The paint on this one was in very bad shape (I had previously detailed this car on Autopia before). It features incrediably soft paint and needed another full correction. I wanted to chronicle the steps required to get this vehicle to Bella Macchina standards, to hopefully help some of the forum members over here.

This has been a very exciting time for Bella Macchina as Brian and I's nearest competitor (and a phenomal detailer) has asked to come on board with us and increase our client list by three fold. That's the power of perfection I suppose. For this detail, I had my cousin along, as our dramatically increasing client list means we need to start training people on the Bella Macchina method of perfection.

I always start my details by cleaning the rims, tires, wheel wheels, and underbody areas first.

I wiped an area of the spoke first to show what how dirty the rims where. The barrels where extremely dirty, so we started by spraying the rims down with P21s Wheel Gel and on all for rims.



The brake dust and grime was aggitated with a combination of Swissvax's Wheel Brush, the EZ Detail Brush, cue tips, and patience. With our experience in concours shows, and our drive to make Bella Macchina the top company world wide in detailing excellence, a lot of time was spent in getting the hubs, behind the spokes, and brake calipers perfect.





The wheel wheels and tires where also extremely contaminated and dirty, so a combination of boar's hair brushes and Meguiars' APC where used to scrub and loosen the dirt.



Then we hooked up the CR Spotless System, and washed the Range Rover using nothing but the purest de-ionized water. Our soap of choice was Zaino's Z7 for its amazing lubricity and nice sud content. After washing the car using the two bucket method and natural sheepskin wool mitts, the car was rinsed and blown dry using two high speed blowers.



After blowing the car down, the door jambs where wiped clean using plush microfibers with Zaino Z6. Because de-ionized water is absolutely pure, the remaining water was left on the body to air dry, as there is no chance of water spotting.



We then pulled the Range Rover in the garage to inspect and measure the paint. Obviously this step is crucial, as measuring the paint allows us to select the least aggresive corrective method that will allow us to take the paint to perfection while maintaining the highest level of film build (paint thickness). The paint was fairly consistent, ranging from a high 4.1 mils, to a low of 3.4 mils, though most of the Range Rover was in the 3.6 range.
Under the halogen lights however, the paint looked like it would need serious correction (and it did!).



After experimenting with several combinations required to remove the swirls and RIDs to achieve perfection and then refining that combination to insure as much paint could remain as possible we started our journey towards to perfection. Most of the Range Rover required 3 to 4 steps of correction, as there was some deeper line scratches. However over 90 percent of the Range Rover showed no measurable difference in film build. Several areas did loose .1-.2 mils as the deeper scratches required more aggressive chasing.



The passenger side rear door has a lot of deep scratches that required more aggressive techniques.



After heavy compounding... (I know it looks worse, but the haze is very superfical in depth)

 

Perfected



As I worked the paint towards perfection, my cousin Scott worked the interior. The carpets and floor mats where vaccummed and brushed, before final vacumming. Various boar's hair brushes where used in conjuction with compressed air to blow dust from very crack, crevice, and vent.



The interior of this Range Rover is Ivory with Piano Black trim. The painted trim was polished by hand using green german foam applicators and Zaino Z-PC fusion, before being topped with Zaino AIO.



The dash, plastic and other "hard" surfaces" where cleaned and treated with Enzitte's 1Z Cockpit Premium and the weather stripping and trim was treated with 1Z's Plastik Reiniger. The leather was cleaned with a combination of Leather Master's products. Here the conditioning oil is hand rubbed into the beautiful hides...



A picture of yours truely jeweling the paint with my personal favorite finishing pad, the Lake Country Gray Finishing Pad.



During the paint correction, the tighter areas required extensive use of the 4 inch polishing pads. Once again I prefer Lake Country's pads.



After paint correction, the panels where wiped down with DuPont prep-sol to remove any polishing oils that can act to mask defects. After wipedown, the paint was inspected from every angle with twin 500w halogen lights as well as the Brinkman "swirlfinder" Dual Xenon light. The paint was flawless and ready for protection.

After consideration, I elected to go with two coats of Zaino Z2pro (ZFX enabled) for maximum gloss and shine. Of course the problem with Zaino Z2pro is the perfect optics and clarity really demand a perfect finish, otherwise it can highlight any flaws.

The car was washed again using de-ionized pure water and Zaino Z7 soap to remove any polishing dust from the surface, as well as the ensure a perfect bond between the paints surface for maximum durablity.

The window's where cleaned with Meguiars' Pro Line window cleaner and sealed with Jeff Werkstatt Prime Strong topped with Acyrilic Jett Trigger, inside and out. The rims recieved Zaino AIO topped with Z2pro. For exterior trim protection, 303 Areospace Protectant was choosen for its natural shine as well as outstanding UV protection to prevent fading.

Afters'

 

 

 

 

Amazing job Todd!

These RR black paints are some of the hardest to deal with. Did you experience outgasing/film breathing while polishing?

 

What is "outgasing" and "film breathing"? Sorry for being stupid, I've just never heard the term before and want to expand my knowledge a little.

Thanks.

BTW, great work Todd, that RR looks awesome, those reflective pics are incredible.

Josh

 

Knowing what those terms are will expand your knowledge a lot more than a little

 

So what the heck does it mean for the luv!!?

 

http://www.g35driver.com/forums/showthread.php?t=208716

Todd,

it's time to become a sponsor..

You can't be posting with your company name here. It's just so flatly unfair to any paying sponsors.

detailing FYI--and I have no affiliation... - G35Driver

Founded by Todd Helme and based out of Orlando, Florida, Bella Macchina is the new standard in exotic and luxury car detailing. ...

 

Their write ups are sounding like infomercial's. I was tempted to say something, when they asked a member to meet them about his car.