to the owner for allowing to me to spend time with this awesome machine.

Hope you guys enjoyed the write up and any comments good, bad, or ugly are welcome.

Cheers!
Wes

I love the GT-R. That black is so sexy. After how you cleaned it, i think i may prefer black over super silver

Very nice!

LoL! repost?:tiphat:

Wow, amazing work!

hummmm...i never want to look at my car under a 500 watt halogen light.

I will never buy a black car again after reading this post. Awesome work and props for a super shine
I wouldn't even want rain drops to hit the surface now. When I get my 370 it will be PG

Very nice work and write up. This looks very "Autopian" to me ;).

Amazing job on the paint, my friend! I'm disappointed in how much orange peel my factory paint has on my Z =(

Very nice work... I have a question for you.

Should you claybar the plastic area's of the car (i.e. front bumper etc)?

Secondly, after doing so, should you polish and then wax?

That brings up a third question... are you supposed to use alcohol after using a polish before you rewax?

Thanks!

Yes you should clay the plastic area's as they are painted just like the metal. Polish if you need to then wax or seal your paint. An alcohol wipe down after polishing gets rid of the oils from the polish. This lets you examine you work to make sure swirls etc are gone before you seal it up.

Great choice (PG). But I agree. Coming from a black vehicle ('08 Accord coupe), with the amount of work that one must put in just to make it look decent. And then have the dust show on the finish after just a few hours. Let alone any moisture hitting that shine.

I must say that the effort looks monumental. Actually, quite a post!! :ugh2:

The problem is.... do you really want to take that shine out into the real world? (And have to do it all over again in just a few hours or days.) Sorry, not me. The PG finish does not show dust and shows rain spots pretty well. My detailing job is not nearly as time consuming (even when I wax).

But, great job none the less.

Before (and particularly after) - looks amazing, you have done a great job of documenting your detailing, thanks for the write-up!

Excellent post! :tup:

Amazing job! Rep for you!

extravagant work. and that carnuba wax is pretty expensive. how did that gtr's paint get soo bad? another question if you don't mind, can you recomend a cheaper carnuba based wax?

thank you, and I will study this post every time i wash my baby.

Hmmmm..... looks like someone else's work I've seen ;P

http://www.the370z.com/attachments/e...after-1920.jpg

that's overkill :)

Awesome looking GT-R!

That's what happens when your not carful washing your car. Victoria concours wax is as good as any wax available and is not expensive. Check them out at Victoriawax.com.

Wow - thanks for this inspirational thread.

That is Amazing!!!

and nice writeup and even better pictures!

I know I should do this level of detailing myself, but if I were to have it done, what would something like this cost on the 370z?

I was just going to ask the same thing - how much would it cost to get the GT-R done like that? It seems extremely labour intensive....

WOW...great write-up and great work! You put a lot of detailing shops to shame!

I think your user name should be detail Sensei. Wished you lived closer I'd pay big money for your skill :tup:

As the Brits would say, "BRILLIANT!" BZ for a job extremely well done.

WOW! It looks showroom again! How much does that kind of work usually cost? (I'm thinking about doing it for my car.)

No response - must be really expensive :)

gracias

Awesome work.

Wow, I was not expecting so many replies!

Sorry been a busy week just had my second kid and am trying to a adjust and get a back into the flow of things in the house and work.

I logged on a couple times through my iphone but I hate typing on that thing, but here we go.

Black is definitely sexy but you gotta treat it like a high maintenance mistress to keep it in top shape.

Thanks!

HA

lol

PG is sexy to and with a sealant can look very glossy.

Autopian, Detailing Worlder, Detailing Blisser, you name it.

Oh man factory orange peels is sometimes very disappointing but what can you do sometimes.

Yes you can claybar the bumpers I would suggest though things like rubber trim should be left alone, but painted areas, glass, rims, can all be clayed.

Yes in this order it should go clean rims, wash car, clay, polish, then wax. In a nutshell.

Before you rewax you should strip off the wax with a Dawn wash so that you can put on a fresh layer of wax. Surface contaminants also get in the wax that's why you should strip it off first.

The reason you use alcohol after you polish is 1 to inspect your work, the polishing oils can fill in very light scratches so you use alcohol to clean off the oils 2 A oily surface will not let the wax bond properly to the paint so you clean off the oils then apply the wax directly to the paint.


This guy knows what he's talking about.

Different stroke for different folks. I enjoy spending long days with my car it's kind of therapeutic and I love the shine black gives. After detailing for awhile I have found easy maintenance ways to deal with it and keep it in top shape.

Thank you!

Thanks!

lol that is honestly my first rep ever.

The GT-R's paint got bad from improper washing technique.

A affordable wax would be Pinnacle Souveran Paste Wax. Amazing shine!

Very sexy. Who's work is that(yours)?

lol

Awesome drive to!

Victoria is amazing as well.

Anytime hopefully more to come.

Anywhere from $300 and up.

For what I did to the GT-R I charge $40/hr.

ALOT lol.

I do out of town trip if your really interested. I'll shoot you a pm.

Thanks!

I charged $40/hr.

lol, $1000000000000000000

de nada

Thanks!

WOW.... You do excellent work!!! If you were in AZ I would get a black car with no worries and just hire you to go thru this process. That is, except during Monsoon season..

WELL DONE!!

lol, can you come to my house and do my z :rolleyes:

i have a guest bedroom...and my wife is an excellent cook!!!

NXTAZEE's work on a friend's G35

Thats was a good read, thanks!

Amazing Work, You sir take pride in detailing. Probably the best I have seen!

very nice, im in toronto area, may have to look you up someday

Excellent work :tiphat: Too bad you live so far away.

amazing!