Black Magic Seat Ibiza Cupra - Detailed by Lawrence

[LawrenceSA]

As far as paint correction goes, this detail was right up there with some of the toughest I have done - but this is also what makes it so rewarding.


So this is how she looked on arrival.

There was the usual dirt

Some bird droppings

Small signs like this showing that the previous person didn't bother taping up

And then this was a first for me..... the caveman had simply polished straight over the side beading :bang:

All relatively 'typical' so far.... so let's look at the paint, which for the record had the obligatory swirls, some deeper scratches, etching marks, sanding marks, pigtails and buffer trails....

Even through the dirty paint the sanding marks are visible

So time to get busy.....


Before

After a wash

During iron removal

Arches, Tires, Wheels
-HP rinse arches, tires and wheels.
-Clean arches with a Cyclo APC using a Mothers Fenderwell Brush
-HP rinse (a lot)
-Clean tires with Valet Pro Billbery Wheel Cleaner @ 1:6 and a Mothers Tire brush.
-HP rinse
-Repeat tire cleaning
-HP rinse
-Wash wheels and brake calipers with VP Bilberry Wheel Cleaner @ 1:6, Daytona and Daytona Jnr brushes and Valet Pro Boars Hair Brushes
-HP rinse
-Dry
-Remove tar using Autoglym Intensive Tar Remover
-Spray with APC and HP Rinse
-Dry
-Remove bonded and embedded ferrous contaminants on wheels and brake calipers with Autofinesse Iron Out, Daytona (big and small) brushes and Valet Pro Boars Hair Brushes
-HP Rinse + flood rinse
-Dry
-Polished with Meguiars Cleaner Wax
-Protected with Menzerna Powerlock
-Tires dressed with 3 coats of Optimum Tire Sheen (It literally had sucked the first coat in on the first tire before I had finished dressing the last one )


After

Engine bay
-Blow loose dust off with air blower
-Clean with Cyclo APC, MF Towels and various Brushes
-Clean/Polish/Protect (AIO) using AF Tripple by hand with a MF applicator
-Dresed with Autofinesse Dressel


Before

After

Wash
-HP rinse
-Applied Valet Pro Citrus Pre-wash via a spray bottle, left to dwell
-HP rinse
-Applied Chemical Guys Maxi Suds II via Crazy Detailer V2 Foam Cannon, left to dwell
-HP rinse
-2BM wash using lambswool wash mitts
-HP Rinse
-Flood Rinse
-Dried using ONR and WW drying towels


Decontamination
-Tar removed using Autoglym Intensive Tar Remover
-Iron removed using Valet Pro Dragon's Breath
-Remaining contamination was clayed off using Shield Heavy Duty clay with ONR as lube.


Paint correction
- Paint readings were all over the place, due to the repainting that had been done, the crappy sanding and polishing thereafter and the general 'wear and tear'. The lowest reading was 106µ and the max 264µ
- The initial cut required the Flex 3401 / Menzerna FG400 / Lake Country Purple Wool Pads and more than 75% required a second hit with the same combo
- This was then followed by Flex 3401 / Menzerna SF4000 / 5.5" Crimson Lake Country Hydrotech pads. For the smaller areas 4" Orange and White Lake Country CCS pads were used with same polishes on a Shield DA and for the remaining tight spots, polishing was done by hand using Meguiars Ultimate Compound

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Paint protection
- Soft 99 Fusso Dark

Glass
- Glossworx Glass Cleaner


Door rubbers, window rubbers, exterior plastic trim
- Cleaned using Shield Heavy Duty Vinyl and Rubber Cleaner
- Protected using Aerospace 303

Interior
-Vaccum
-Seats spot cleaned with Glossworx Upholstery Cleaner
-Plastics and dash cleaned with APC then given a final wipe using Autofinesse Spritz


Exhaust tip
-Cleaned using Cyclo APC
-Polished and Protected using Meguiars NXT All Metal Polish


Before

After

 

[LawrenceSA]

3 Pics of the car still in the garage

A couple of sun shots of the paint

And a few other 'after' shots

Total time spent = 32 hours

Thanks for looking and as always and comments or questions are welcome.

 

[silver2kws6]

AMAZING JOB !!! I miss living in Europe and seeing those beautiful cars running around ! I want a new Leon sooooo bad ! Seat needs to come to America !

 

[rbss]

Fantastic job! 32 hours My back is hurting thinking about it lol.

 

[LawrenceSA]

AMAZING JOB !!! I miss living in Europe and seeing those beautiful cars running around ! I want a new Leon sooooo bad ! Seat needs to come to America !

Thanks very much

Yeah the Seats are nice little cars - quite popular over here actually... but they did pull out of South Africa a few years ago and are now being supported by VW. This is the first Ibiza Cupra I have detailed but did do a Ibiza FR and 3 Leon Cupras previously...

Fantastic job! 32 hours My back is hurting thinking about it lol.

Thanks - I would hazard a guess and say I am probably a little slower than most, but my 'business model' is such that I only ever do 1 car per weekend, and just take my time trying to ensure every little bit gets the attention it deserves. I really enjoy these type of 'full correction / turn around' type details and could never see myself tackling the quick turn around 'production' type detailing - no disrespect to anyone who does that as I understand that this is where the bread and butter is, so to speak.