Amateur hour with a `90 Olds

[velobard]

This post was originally planned to show off how well I was able to detail my wife`s very neglected black 2000 Focus. After a phone call from her this week telling me that she totaled the car when she hydroplaned in the middle of a curve on the highway, I had to pull my 1990 Olds Touring Sedan back into service. It`s been parked since I bought my Chrysler LHS last fall, and since I was putting it back on the road I decided I might as well have it looking in better shape. Fortunately, the accident happened a few days before I toiled over the Focus. It would have been lousy to have put all that effort into it only to have it wasted.



The Oldsmobile has been in the family since new. My dad bought it new (no jokes about "my father`s Oldsmobile", lol) and thought he took decent care of it. In his mind, that meant a driveway wash with dish soap, a sponge and terry cloth towel every few months, then once or twice a year a wax with Meguiars Gold Class paste wax. It`s 16 years old and has never been garaged. BTW, it also has 260,000 miles and has never used a drop of oil. I`ve had it for the last 3 years and 70,000 miles.



Since I discovered Autopia a couple months ago I`ve done a reasonable amount of reading and tried to pick up a few hints. I only have OTC supplies from a discount or auto store, so I made do as best I could.



My supplies were:

Meguiar`s Detailing Clay

Mequiar`s QD

Meguiar`s Deep Crystal Paint Cleaner

Mequiar`s NXT Tech Wax

Mother`s Carnuba Cleaner wax

my trusty old Bosch 3283 RO sander with Bosch foam pad and cheapo waxing bonnet



After a wash I spent a couple hours claying it. I`ve tried clay on my Chrysler but never saw any effect. Man, that sure changed with this Olds. There was something on the paint on the back half of the car that looked like spattered mulberry juice and I was never able to get it off with washing, not even scrubbing with an APC. The clay did a great job, but took quite a bit of time and effort in some spots. The clay made an amazing difference in the feel of the paint, really incredible.



I followed up with the MPC over the entire car. I thought about using the Mother`s wax over the entire car, hoping that it would help hide the scratches better, but I was running out of time so I decided to just use it where the worst areas were on the hood and trunk, with NXT on the rest of the car. I know I still have scratches showing (plus plenty of chips and one place where it was keyed), but I didn`t have a real SSR to work with. I`m very open to suggestions for OTC retail products that will help. At this point I`d settle for just hiding the ones that are left. If it helps any with suggestions, I have access to Walmart, Autozone, and Pep Boys for supplies. I can order online of course, but it`s usually easier for me to drop by a store.



The after pics were taken in the garage after the sun went down.



In all its freshly washed glory.

http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e222/velobard/IMG_1176_resize.jpg



Speckled looking paint.

http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e222/velobard/IMG_1170.jpg

http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e222/velobard/IMG_1173.jpg



After in the garage.

http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e222/velobard/IMG_1180_resize.jpg

http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e222/velobard/IMG_1178.jpg

http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e222/velobard/IMG_1177_resize.jpg



I`ll admit if I was a pro I`d be ashamed of these results, but I don`t think it`s too bad on an old beast as a newbie with limited supplies. This car will stay in service for at least a few months till my wife finishes school and goes back to work, then be relegated back to duty as a spare ride.

[Scottwax]

Looks pretty good, actually! :up



Meguiars #9 works well by hand and is available at most parts stores.

[66#1]

Looks Good!



`90 was a good year for GM IMO. My mom`s old GP is still going strong a 160k miles. My wife`s parents bought her a `90 Sunbird when it was nearly new. We still have it and I use it as my beater. It has 155k on it, and it`s never burned a drop of oil either. Looks new too!

[ScubaStevo]

Definatly livend it up. :)

[velobard]

Thanks for the kind words guys. Scott, is the #9 the Show Car Glaze? Whatever I buy will see some action here, but will mostly be used to take care of the much more visible scratches on the dark garnet pearlcoat on my LHS.



This the Chrysler a week after a wash, just went over it with the CC Duster.

http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e222/velobard/LHS4.jpg



If it`s worth it, would I be better off ordering something like Optimum polish, 3M MG, or something else? I definitely want to keep my LHS looking the best I can.



I have some chip repair to do on the LHS as well and I have a tube of Duplicolor ready to go when the weather warms up. I should probably use the Olds as a test bed for my chip repair skills. I expect the repairs to be easier on the Olds because it has the non-metallic slate gray paint. I understand it`s a lot harder to blend in repairs on metallic paints, right? I don`t think Duplicolor makes the color I need for my Olds so I`ll have to hunt up an alternate source. I`m skeptical event the dealer has paint available for something this old, so if might come down to just how bad I want it and whether I`m willing to pay a paint shop to mix something for me. Anyone have any other suggestions? I think the color code is 18, Slate Gray Clearcoat.

[scottabir]

Give the langka kit a try on the olds for chip repair, takes a bit to get used to but worth it for beginning chip repair. also paintscratch.com is suppose to be really good for touch up paint.

[Super]

Looks Good it really does!

You can polish the metal trim and rejuvenate the rubber trim for even a better look and its best to do this before you polish the paint. I don’t know if you clayed it but claying is vary important for a clean look and even color throughout oh ok after rereading to see you did clay.

Depends on how you want the car to look like on how much shine and gloss you want and there are different degrees of shine you are looking for? High gloss, semi-gloss to low gloss. The best gloss/shine is though polishing and you can successfully do this though hand polishing but a PC polisher does it much faster. You would have to see Scottwax on how to hand polish.



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There is no know-it-all Detailers that knows everything because it’s a consent learning process.

The best & funnest times for me was learning how to Detail and I’m still learning how to even though I been making a living Detailing for years.

[velobard]

Thanks for the heads up on the langka kit. And it looks like paintscratch.com does have the right color. There are 2 places around here that have Meguiar`s Unigrit blocks in stock, one`s 1500 grit and the other is 2000. Which would be better for finishing off a chip repair?

[velobard]

Super, I don`t have a PC, but my Bosch RO does do some good for basic machine application. It doesn`t have quite the amps (about 2.3 if I remember correctly) of the PC and has a smaller orbit, but it does help. And as you saw, I did clay, spent between 2 and 3 hours going over the entire car. It made all the difference in the world. Even my teenage step-daughter was amazed by the difference, she didn`t think there was any hope for this old thing. She has a stake in how this turns out because she has a learner`s permit and I`m not letting her drive the Chrysler, so the Olds will be the only set of wheels she`ll have access to.



What products would you recommend for cleaning up the rubber and colored (apparently non-painted) plastic trim on areas like around the head and taillights and around the rear plate? There`s still some stubborn, dark grunge on those surfaces that still need more work. And I`m having a heck of a time getting all the junk around the metal side trim moulding and metal badging.



Oh yeah, and what`s the best thing to use to remove wax in the spots where I`m touching up the paint?