Revived: 2001 Mercedes Benz SLK230 (50+ pics!!!!!)

kaval · 08-13-07, 03:53

Greetings everyone

I had the pleasure of detailing this SLK230 that was covered in swirls and random scratches.
It was a fun project that I did in about 12 hours using a PC as I don't have a rotary backing plate that will fit my pads at the moment, but no worries

Here are some pics of after it was washed. There were buffer trails all over the car from the dealer the owner purchased the car from.

Process:

Pretreat with citrus degreaser
Wash using 2 bucket method + sheepskin mitt with Meg's GC
Rims cleaned with EO wheel cleaner
Tires cleaned with Purple Power APC 8:1
Clay car and rims
Wash again
Dry with MF WW towel

Then the car was brought into the garage to get it ready for paint correction. I settled on OC and mixed it with OP (with orange pad) as I didn't need THAT much cut. It was mixed at about 70/30 respectively. The car was followed up with PO106ff (white pad) and my goodness did it ever make a huge difference! It was my first time using it, and I had a gumming problem but quickly realized that you don't need very much product. I ended up not applying any more to my pad to finish the rest of the car (except for a few pea sized drops) and it came out fantastic! Everything was done via PC.

This car was covered in RIDS and I tried my best to reduce the visibility of them without wetsanding. I made sometimes 3 or 4 passes to get them down but did not want to reduce the clearcoat thickness too much.
Pics:

kaval · 08-13-07, 03:54

After paint correction, I followed up with Optimum Opti-Seal (learning curve indeed), and topped with #26.
Tires got EO tire shine, trim got Trim Restore and rims received Opti-Seal.
Windows were cleaned inside and out with IG, and interior was vacuumed. Leather received TW Platinum Leather cleaner and conditioner, and dash received 303. Interior was wiped clean.

Engine bay was cleaned with APC and dressed with 303.

Pics:

Special thanks to my brothafromanothamotha Adil for coming to help out, it was greatly appreciated!

Thanks for looking! Any criticism, questions, suggestions and compliments are welcome.

Kaval

mikebai1990 · 08-13-07, 04:08

Very nice transformation

Your huge pictures barely fit my 1600x1200 resolution screen

blackf0rk · 08-13-07, 04:12

Excellent work for what you had to work with (both the nightmare of the car, and only being able to use a PC)!

kaval · 08-13-07, 04:18

thanks for the comments! Pics are fixed. I have no idea why some come out bigger than others. They are all taken with the same settings. Oh well!

I can't wait to start using a rotary

Sludge · 08-13-07, 04:22

Nice save on that one. Looks way better that it did. Good job.

gmblack3a · 08-13-07, 04:25

Excellent recovery on that hammered paint and even more amazing that it was done with a PC.

Bigpoppa3346 · 08-13-07, 04:44

Man that thing was trashed! Came out great though, especially considering it was done with a PC. Great work!

Ben Kenobi · 08-14-07, 09:07

Looks great, major revival of the paint! The tires still look a little brown after cleaning, maybe the PP wasn't strong enough to get rid of everything. What did you use on the painted surfaces in the engine bay btw?

You also didn't blank out the plate on a rear angle shot as I know you normally do. I bet the customer was very pleased with the results.

fishbonezken · 08-14-07, 09:39

All that correction with just the PC! Kaval, you the man!
great work.
wanna ask, the 70/30 mix you mentioned means,

70% Optimum Compound + 30% Optimum Polish?
How did the finish looked after the OC+OP/Orange step, was the 106FF/White necessary?

the gloss in the after shots are really great.

kaval · 08-14-07, 10:08

Quote:

Originally Posted by fishbonezken

All that correction with just the PC! Kaval, you the man!
great work.
wanna ask, the 70/30 mix you mentioned means,

70% Optimum Compound + 30% Optimum Polish?
How did the finish looked after the OC+OP/Orange step, was the 106FF/White necessary?

the gloss in the after shots are really great.

that is correct...the finish was beautiful, but I was very anxious to try the 106FF as I did not try it up till that point, except on the headlight I did on the 1.6EL I posted prior to this.

OC itself finishes very well, but it is still a compound, and when you finish with a lighter polish, it always makes the surface look better, as was the case when I followed up with 106FF.

106FF is definitely going to be a polish I use often.

By the way, on the painted surfaces in the engine bay, I used meg's cleaner wax.

Coupe · 08-14-07, 12:21

I dont see the point of mixing OC and OP.