chrisguga
05-22-2012, 05:11 PM
So, this was a free detail for a co-worker whose Honda Element with 70k miles on the clock has never been waxed or washed properly. I`m OCD and could no longer take looking at the oxidized plastic trim and I wanted to try polishing the plastic. She didn`t even know I was going to detail the whole thing. I just told her I wanted to play around with polishing the plastic.
Unfortunately, the pictures were taken with my iPhone as the wife had the good camera gear. I finished this whole detail in 6 hours which seems like a decent amount of time, but polishing the plastic trim was trial and error at first.
2 bucket wash using Dawn just in case some wax happened to fall on the car at some point, but I`m confident none ever has. Random pictures of some brushes I like (Swissvax, Wheel Woolies, lug nut cleaning brush which is great, and random cheap Autozone tire brush) and my beloved Sonax FE. The APC in the Adam`s bottle is actually dilute Meg`s APC Plus.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/tools.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/cleaners.jpg
No beading before, certainly no beading after:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/nobeading.jpg
Details are important to me even on a free detail.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/details3.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/details4.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/details2.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/details.jpg
Lovely oxidized trim:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/faded8.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/faded7.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/faded6.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/faded5.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/dirtyexhaust3.jpg
Exhaust pipe leading to the tip was also pretty rusted so I couldn`t let that go without being sorted out a little later:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/dirtyexhaust.jpg
Oh yeah, clayed it and it comes as no surprise that it was nasty:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/clay.jpg
So anyway, I used the HD Polish on the plastic trim and HD SPEED on the paint. I find that I have to use larger amounts on the pad than other polishes I`ve used in the past, but they don`t dry quickly and are both nice to work with.
Here are some 50/50 shots after polishing some trim with some old Meg`s microfiber pads and also some old Adam`s Polishes foam pads. The foam worked better, imo.
Polished the portion on the right:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/50501.jpg
Polished the vertical rectangular piece on the right:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/50502.jpg
This process really gunked up the pads and I suspect they`re ruined. I went through 3 pads until I finally got tired of ruining the pads and just kept using the gunked up ones. The results dropped off a little, but since it was a free detail I didn`t feel too much pressure to ruin all my stuff to make it perfect.
I tried the HD SPEED on the HD polishing pad and also on their cutting/polishing pad to try and get a little more bite. It cleaned up the look of the paint nicely and removed very fine swirl marks, but I`d treat this more of a gloss adding product at this point. In the future, I`ll have to use it after compounding with wool and 105 to see if it can handle the marring quickly and easily. It does leave a beautiful finish and wipes off VERY easily.
I finished the trim with Adam`s VRT, finished the paint with Optimum Car Wax, glass with Stoner`s Invisible Glass, and tried Meg`s Endurance Gel on the tires. I like pretty glossy tires so this product is great for me and I look forward to using it on my tires after the next wash.
Here are some afters:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/after1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/after6.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/after5.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/after4.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/after3.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/photo1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/photo3.jpg
Unfortunately, the pictures were taken with my iPhone as the wife had the good camera gear. I finished this whole detail in 6 hours which seems like a decent amount of time, but polishing the plastic trim was trial and error at first.
2 bucket wash using Dawn just in case some wax happened to fall on the car at some point, but I`m confident none ever has. Random pictures of some brushes I like (Swissvax, Wheel Woolies, lug nut cleaning brush which is great, and random cheap Autozone tire brush) and my beloved Sonax FE. The APC in the Adam`s bottle is actually dilute Meg`s APC Plus.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/tools.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/cleaners.jpg
No beading before, certainly no beading after:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/nobeading.jpg
Details are important to me even on a free detail.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/details3.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/details4.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/details2.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/details.jpg
Lovely oxidized trim:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/faded8.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/faded7.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/faded6.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/faded5.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/dirtyexhaust3.jpg
Exhaust pipe leading to the tip was also pretty rusted so I couldn`t let that go without being sorted out a little later:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/dirtyexhaust.jpg
Oh yeah, clayed it and it comes as no surprise that it was nasty:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/clay.jpg
So anyway, I used the HD Polish on the plastic trim and HD SPEED on the paint. I find that I have to use larger amounts on the pad than other polishes I`ve used in the past, but they don`t dry quickly and are both nice to work with.
Here are some 50/50 shots after polishing some trim with some old Meg`s microfiber pads and also some old Adam`s Polishes foam pads. The foam worked better, imo.
Polished the portion on the right:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/50501.jpg
Polished the vertical rectangular piece on the right:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/50502.jpg
This process really gunked up the pads and I suspect they`re ruined. I went through 3 pads until I finally got tired of ruining the pads and just kept using the gunked up ones. The results dropped off a little, but since it was a free detail I didn`t feel too much pressure to ruin all my stuff to make it perfect.
I tried the HD SPEED on the HD polishing pad and also on their cutting/polishing pad to try and get a little more bite. It cleaned up the look of the paint nicely and removed very fine swirl marks, but I`d treat this more of a gloss adding product at this point. In the future, I`ll have to use it after compounding with wool and 105 to see if it can handle the marring quickly and easily. It does leave a beautiful finish and wipes off VERY easily.
I finished the trim with Adam`s VRT, finished the paint with Optimum Car Wax, glass with Stoner`s Invisible Glass, and tried Meg`s Endurance Gel on the tires. I like pretty glossy tires so this product is great for me and I look forward to using it on my tires after the next wash.
Here are some afters:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/after1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/after6.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/after5.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/after4.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/after3.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/photo1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v333/malark/Honda%20Element/photo3.jpg