Tweet
I actually did this a while ago but kept forgetting to post it. I spent two days on this car, learning as I went along, and was very happy with the results.
The car is (was) my father's 1985 Toyota Corolla GT-S, with one of Toyota's fade-happy shades of red. A few areas (bumpers, right front fender) had been repainted and stood out. The car was washed maybe once every 4-6 months and sat under a tree when it wasn't being used.
As you can see, I had quite the canvas to begin learning on!
Ick! So, I bought a small arsenal of Meguiar's products and went to work:
First, a good wash:
Still badly faded as you see. The paint was full of contaminants too! Time for some clay, then...
The clay bar after doing just half of the hood.
I also had a bad scratch to contend with on the front fender where it meets the door.
After finishing the clay bar, taking my time getting the feel for it, I went for the ColorX to restore the finish to a deep red color.
Getting there...
Next it was time for the Gold Class Trim Detailer. In retrospect I probably should have done this last, but the black trim was such a light shade of gray I was going crazy.
Here's half of the rear end (and the complete spoiler) done - a bad picture but you can still get an idea of the difference.
Finally it was ready for NXT Tech Wax.
Ahhh, much better!
When it was said and done, I felt the touch-up job on the deep scratch turned out reasonably well.
I spent more time with the usual little things like wheels/tires, and also used PlastX on the lights. During this time I realized I hadn't used Gold Class Trim Detailer on the headlight housings (since they were hidden before), so I worked that stuff in everywhere I could find black trim. And there was plenty of it on this car!
That was about it for the exterior. Here is the finished result:
Hope you enjoyed this little story of my experiments. This 171,000 mile car was a fine guinea pig.
The car is (was) my father's 1985 Toyota Corolla GT-S, with one of Toyota's fade-happy shades of red. A few areas (bumpers, right front fender) had been repainted and stood out. The car was washed maybe once every 4-6 months and sat under a tree when it wasn't being used.
As you can see, I had quite the canvas to begin learning on!
Ick! So, I bought a small arsenal of Meguiar's products and went to work:
First, a good wash:
Still badly faded as you see. The paint was full of contaminants too! Time for some clay, then...
The clay bar after doing just half of the hood.
I also had a bad scratch to contend with on the front fender where it meets the door.
After finishing the clay bar, taking my time getting the feel for it, I went for the ColorX to restore the finish to a deep red color.
Getting there...
Next it was time for the Gold Class Trim Detailer. In retrospect I probably should have done this last, but the black trim was such a light shade of gray I was going crazy.
Here's half of the rear end (and the complete spoiler) done - a bad picture but you can still get an idea of the difference.Finally it was ready for NXT Tech Wax.
Ahhh, much better!
When it was said and done, I felt the touch-up job on the deep scratch turned out reasonably well.
I spent more time with the usual little things like wheels/tires, and also used PlastX on the lights. During this time I realized I hadn't used Gold Class Trim Detailer on the headlight housings (since they were hidden before), so I worked that stuff in everywhere I could find black trim. And there was plenty of it on this car!
That was about it for the exterior. Here is the finished result:
Hope you enjoyed this little story of my experiments. This 171,000 mile car was a fine guinea pig.
I'm sure it now puts some of the "new" cars on the block to shame.
What a hugh difference from start to finish. Great job man...really great job. Reminds me of my 1st Gen Escort with it's single stage paint and my first run with Meguiar's. Came out spotless!! 
Comment