Detailed a RX8

[Dreams94coupe]

My friend has an RX8 and for 2yrs now he has been bugging me about detailing his car and I finally agreed to the job. At first I didn't think it was going to be bad because I know he always washed it and parked it up for the winter time but man I was horrible.

Issues that needed to be addressed were:
-fogged up headlights and tail lights
-tar removal
-Bird shit that's etched in the paint
-swirl marks
-scuff and scratch marks
-paint feeling like sand paper
-engine detail
-exhaust build up on tail pipe
-water marks on headliner
-clean up leather seats

Here are pics of what I had to start off with:





























First thing I start off with before even considering washing the car is to do the engine bay first. The engine bay wasn't so bad so I just did the standard degrease followed by cd2 detailer. Pics of the after when the owner sends me some more pics.

For the paint I did wash, clay, polish, wax, and sealant. Below is a video of how bad the paint was. It took me 4.5hrs just to clay to car. The clay bar that I used was from Meguiars



before:


After (only swiping 2 times):



For the muffler tail pipe my friend was going to get new ones since the looked so bad. i decided to take on the challenge just to see what i can do. I used a cleaner that is meant for bbq grills and it literally cleaned off all the build up within secs and all I had to do was wipe it off with a damp cloth.



Here a pic of the headlight after the initial pass. More pics later of the final result in direct sunlight (Yes I know Chrispy).



Here are some night shots of the car when I dropped it off and man no one couldn't believe that it was his car. Needless to say the response from everyone was overwhelming and immediately had 4 people lined up for jobs but to be honest I probably wont be doing this again.

[94_GS_Sedan]

Nice job Jereme! I've had my share of tough buff jobs. It takes a toll on your back man. I love doing it but after doing one car the right way, you literally need 2 days of rest lol.


-Sayed

[Dreams94coupe]

^ Thanks man. My back didn't really bother me due to my adjustable stool. I was a little scared about all the vibrations on my hand but I forget how smooth flex buffer was because I didn't feel a thing in my hands the whole day.

[TheExtra404]

great job you did there man.
The finished job looks great.

[94_GS_Sedan]

Originally Posted by Dreams94coupe

^ Thanks man. My back didn't really bother me due to my adjustable stool. I was a little scared about all the vibrations on my hand but I forget how smooth flex buffer was because I didn't feel a thing in my hands the whole day.

I have a dewalt buffer. By far the heaviest and most powerful. That thing is a workout in itself lol. I've been meaning to get a DA buffer for polishing but my dewalt does a decent job so I've been lazy on getting another one.


-Sayed

[Dreams94coupe]

Originally Posted by 94_GS_Sedan

I have a dewalt buffer. By far the heaviest and most powerful. That thing is a workout in itself lol. I've been meaning to get a DA buffer for polishing but my dewalt does a decent job so I've been lazy on getting another one.


-Sayed

I've been meaning to step it up to a rotary but the flex already does a good enough job. If I do get a rotary buffer it will have to be the new flex buffer. I was at the autogeek meet this year and I was able to test it out. That buffer is super light and it has zero vibrations.




Features:

FLEX seven-fold microprocessor electronics: with consistent speed control by tachometer generator, soft start, accelerator trigger switch, restart protection after power interruption, overload protection, temperature monitoring, and speed selection
High-powered motor: can handle extreme loads
Spindle lock: for easy disc changes
Quality shut-off carbon brushes: if the carbon brushes wear down, the motor will be automatically switched off and thus protected from damage
Bail handle
4 m (13 ft.) power cord


Technical Specifications

Max. polishing pad diameter 160 mm or 6.3 inches
Max. backing plate diameter 160 mm or 6.3 inches
Speed without load 1100-3700 rpm
Power input 1400 Watt
Power output 880 Watt
Weight 2.20 kg (4.8 lbs.)

[Classico]

nice job brother

[-X-]

that looks great man! good work

[94_GS_Sedan]

Originally Posted by Dreams94coupe

I've been meaning to step it up to a rotary but the flex already does a good enough job. If I do get a rotary buffer it will have to be the new flex buffer. I was at the autogeek meet this year and I was able to test it out. That buffer is super light and it has zero vibrations.




Features:

FLEX seven-fold microprocessor electronics: with consistent speed control by tachometer generator, soft start, accelerator trigger switch, restart protection after power interruption, overload protection, temperature monitoring, and speed selection
High-powered motor: can handle extreme loads
Spindle lock: for easy disc changes
Quality shut-off carbon brushes: if the carbon brushes wear down, the motor will be automatically switched off and thus protected from damage
Bail handle
4 m (13 ft.) power cord


Technical Specifications

Max. polishing pad diameter 160 mm or 6.3 inches
Max. backing plate diameter 160 mm or 6.3 inches
Speed without load 1100-3700 rpm
Power input1400 Watt
Power output880 Watt
Weight2.20 kg (4.8 lbs.)

I don't really like small pads. I use 9 inch pads on my dewalt and I've been thinking of upgrading them to 10" or 12" pads even. 6" pads are gonna make working on larger cars a pain. On the flip side, it makes those groves and hard to reach places much easier.


-Sayed

[Sbwooder]

Nice work! I know its a lot of hard work to do what you did, I get a hold of my sisters Rx-8 once a year, usually fall time and do the same. Her Rx-8 is that bright Velocity red metallic on the same red/black interior. Her head lights also fog up the same and her paint comes back feeling like sand paper. She washes it once or twice a year and changes oils, thats about it. So anyway it looks great all cleaned up!




CW