CMC Detailing-Porsche 996 revival

**mikenap** · 07-05-2014, 03:40 PM

This Porsche 996 was brought to me to return some of its original luster back to the car. With over 120k miles on the clock and years of wear, it was no easy task bringing life back to this weary paint. Over the course of two days, I did my best to enhance the overall appearance of this car and bring some pride of ownership to the new owner.

Early on the morning of the first day, the sun was in a perfect position to highlight the swirls and imperfections visible on every part of this car.

A foam bath was done prior to washing the car, to loosen up debris and make for a safer wash. I took this time to also hit any crevices where grime had built up over the years.

Once I dialed in a compounding step, I proceeded to remove some fairly heavy swirls, scratches and other paint defects. Some areas of this car had healthy paint readings, but others like the sunroof, were thin so I had to tread lightly. Also, the hood had been repainted at some point, rather poorly.

A 50/50 of sorts. Corrected above, still work to do below.

**mikenap** · 07-05-2014, 03:41 PM

All compounding was completed the first day. The following pictures were from day 2, with the sun in the same position as the first before pics. This is after compounding only, a second step was still needed to refine the finish, but the improvement is clear.

The last order of business was to remove the wheels to clean them as well as possible. I don`t think this had ever been done, the amount of brake dust was as bad as I`ve ever seen. Although they didn`t come out 100%, I was happy with the improvement given the mileage of the car and the neglect shown by the original owner.

Some final shots were taken before pick-up, with the wheels cleaned, reinstalled and torqued down properly. The windshield cowl was faded and cracked, so it was going to be replaced afterward. Please excuse the ashy appearance.

Thanks for looking. I hope to catch up on some more of my older work and post more frequently!

**Stokdgs** · 07-05-2014, 05:00 PM

Wow - what an improvement !!!!!

Went from pretty bad to beautifully amazing !!!

You killed it, Mike !!!!

Congratulations on some incredible, careful, detailed, perfection there !
Dan F

**Old Pirate** · 07-05-2014, 05:15 PM

Freaking great work there Mike! Bet the owner was floored!

**Ronkh** · 07-05-2014, 07:12 PM

Beautiful job

**mikenap** · 07-05-2014, 09:08 PM

Originally Posted by Stokdgs

Wow - what an improvement !!!!!

Went from pretty bad to beautifully amazing !!!

You killed it, Mike !!!!

Congratulations on some incredible, careful, detailed, perfection there !
Dan F

Thanks Dan!

Originally Posted by Old Pirate

Freaking great work there Mike! Bet the owner was floored!

Thank you, he was thrilled with the difference

Originally Posted by Ronkh

Beautiful job

Thanks!

**jtford95** · 07-05-2014, 10:37 PM

Great job on an awesome car! Love the color

**WaxAddict** · 07-05-2014, 10:42 PM

Great turnaround on the soft Porsche paint. Can you share products used?

FYI, or owners info, Back to Black works well on the windshield wiper cowl after several applications spread over a few weeks. It`ll stay nice for a few months. Brush we`ll with APC first.

**mikenap** · 07-06-2014, 06:54 AM

Originally Posted by WaxAddict

Great turnaround on the soft Porsche paint. Can you share products used?

FYI, or owners info, Back to Black works well on the windshield wiper cowl after several applications spread over a few weeks. It`ll stay nice for a few months. Brush we`ll with APC first.

Thanks! Compounding was done w/the Rupes 21, M205 and Meguiars MF Finishing Discs. It`s a great combo that can be tweaked for aggressiveness depending on amount of 205 used. Finishing was with HD Polish and a black B&S foam pad. As for the cowl, it was too far gone for the customer`s taste. It had multiple cracks so he told me not to bother with it and focus my attention elsewhere since he would be replacing it anyway. Thanks for the tips though!

**WaxAddict** · 07-06-2014, 08:20 AM

Originally Posted by mikenap

Thanks! Compounding was done w/the Rupes 21, M205 and Meguiars MF Finishing Discs. It`s a great combo that can be tweaked for aggressiveness depending on amount of 205 used. Finishing was with HD Polish and a black B&S foam pad. As for the cowl, it was too far gone for the customer`s taste. It had multiple cracks so he told me not to bother with it and focus my attention elsewhere since he would be replacing it anyway. Thanks for the tips though!

I use 205`s commercial cousin UC to good effect where compound is needed.
I`ve heard so many great things about HD Polish, I must give that try. HD with a black pad seems mild.

Yeah you have to keep after those cowls or they are toast, but I`ve seen 996`s and older 997`s with prestine ones where the users just keep some 303 or similar product on it.

**EVOlved** · 07-06-2014, 08:28 AM

Looks beautiful and no big surprise that the wonder was floored like you stated.

Can I ask one question and don`t take it personal just being OCD and noticing something that bothers me a bit. Why didn`t you dress the wells when you had the wheels off?

**Klock** · 07-06-2014, 09:58 AM

Great turnaround! That blue really pops!

**mikenap** · 07-06-2014, 01:09 PM

Originally Posted by EVOlved

Looks beautiful and no big surprise that the wonder was floored like you stated.

Can I ask one question and don`t take it personal just being OCD and noticing something that bothers me a bit. Why didn`t you dress the wells when you had the wheels off?

Lol, actually I did. The wells kept soaking up all the dressing, but did darken it up slightly. The camera flash for some reason made it look chalkier than they were in person.