Presidential Detailed: CONTAMINATED GT and an 08' Shelby GT500

PresdntialDtail · 07-22-09, 11:08

Ill start with the Mustang GT. This car is meticulously cared for, but unfortunately while sitting in a shop it somehow received a heavy dosing of contamination. I was called out to perform a test on a small portion, and was able to remove the contamination with a bit of work and sealed the deal for the job. While I knew I would be able to get the car back in shape, I also knew that it was going to be A LOT of work! Ill begin with the pictures and comment from there.

Here is a section of the trunk before any work was performed.

Doesnt look bad? Well lets reverse the image..how about now?

ops:

Here is another look..

Once again, reversed..

PresdntialDtail · 07-22-09, 11:09

To fully removed the heavy contamination, I used a heavy dosing of Meguairs APC+ with their "Aggressive" Clay Bar from the Professional Line. While this did pretty much ruin my entire clay bar, it was working better than anything else I tried.

The damage done to my clay bars. They were literally disintegrating in my hand as I used them with the APC and I barely made it around the entire car.

The next pictures are after the heavy clay bar work which took SEVERAL hours. I spent most of the first half of the day simply claying the car to remove all the contaminants.

The paint was also pretty heavily swirled as you can see in these shots.

PresdntialDtail · 07-22-09, 11:10

I then removed the license plate to further remove the hidden contaminants.

The vinyl letters seemed to have shrunk over the years, leaving a black residue which the dirt was sticking to.

Each letter was cleaned around the edges to remove the residue/dirt.

The car was then washed once again to further remove any loose contaminants. Its WHITE again!

After seeing the car without its wing, we both loved how the car looked and now the owner is searching for a wingless trunk to switch out.

PresdntialDtail · 07-22-09, 11:11

The owner and I agreed on a 2-step polishing process since it was removing a majority of the defects and the work was mostly focused on solely removing the contamination. Luckily, the Ford paint was fairly workable and white. I was able to get near full correction after a pass with M105/PFW followed with M205/Orange via DA.

Before.

50/50.

After.

I performed the same process around the entire car, although it was hard to capture on camera and I was short on time. I then moved onto the wheels which need a light polish to brighten them up a little.

After a quick hand polish with Adams Metal Polish #2.

PresdntialDtail · 07-22-09, 11:12

Now the long awaited afters! I sealed the car with two coats of Blackfire Paint Sealant and pulled the car out in the sun for the final results!

You can really see the gloss from the Blackfire here, even on white.

PresdntialDtail · 07-22-09, 11:13

I later got a call from Bobby at SR Performance wanting a quick 1-step exterior job performed. I was on a tough time table but was able to finish this car in 5 hours total from start to finish, and the results even stunned me!

I started by snapping a couple shots before I began working. The car was actually quite dirty.

There were a couple areas where someone had gotten wax on the trim.

The wheels were quite foggy as well..

PresdntialDtail · 07-22-09, 11:15

I started with an ONR wash. Here is half the bumper before touching it.

After an ONR wash.

The car had its fair share of defects, which the owner may have removed the next time. We were on a tight schedule for this detail so we opted for the 1-step.

I taped off a section of the hood to determine how hard the clear was.

I ended up using SIP on an Orange LC pad using a G110 DA polisher for a little longer work time. The results.

PresdntialDtail · 07-22-09, 11:16

We were running out of time and unfortunately it began to downpour right as I was finishing up. The owner tried to wait it out but had no choice but to leave, luckily it was no longer raining but the roads were still wet.

This is FL for you, rain one second, pure sunlight the next but to my surprise I couldnt find any defects!

The money shot.

jordanrossbell · 07-22-09, 11:26

Looks great sir, top notch. It might be time for you to invest in a decon kit from FK or ValuGuard. It would save you money on jobs like the white mustang.