A few weeks ago we posted a Black Evo that went from beater to beauty, making it really stand out from the crowd. The owner of the Evo we present today read the threads, and having decided to sell his Evo, and realized he could probably fetch a premium for a cleaner, better looking car.
He contacted us for a "Sale Prep" exterior correction. The goal was to achieve gloss and clarity with decent protection, within a budget. Not a problem! After looking at the options with the owner, we decided the owner would bring the vehicle washed and clayed, and would finish off with the interior after our polishing. Since we were on a time budget, there are much fewer pictures of the process than we usually post. Sorry, but we really tried to maximize the time on this one and keep the cost down for the owner. But most of the process was similar to the one we did a few weeks ago.
The owner brought the vehicle over to our Rochester location (Jacob’s house) for the service. As he pulled into the driveway we could notice the grungy condition of the finish caused by years of daily driving on very soft paint.
The vehicle had been washed (and clayed) the day before by the owner to help cut down our time, but after driving a few dozen miles it could use another wash. The owner had done a good job with the claying process, though, and we would not have to re-clay.
We mixed up some Chemical Guys Maxi Suds 2 (4:1 ratio) (we know, dumb name) into the foam cannon bottle and gave the Evo a quick bath, inside the garage. The sun was out something fierce, and temps were above 80F by 10 am. Wheels were sprayed with C.G. Wheel Cleaner Gel at 3:1 dilution and the fenders with
Meg's Degreaser and APC. We dried with some Uber microfiber drying towels and the leaf blower, and proceeded to tape.
Using 3M green and blue tapes we covered most crevices to help speed up cleanup and covered up the trim to keep it safe from the rotary's fury.
Polishing would have to be a one-step, very difficult for a black vehicle. But this paint being so soft, the challenge was to find something that would actually finish down perfect on the rotary. Bring out the 3M Ultrafina. We used the Ultrafina pad and a black finishing pad on the
Flex Rotary and the Makita, respectively. The
Flex used an old style
Meguiar's backing plate (stiff, low profile, thin foam between plate and backing, not very pliant). The Makita uses an imported 3M backing plate that is very pliant. We have been experimenting with backing plates, and they have a profound impact on finishing capabilities on the rotary for very soft paints like Honda and Mitsubishi. The trick is to match the rotary tool with the backing plate and pad.
50/50
After polishing we foamed the vehicle again, and washed out any build-up. We then discussed the options for LSP. It would have to be fast, probably applied by hand, but gloss well and last as much as possible (since the economy is slow, so are car sales). We decided to use a product we have not used much: Bilt Hamber AutoBalm.
This stuff applies wet and buffs off almost instantly. Marc sprayed the panel with RO water, took a damp applicator dabbed in the AutoBalm can, and wiped on in a circular motion. It goes on like petroleum jelly, kinda thick and sticky. The water is necessarry to lubricate it as it goes on. You can feel as the water picks up the balm and lets is distribute evenly. Jacob followed right behind Marc's application with a few clean Danase Phat microfiber towels. The AutoBalm goes on thicker than most sealants, so make sure you have a few extra towels for removal.
The result is somewhere in between the look of a sealant and a good wax, hard to explain.
We dressed the trim and wheels with
Meg's Spray
Trim Detailer, the fenders with
Meg's Hyper Dressing 1:1, and the tires with Meg's Extreme Shine Tire Gel. The exhaust tips were cleaned lightly with Never-Dull.
Here are the afters:
happy owner:
Linear Mode
