Zaino`d Brilliant Silver MB S55

[Rickrack]

This is probably one of my favoite cars ever. It rides like a luxury car, but when you stomp on the gas :spot watch out!!!! This car has a few horsies short of 500 horsepower, so you can imagine how good it goes.



Well anyways, the car was filthy when it was traded in and needed a good recon to make it look handsome again. I thought I was in for a nice easy detail, but after I washed it I noticed that there was a lot of scratches on just about every panel. Most of them buffed out pretty easily accept for a couple that needed compounding. The wheels in particular were extremely dirty and a major PITA to clean and get behind the spokes clean, so I ended up removing all the wheels and detailing them off the car.



Here is my total process:



Washed exterior, cleaned engine compartment, removed and cleaned wheels



Treated wheels with Michelin Brake dust repellant



Clayed exterior with Kar Kraft clay bar



Spot buffed heavier scratches with Menzerna Powergloss by rotary with cutting pad



Buffed complete exterior with Menzerna Intensive polish using cutting pad



Buffed complete exterior with Menzerna Final Polish II w/ polishing pad



Wiped exterior with water/ alcohol mixture to remove any oils, etc..



2 coats of Z2 pro



Dressed tires with Super Blue Dressing



Cleaned interior with Super Kleen general purpose cleaner



Dressed all vinyl with Meguiars Interior Quick Detailer



Conditioned leather with Mercedes Leather Conditioner



Now to the pictures:

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y296/rickrack/4404bb5b.jpg

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y296/rickrack/927b7efc.jpg

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y296/rickrack/7f41d6e8.jpg

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y296/rickrack/c6745bd4.jpg

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y296/rickrack/aa6a7125.jpg

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y296/rickrack/b7f3b13e.jpg

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y296/rickrack/c6add466.jpg

more coming.....

[Rickrack]

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y296/rickrack/ddf58f87.jpg

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y296/rickrack/c52751e8.jpg

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y296/rickrack/fdbe25a2.jpg

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y296/rickrack/34407d8f.jpg

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y296/rickrack/cf3fa470.jpg

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y296/rickrack/1b8c7924.jpg

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y296/rickrack/ad43c566.jpg

[stilez]

P R I S T I N E !!!





You do some wonderful work! What product did you use to actually clean the wheels? They don`t look fun.

[tensors22288]

SWEET CAR wow. thing looks so agressive. yea i agree with stilez, those wheels look like a PITA to clean if they were significantly dirty. Rick is my new favorite picture poster lol, Rick do you work primarily for a dealership and detail used cars for sale? or do u just do that on the side and have you own business? i really enjoy your work, keep it up!

[imported_hadboosttroy]

isn`t that an sl55 amg? i was under the impression that the sedans were s55 amg`s.

[Scottwax]

Very nice! Super wet and reflective too. Interior looks topnotch too! :)



I agree on those wheels, I did an SL500 with them. I have yet to figure out why a manufacturer well known for horrible brake dust would put a rim with all those crevices on one of their cars. :hairpull

[kustomsol]

It`s a shame you don`t have "before" pics.

Looks great!!

[ramp]

I have an S55 and that is not an S55. Who`s car/what car is it -- really?

[Anthony O.]

SChweeet!



Great work once again, beautiful car for sure but what where they thinking with the interior color??



Anthony

[ramp]

You have to pay extra $$$$ for those interior colors!

[Thomas Dekany]

As the others have said - you do excellent work.



As far as the cars engine: It is tourqe that gives that boost when you step on it. I may be off but I think it has 516lb feet. horsepower is for top speed.

[cwcad]

Excellent work. I like the whole car but I am most envious of the engine detail. It is something that I do not do enough of but am sure appreciative of someone who does. GOOD JOB!!

[Rickrack]

isn`t that an sl55 amg? i was under the impression that the sedans were s55 amg`s.





Oops, my bad. You are right. Typo error.



How do I edit the title of the thread?

[Jake11375]

Amazing job and amazing car. Love the red interior, I bet you never have a boring ride in that baby. Great work! :2thumbs:

[Rickrack]

First off, thank you everyone for the nice comments.



To answer a couple questions....



GSRstilez: Sean, I use a non acid wheel cleaner called Wheelie Clean made by Kar Kraft that works very well on wheels that acid cannot be used on. I do a lot of Corvettes for the place I work for and Corvette wheels cannot be touched with acid or they are ruined. Even though the directions say to spray it on and let it sit on the wheels, I spray it on and immediately hit it with a brush just in case.



tensors22288: I work for a small car dealership that deals with mostly exotic & high-end vehicles both new and used. I have owned 2 detail shops in the past, but my bad back and the winters around here make it tough, so I decided to find a job where I get health insurance and a steady paycheck. I am the primary detailer for the dealership and have other responsibilities as well such as taking all the pictures for the website, maintaining and updating the website, setting up E-bay auctions, keeping the lot & showroom looking nice, setting up appointments for cars (3M protection, window tinting, rim repair, interior repair, service appointments, etc..). Winter is our slow season, but in the spring I will also be selling cars as well.



And yes, I do detail on the side. I have a number of faithful clients I have accrued over the past 11 years and that list continues to grow every month. My real goal is to get the people that buy these cars to bring their cars to me for anything they need done no matter what it is (window tinting, dent repair, interior repair, 3M, bodywork, etc..) Busy, busy, busy!!