This week's Lease Return Package is a 2007 Audi A4 2.0T which came in with horrible water etching and medium swirling. Medium swirling on most cars isn't necessarily a big deal but on the typically hard Audi clearcoat it almost necessitates a two-step correction with a heavy compound and finishing glaze. This particular car had a dull and hazed appearance to the finish and just didn't look truely black anymore.
After reading a few reviews on Meguiar's D151 Paint Reconditioning Cream, I decided to give it a shot for a test spot just to see what it would do as the customer didn't really want the added expense of a multi-step correction to get the paint perfect.
Customer came over and I washed/clayed the test area. What was left behind was horrible hazing, hard-water etching, and significant swirling. I taped off the test area and took some shots for a record and to visually compare the areas afterwards:
Test area...



After one pass of D151 via Flex and CCS Orange pad on speed setting 6, the results were very impressive. I did not expect to make a significant dent in the defects but did hope to substantially improve the overall appearance and gloss since the customer was dead-set on a one-step.
After working the product for eight total passes (four vertical and four horizontal) I allowed the product to dry back to a slight haze and then wiped with a clean microfiber and a light mist of Meg's Last Touch quick detailer. To say the owner, and I, were pretty impressed is an understatement. The test area had severly reduced swirling and all of the hazing, water etching, and dullness disappeared. I pulled the car back out into the sunlight for a true assessment. It literally looked like a different color of paint:
50/50's...



The D151 left only the deepest marring, RIDS, and heavy swirls. But even with the heavier defects it was able to minimize them to a level that really makes them look a lot more like minimal defects. I'll be repeating this process over the entire vehicle along with the full Lease Return Package including engine detail and interior clean-up. Stay tuned for the full process write-up and pics to follow tomorrow when completed.
Big thanks go out to Gary at Premium for his help and suggestions!
Thanks for looking...
After reading a few reviews on Meguiar's D151 Paint Reconditioning Cream, I decided to give it a shot for a test spot just to see what it would do as the customer didn't really want the added expense of a multi-step correction to get the paint perfect.
Customer came over and I washed/clayed the test area. What was left behind was horrible hazing, hard-water etching, and significant swirling. I taped off the test area and took some shots for a record and to visually compare the areas afterwards:
Test area...



After one pass of D151 via Flex and CCS Orange pad on speed setting 6, the results were very impressive. I did not expect to make a significant dent in the defects but did hope to substantially improve the overall appearance and gloss since the customer was dead-set on a one-step.
After working the product for eight total passes (four vertical and four horizontal) I allowed the product to dry back to a slight haze and then wiped with a clean microfiber and a light mist of Meg's Last Touch quick detailer. To say the owner, and I, were pretty impressed is an understatement. The test area had severly reduced swirling and all of the hazing, water etching, and dullness disappeared. I pulled the car back out into the sunlight for a true assessment. It literally looked like a different color of paint:
50/50's...



The D151 left only the deepest marring, RIDS, and heavy swirls. But even with the heavier defects it was able to minimize them to a level that really makes them look a lot more like minimal defects. I'll be repeating this process over the entire vehicle along with the full Lease Return Package including engine detail and interior clean-up. Stay tuned for the full process write-up and pics to follow tomorrow when completed.
Big thanks go out to Gary at Premium for his help and suggestions!
Thanks for looking...

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