Silver MB E430

mose · 10-30-09, 02:35

This one came to me from the mom of the black Accord I just did. The kid that owns the Accord continues to impress me everytime I see him. He's such a great guy and I was very excited to take care of his mom's car! I was hoping to get the chance to meet her but I got the car done the same day and her schedule didn't permit. Hopefully next time!!

He also takes very good care of all the cars in his family. The care he takes was very evident in the hard time I have finding any issues with the paint on this E430. Very minimal swirls and no water spots so all it needed was some claying, a light polishing and something to make the silver POP.

There were a couple things that needed attention with the paint though. Someone had run through some road paint and it sprayed up into the wheels wells and the side of the car. There was also a key scratch on the passenger side that polised out quite nicely.

Process:

Road paint got GooGone and a plastic razor blade follwed directly by an IPA wipedown before washing
Washed w/Dawn
Degreased tires w/Megs DG
Rims were pre-soaked w/P21
EZ Detail brush got the insides of the rims
Rinsed
Dried w/Vroom Drying towels to get the big stuff
Finished drying w/leafblower

Polished w/PoliSeal
(Couple little trouble spots got w/106ff)
Topped w/P21S
(wanted to use a carnuba over the sealant. Thought about Megs #16 but went another way)

Interior was steam cleaned and conditioned w/DG Leather conditioner
Rest of interior wiped down w/woolite and water mix

Exterior glass was polished w/KAIO
Interior glass got IG

Tires got OB
Rims were topped w/DP Paint Sealant

Engine was sprayed with Megs DG and brushed down
Rinsed very carefully
Blown dry w/leafblower
Topped w/OB

Pics:
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Someone keyed the car but it polished pretty well.
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Wiper arm got KAIO and KSG (Thanks Accumulator!!)
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Thanks for looking!!

HiMyNameIsSean · 10-30-09, 02:59

Car looks great. How is he maintaining the cars? Proper washing/drying more? I'm just curious is all.

Nice job,
Sean

mose · 10-30-09, 03:19

Yeah....through proper washing/drying techniques he is able to keep the paint almost swirl free!!

Sludge · 10-30-09, 03:34

Very nice job, particularly in removing the scratch left from keying. The Mercedes looks like new now.

bufferbarry · 10-30-09, 03:36

looks great moose! I like how you did the picture set up!

mose · 10-30-09, 03:47

Quote:

Originally Posted by bufferbarry

looks great moose! I like how you did the picture set up!

Coming from you that means a lot! Thanks!! The pictures arrangement has just always made sense to me. Glad you liked 'em!!

Scottwax · 10-30-09, 05:05

Excellent job, the paint has a real nice wet pop to it.

MichaelSpoots · 10-30-09, 06:34

Nice work! I bet the owner was pleasantly surprised.

Just a question I've been meaning to ask for a while: When detailing, do people normally clean the interior dish of the wheel, or do they just focus on the mostly-visible outside? Because I know we can spend a good hour or so just cleaning out the dish, especially if we don't remove the wheels from the vehicle...
Or does it really depend on the price/age of the car?

mose · 10-31-09, 11:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by MichaelSpoots

Nice work! I bet the owner was pleasantly surprised.

Just a question I've been meaning to ask for a while: When detailing, do people normally clean the interior dish of the wheel, or do they just focus on the mostly-visible outside? Because I know we can spend a good hour or so just cleaning out the dish, especially if we don't remove the wheels from the vehicle...
Or does it really depend on the price/age of the car?

Concerning the inside of the wheels: I will typically clean whatever the EZDetail brush will reach without having to take the wheel off. It usually does a pretty good job. Most of my customer are DD's so they aren't as worried about the inside of the wheels as someone would be with a "garage queen" or "concourse" type of car.

Hope this answers your questions.

Thanks for all the comments guys!!

mose · 10-31-09, 11:26

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scottwax

Excellent job, the paint has a real nice wet pop to it.

Thanks Scott!!

On silver cars I will usually use DG #105, a sealant of some kind of Megs #16. This was the first time that I have put a carnuba on top of a sealant and I was really happy with the wat it turned out. Just goes to show that ya never stop learning huh?

Thanks again for the comment!!

Leadfootluke · 10-31-09, 12:16

Looks great!

Commendable effort on the kids part to keep the cars clean like that. That takes time and effort, but look at the time and money it saved on paint correction