First Time Detail on Back VR4 - Here is My Plan

A

amedman

New member
Ok. I am tired of paying $180/yr to have my car detailed so this year I am going to do it myself. I have a 1999 Mitsubishi 3000gt VR4, Black Pearl paint with clearcoat. It was detailed every year (including last spring) but has the usually amount of light swirls from weekly wash and dry, some at the pressure wash (can’t do hand wash too easily in January here in Minnesota).



I plan to detail 2 times per year: Spring then again in late fall. I want SHINE, durability, depth, ease of use, and cost (in that order).



Here’s what I am planning:



1. Wash with Dawn

2. Clay Bar

3. MEGs Car Wash

4. MEG #9, 3m Perfect It Swirl Remover, VM, or Scratch X (Opinions as to which is better? Hand or using the DeWalt? Other suggestions on polishing?)

5. AIO by hand

6. Z2 (w/ZFX)

7. Z6

8. Z2

9. Z6

10. Z2

11. Z8



Any comments or suggestions on this? Also, I have a Dewalt 849 but I am chicken to use it on my black baby but may be swayed to give it a try. I was also thinking about a S100 finale for depth but given my 6 month interval, I think this may not be worth the effort for 30 days of joy.



Thanks for any suggestions or opinions you all may have,



Amedman
 
Thanks!



I was looking at the finish last night and it looks worse then I thought. It has a fair amount of spider webs and swirls.



I am now thinking about breaking out the Dewalt. Should I go get a PC instead? Its a black clearcoat so that is what scares me.



Any thoughts on this?
 
Since it's your first time detailing your car (and it's black) I would not use the rotary. Get a PC and use that. You won't regret buying the PC.



And you said that the swirls/spiderwebbing is worse than you thought, so those products you listed probably aren't going to help your situation too much. Get some SSR2 and SSR2.5. Then you'll have no problem. I'm usually able to use SSR2.5 on a cutting pad on black paint without even needing to follow up with a lighter polish.
 
I like Megs #9 but someone told me that Megs #80 is better then #9. I was told that it is a little more aggressive then #9. I usually use Megs #9 after a fine compound, but since your not compounding. Go with the #80.



Don't use the Dewalt. Go out and buy the PC. Well worth it.
 
The reason I purchased the rotary over a PC was the length of time it takes to polish using a PC. I have read in posts here that some take 30min to 2hours per panel to polish with a PC! What are your thoughts on the time to polish out minor spider webs using SSR2.5 and a PC?



I know you can’t rush a good job but 2 hours per panel is a bit longer then I want to spend per panel.
 
Definitely use a PC before using a rotary.



It was worth the time in the beginning. You'll be more upset about doing it quickly and putting holograms in than you would if you took more time but didn't harm the car at all.



Oh, BTW- Nice car. (Except the '99 wing!) Haha ;) :p
 
Thanks for the car compliment. It’s the last Japanese supercar and 1 of 287 99 VR4's built (1 of 103 if you limit the scope to just black 99 VR4's). I use it as a daily driver. It’s AWD so driving it here in MN in the middle of winter is a blast. I have tried to keep the finish as pristine as possible. I thought I was doing a good job until the other week when I installed fluorescent lights in my garage and turned them on for the first time....EEEEEK SPIDERWEBS EVERYWHERE!



I am seeing the PC light but would love to get your thoughts on how much time it will take to polish it using a PC. Since it’s not a garage queen I do not want perfection, just good enough to do the Zaino justice.



BTW, I removed the wing the first week I got the car. I replaced it with the stock 99 NA cars hoop spoiler. The wing was a bit "ricey" for my tastes. I will post pics after the detail is complete.
 
amedman said:
Thanks for the car compliment. It’s the last Japanese supercar and 1 of 287 99 VR4's built (1 of 103 if you limit the scope to just black 99 VR4's). I use it as a daily driver. It’s AWD so driving it here in MN in the middle of winter is a blast. I have tried to keep the finish as pristine as possible. I thought I was doing a good job until the other week when I installed fluorescent lights in my garage and turned them on for the first time....EEEEEK SPIDERWEBS EVERYWHERE!



I am seeing the PC light but would love to get your thoughts on how much time it will take to polish it using a PC. Since it’s not a garage queen I do not want perfection, just good enough to do the Zaino justice.



BTW, I removed the wing the first week I got the car. I replaced it with the stock 99 NA cars hoop spoiler. The wing was a bit "ricey" for my tastes. I will post pics after the detail is complete.
Click to expand...



I was going to madate the removal of the wing, but I didn't wanna insult you. ;) Good to know you felt the same way.



I'm a huge 3S enthusiast and came >.< that close to buying a gorgeous pearl white Stealth TT on the factory 18" chromies last summer. I'm looking to pick up a black '93 VR-4 (25 spline) in a few years as a project car. Do you post on 3Si?
 
I have read MANY posts over the years in 3si. That website was the reason I bought the car and the way I found out about Autopia. My nick in 3si is the same (amedman) but I haven’t posted much. My VR4 is almost stock not counting the rims (Fitipaldi Force) which were needed given the chromes where pealing big. I have bought a few items to mod my car a bit (test pipe, KN intake, GReddy PRofec B-Spec II boost controller). I was all set to begin the path to 400HP when I switched gears to “detail mode� after I saw the condition of my finish needed immediate attention.
 
I don't know if you'll recognize it, my my old user name was kind of lame: Rookie-Boy89. I was a bit of a post whore for a while. I go by MongooseGA now, and only really post every now and then with local members.
 
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