S4 detail

[S4twiggy]

got round to doing my car this weekend and with the help of a mate colin(CMD) we put in 12 hours each on the car. i havent got my head around doing a good write up yet but hope this shows what we got up to.
car was gleaming before we started so not much of a turn around but i want the car swirl free and now its about 90% swirl free with the odd flashes as i call them in the paint which i will sort with a rotary soon to come.
Products used:
snow foam
AG shampoo
G101
Lokate CP cut 500
3M fast cut
3M Ultrafina SE
CG wet mirror finish
Collonite 915

after the wash stage and dried off it was into the garage for the machine work to start. i was looking forward to it.
as the car is well maintained there was not many big swirls going on but it still needed a 2 stage polish with Lokate CP Cut 500 and 3M fast cut, finished off with 3M Ultrafina SE which gave a real good shine. i like the CP cut 500 as its not to hard a compound and is good for medium to little defects.
sorry for not getting any 50/50 and after shots of the panels but time was flying and it went from my mind. like i said im still getting the hand of these write ups.

Rear clusters done using a sonus spot pad and Lokate CP cut 500

This is the only one i had of a before and after

Finished the machine work about 8pm and i was knackered to say the least. final shot after pressure washed to remove dust and fallout and then dried and put into garage ready for me sunday morning to apply chemical guys wet mirror finish and then collonite 915.

just a few shots in the sun after i had finished the car. she now looking the best she has.

reflection shot

beading

thanks for looking, i will get better at these write ups soon i promise.

 

[Sarah's A3]

Wow! Looking really spot on there! And about time too lol!!! Hard work isnt it!!!! Car looks absolutely gorgeous! Love the beading pics! Well done!

 

[S4twiggy]

Wow! Looking really spot on there! And about time too lol!!! Hard work isnt it!!!! Car looks absolutely gorgeous! Love the beading pics! Well done!

ABOUT TIME!!!!! lol my car is always extremely clean but after doing the cars we have done i thought it was about time mind had the treatment. if only i can get myself away from the machine long enough to take the after pics which i keep forgetting doh!! she is all ready for ADI now. and yes sarah it is hard work lol but i just love doing it.

 

[Sarah's A3]

lol you mentioned on my detailing thread you were planning doing your car but that was a while ago lol. It is good doing it and time whizzes while you are doing it. The rear lights look good too!

 

[S4twiggy]

only reason i havent done it is cuz we have done 5 cars since then so havent had the time. cant believe where the time goes tbh i only wish there were another 6 hours in the day as i need to do the engine bay and interior but atleast its done now for a few months until i treat her to some poorboys black hole before ADI.

p.s my back is killing me lol

 

[Sarah's A3]

Ah Poorboys Black Hole is brilliant stuff, we use that too! Yours will look good at ADI.

 

[S4twiggy]

black hole is amazing on a dark car fair play, not sure about this CG wet mirror finish yet though so ill give it a go on a different car, should be doing a mk5 GTI soon so hopefully i can see the difference on a black car compared to black hole.

 

[Broken Byzan]

Thats pretty good that. Your car always looks good anyway, so it's nice to see a difference even on a well looked after car like yours

My issue was the CP cut wasn't as heavt as it was cracked up to be, I am using the Ceramic cut one now, its awesome. But i don't have a psoh garage to use so have been dodging the weather,lol About half way through now. Only taken about 12 hrs so far, without looking at the inside, or anything yet. DOH!!

 

[The Doctor]

Grant, I'm loving the water droplets! Great stuff. Tempted to invest in a DA machine polisher myself after seeing that.

 

[S4twiggy]

Thats pretty good that. Your car always looks good anyway, so it's nice to see a difference even on a well looked after car like yours

My issue was the CP cut wasn't as heavt as it was cracked up to be, I am using the Ceramic cut one now, its awesome. But i don't have a psoh garage to use so have been dodging the weather,lol About half way through now. Only taken about 12 hrs so far, without looking at the inside, or anything yet. DOH!!

cheers mate, yes the CP 500 is not the best for bigger defects, i use menz stuff for that but it was all i needed for my car, will be trying that ceramic cut one soon though to see how it works. its a pain when your dodging the weather mate especially this time of year. it took me and colin 12 hours each and i aint done the inside yet or the engine bay yet lol

 

[S4twiggy]

Grant, I'm loving the water droplets! Great stuff. Tempted to invest in a DA machine polisher myself after seeing that.

hey dude. mate you will not be dissapointed if you get one mate, well worth the money i say.

 

[S3 Rav]

lovely car. great work

 

[John @ PB]

Did you take any paint depth readings?

Any idea what you removed?

 

[Wozski]

Great job!
How did you clean the mess in Picture 8??
cheers

 

[CMD]

Wozski We used a citrus base apc cleaner.

 

[Wozski]

Cheers!
Looks mint!

 

[a3_dan]

Looks impressive mate!

 

[Ash B]

Looks good Grant, well done. Your gonna have to save my car from the swirl marks at some stage

 

[Jimmeh]

Well done guys - it's taken me a while to getting round to reading this. Sounds as though you're both still enjoying it!

All the best.

 

[Foxmeister]

Looks amazing mate, although was great to start with you can still see the difference!

How difficult is it to use a rotary? Have been hand doing for years but never tried anything like this, but after seeing the results im really interetsted in trying it if its possible, have you done many yourself???

 

[S4twiggy]

Looks amazing mate, although was great to start with you can still see the difference!

How difficult is it to use a rotary? Have been hand doing for years but never tried anything like this, but after seeing the results im really interetsted in trying it if its possible, have you done many yourself???

not that difficult mate but you have to be carefull, ideally you need to take paint depth readings so you know what you got to work with, if i was you id get yourself a DA polisher mate which is safer to use on a car and then when you get the hang of it you can get a rotary and build yourself up with that. lucky for me i have an audi coupe sitting on my drive i can practice on with a rotary to better your skills.
me and colin have done around 5 cars now and the people who dont understand what goes in to doing these cars are amazed when they come to pick them up from us. seeing it in photos doesnt do it justice in my opinion as you have to see it in the flesh so to speak to really appreciate what a car can look like when its been done the right way.

you wont be dissapointed if you go ahead and get yourself a DA mate and there a lots of guides and videos out there for you to follow.

 

[John @ PB]

Looks amazing mate, although was great to start with you can still see the difference!

How difficult is it to use a rotary? Have been hand doing for years but never tried anything like this, but after seeing the results im really interetsted in trying it if its possible, have you done many yourself???

A DA machine is infinitely safer and will get equally good results - the work rate is slower but for 99% of people 99% of the time, a DA is the best option. The refining stage will be much easier with a DA too.

You might find it useful to have a look at our guide to polishing here: Car Care Advice | Detailing Advice | What Does Polishing Do?

I'd recommend one of our hard paint kits: PB DAS-6 Hard Paint Polishing Kit | PB Car Care & Detailing Products or PB G220 Hard Paint Polishing Kit | PB Car Care & Detailing Products

Menzerna RD3.02 polishing compound is included in the kit and will remove almost all defects from the very hard Audi paint. We very rarely use anything more abrasive than that. Menzerna 85RE is the finishing polish in the kit and will enhance the gloss.

Feel free to email me if you'd like more specific advice.

 

[Nilz]

Wow Twiggy, you guys have done a great job with the car, looks perfect!!

 

[CHRIS555]

Excellent mate!