1WILLY1

iTrader: (9)

Hey guys ,

I have quite a bit of work to do to my 03 LS430, ive made my first step today I bought a few products to get myself started.

First I bought a quart of Metallic Gold base coat for some paint work that needs to be done. (yes I got the color code and had it matched)

Then I got a few Meguirs products, and went to town on my engine bay.

Im really not sure if the Meguirs vinyl - rubber product I have is meant for the plastics under the engine bay, but I tested them out and it looked great so I continued.

I also got this leather conditioner cleaner, im not sure if anyone here has used it or if its any good, but it really did a good job on cleaning my armrest and my drivers seat which were quite dirty.

My yellow rag looked almost black by the time I was done, it seems to really penetrate the leather.

1WILLY1

iTrader: (9)

I found these marks under the hood and I hope it isn't a sign of mice or rats under the hood.

Also im unsure of what to do with my hood , all these rock chips , I really don't want to re-spray, but at the same time I don't want these to get worse.

Im thinking of sanding and cleaning the area , touching up with a small brush with the base coat , then using an airbrush to blend the area in a little better, then clear coating it followed with a good cutting - buffing - polishing???? What do you guys think?

Last is my bumper, I hit a ice hill in the winter , it left a large fist sized dent in the rear corner, ive already done all the hard work, it just needs a few more rounds of sanding and filling and it will be ready for priming and finishing, ill take photos and note the progress as I go.

I am also going to be purchasing some leatherique leather dye , ive already snipped a sample from under my rear seats to have matched, and ill document my progress with re-dying my front drivers seat and arm rest, as well as a few other areas.

Also my rear fenders are all rippled due to me rolling and pulling them, I will be doing the repair of that myself which ill also document.

For now that is all.

Sh4keNB4ke

Wow. Looks great. How long does that vinyl rubber conditioner last? Does it give a deep rich shine?

1WILLY1

iTrader: (9)

im not sure how long it lasts, but even if I have to do it once every couple weeks I don't mind, it only took 15 minutes.

And it gives it a good sheen, not too high gloss, just brings out the natural sheen and color of the plastics and rubbers, it does look great in person im well pleased.

Thanks

Jetfire

iTrader: (3)

looking good with the engine bay. nice matte sheen. Not overly glossy.

The markings look like scuffing. maybe from tools when the engine was being worked on

I'm glad you're seeing great results with each product. Now that you've done the deep cleaning, the fun part is the maintenance.

Sh4keNB4ke

Awesome. Thanks. I'll have to give it a try.

monkey92

iTrader: (3)

excellent work on the engine bay!

1WILLY1

iTrader: (9)

made some more progress today , I decided to try a new wax, "ICE", so far I really like it , gives a really nice sheen , applies very easily.

I waxed my car and gave my wheels the royal treatment as well.

1WILLY1

iTrader: (9)

I also purchased some new "OEM"? floor mats.

Im not too happy with them, the material is clearly different , they are as thin as paper , but at least they are clean and look better then my old worn out set, they will have to do.

sjgIS350

Wax is really a final step (or near final).

After a good, detailed wash, consider doing a clay bar treatment, really takes out bonded contaminants and leaves a nice smooth finish, follow that up with some paint correction and/or polish, followed by a couple coats of wax.

Regarding paint chips, some may go away with proper paint correction process, Consider Dr color chip for the real chips. It works great, just takes time and patience!

1WILLY1

iTrader: (9)

thanks buddy , ive claybared my car twice in the 8 months ive owned it .

I want to do the windows now after seeing another member do it recently.

Ill be googling 'dr color ' chip'

UDel

Are you doing your own paintwork?

1WILLY1

iTrader: (9)

yes, ill be doing the bumper later today ill post photos.

1WILLY1

iTrader: (9)

Finally got the bumper done.

Major pain in the back but it turned out great and I saved myself a large chunk of change.

It needed a 3rd coat of clear, a real heavy wet coat, but my neighbors were watching me and giving me dirty looks, so I decided to call it a day while I was still ahead.

This is not even a driveway job, this is all done on the side of the road lol

1WILLY1

iTrader: (9)

here are the after shots, im super pleased with my body shop guys who matched the paint for me , they did a great job IMO.

Metalic gold is a hard color to match they did great.