1998 Nissan Maxima SE (Scotchbrite Edition) - Nov. '04 Entry

S

stilez

New member
I did this detail at the beginning of September but felt I needed to enter it :)



I did this 1998 Nissan Maxima for one of my fraternity brothers. He purchased the car from his mom for a really nice deal. The car drivetrain wise was mechanically sound, but I couldn't speak the same for the exterior :(



The interior was heavily soiled and being light beige didn't help it either. I knew I had my work cut out for me so I went right at it. My final interior processes were:



-Oxy Mix (2 scoops:2gals water) on upholstery, mats, and rugs - pretreated with APC+ 10:1 in a sprayer and extracted with a ShopVac

-APC+ (10:1) on all plastic, vinyl, rubber...I really couldn't believe the level of dirt embedded...I felt like I changed the color of the interior

-AA to protect all plastic, vinyl, rubber

-Gliptone Glass Cleaner for the glass





Before

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After

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The car had a boat load of bonded contaminants that really filled up my claybar. Once QEW'd, clayed, and dried, I almost curled over when I looked at the hood in the sun :scared :scared :scared :scared :scared



xdetail2.jpg




It literally looked as though the car was washed with a Scotchbrite Scour Pad. If it wasn't, then it was washed with Comet and a Sponge...Something dramatically scoured this paint and I knew I had my work cut out for me.
 
I tried a couple of different polishes via rotary and LC cutting pad (DACP, SSR 2.5) but ended up busting out the big dog compound. Menzerna PowerGloss via rotary and LC 7.5" Foam Concaved Cutting Pad @ 1700-1900rpm did the trick. On horiztonal surfaces, 2-3 separate passes were needed, but it did the trick. Powergloss left an amazingly clear, glossy, and swirl-free shine with only the littlest amount of micro-marring. I followed up with Menzerna Final Polish with a LC 7.5" Foam Polishing Pad @1500 rpm, took the tape off, and grabbed this amazing side-by-side pic. Notice the tremendous amount of clarity regained after polishing :)



xdetail3.jpg






My final exterior processes were:



-QEW with 2 bucket/mitt method

-Wolfgang Poly Elastic Clay using a QEW lube

-Menzerna Powergloss via rotary and LC Concaved Foam Cutting Pad @1700-1900 rpm...Multiple passes if needed

-Menzerna Final Polish via rotary and LC Concaved Foam Polishing Pad @1500rpm

-Poorboy's EX-P by hand



-Armor All on tires and in wheel wells





Hood Finished

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Although the front bumper was too far gone and the paint on it was very thin, I saved this owner from spending a couple thousand on a new paintjob. He was exstatic over the results :) . He ended up repainting the hubcaps and tinting the windows. This car was now ready to be driven with pride ;)





Couple more afters



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Enjoy!
 
Amazing work sean! That taped off half--and-half pic is amazing!And yes i joined autopia and am learning a sh** load, anyway nice work!
 
wow, that is an amazing transformation. i can't wait to use my Menzerna polishes:) great job sean. the competition steps up, and you just have to one up us all don't you!! haha, oh well. at least the prize money goes towards a good guy. keep it up!



Vernon
 
you weren't kidding about the interior. the before and afters. yikes! :scared and great job on the exterior. that rear fender shot has some awesome reflections. :bow
 
Greg said:
How come you switched the mats for the after shot?
Click to expand...



It was an oversight on my part. The detail took in excess of 6 hours and by the time I was done I had forgotten whether I took them with or without.



You can see, however, the difference in the seats as well as the carpets surrounding the mats.



Greg, my humble apologies.
 
GSRstilez said:
It was an oversight on my part. The detail took in excess of 6 hours and by the time I was done I had forgotten whether I took them with or without.



You can see, however, the difference in the seats as well as the carpets surrounding the mats.



Greg, my humble apologies.
Click to expand...



Yeah, I can definitely see the difference. I see you changed the color of the whole interior including the steering wheel, dash, shifter, and surrounding areas. And those seats, you turned them from grey to white. Impressive.



Sean, my humble opinion.
 
Greg said:
How come you switched the mats for the after shot?
Click to expand...



yeah you are right, since he switched the mats, it is a false entry. the mats were the only part of the car that were dirty anyway. the rest of the interior was spotless. i understand your point greg, but at the same time, he did an amazing job on the car and its the floormats, not like the whole interior or anything. the car had obvious defects(stained interior, swirls everwhere, etc) and in my opinion, i have not seen a makeover like this in a long time. not only was the exterior transformed, but the interior as well. i think this one even beats the jetta!



Vernon
 
Can anyone say Monopoly on the contest! ;) I don't know how anyone is supposed to win this contest with this Sean guy always entering!:D I mean geeze, with results like that, how does anyone stand a chance. I'm only kidding. But I thin Sean and the fine folks at Menzerna are in bed together!:cool: I think they are trying to show the world how great of a product they make!! Anyways, great work Sean, as usual. I guess now I hope I just get one vote.:D
 
Sean...were it not for the hood shot with the damage half way corrected I'd have to think you swapped the beater for a garage queen.



INCREDIBLE work on the interior and exterior...that isn't detailing...restoration is more like it!



:bow :xyxthumbs :bow
 
:bow Holy Smokes!



No. I'm sorry but I call foul. You used two different cars. Fess up Sean. :)



Todd is right. This is restoration or maybe more accurately you have exorcised the demons in the car.
 
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