Showing posts with label Mazda. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mazda. Show all posts

Wednesday, April 8, 2015

William's Turbo RX8

Another long due update from us at Obsession Car Detailing.

We are slowly working our way through the backlog of cars and photos we have worked on, and we have some exciting write-ups coming so keep an eye out.

Also remember you can always stay up-to-date with what we are working on by checking out our Facebook at www.facebook.com/obsessioncardetailing.

Now onto William's RX8. The RX8 was meant to be a replacement for the legendary RX7, but unfortunately, in stock form, it was a tad...sluggish. It never really inspired like the RX7 did, so much so that there have been constant rumours about a new RX7 from Mazda. William didn't see this is a a problem though, and took advantage of the perfect weight distribution and handling to maximum effect, taking it to the track whenever possible. Soon, the power bug hit, and William had the car fitted with a full turbo kit, unlocking the potential of the Wankel rotary. Driving the car, I could only think "this feels like factory, this is how the car should have come from the factory". Amazing response, pin sharp handling, and a brilliant sound.

Despite these attributes, William knew his RX8 had seen better days, and because he drives his car how it is meant to be driven, it was bound to look a bit rough round the edges. He had taken it to other detailers over the years, and never really been happy, so he decided to bring the car to us for a full paint restoration.

The car was dirty, water spots, and staining:

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Starting with a wash:

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After our usual washing procedure, it was time to examine the paint:

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The paint was adequate thickness in some places:

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And scary thin in others:

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Time to start testing:

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A few stone chips were wet sanded, touched up, sanded and then polished smooth:

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Good results from an initial cutting stage:

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Refining with another stage:

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A flawless finish after final polishing:

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Time to call it a night:

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 The car was wiped down to remove any traces of polish:

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And Opti-Coat was applied for a slick, glossy finish that will last for years:

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Final Shots:

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Like all our distinguished clients, William was blown away with the results.

Be sure to get in contact to find out how we can help beautify your ride to its former glory!

Wednesday, February 19, 2014

Scott's 2005 Mazda MX5

The Mazda MX5 is the best selling convertible of all time, and one drive quickly shows you why. Lightweight, dynamic, and just plain fun, the car is an absolute blast. Sure, the cars have lacked power, but this isn't what they were about, they have the perfect amount of power to enable you to have fun on the road and track without getting into too much trouble. Not only that, but on the track, a well sorted MX5 can run rings round many faster, and more expensive cars, and on a twisty mountain road? Forget about it, an MX5 in the hands of a half competent driver will run away from just about anything. In case you hadn't noticed we love these cars, so when Scott called us about giving his some much needed TLC, we were only too happy to oblige.

Now this is where things get interesting. Scott was after a full paint correction, and a complete interior rejuvenation, as he was getting married, and this car was going to be part of the convoy. He's owned it since new, so of course, it had to be! However, Scott works at the CSIRO, and is involved in aircraft coatings. And he worked with the team that tested Opti-Coat. So we have a scientist, an expert in coatings, asking for Opti-Coat for his car. When a scientist that tested the product asks for it on his car, then you know you're onto a winner. Further proof that Opti-Coat is quite simply the best all round coating there is. Without a doubt it is the most durable, and combines the best qualities desired in a coating to produce the number one coating on the market, and the only one guaranteed to last a lifetime. Anyway, we don't need to sing praises about Opti-Coat, you already how much we love it, and recommend it for most people.

Scott brought his Mazda in, and luckily it looked like a car that was driven, and driven hard. There were hundreds of stonechips, which would require a respray to remove, but Scott wasn't concerned about these, rather, the millions of swirls marks that destroyed the beautiful green paint:

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Yes it was bad....

We started off by removing iron contamination:

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Followed by a foam bath and thorough cleaning of the wheels:

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Whilst the the foam dwelled, we got started on the interior:

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The leather was given a good scrub:

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And wiped clean. Check out how dirty the cloth is after just one wipe!

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The mats were sucked dry:

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And done. What a difference!
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Before polishing, we took paint depth readings. Now, I know the MX5 is meant to be light, but the thickness, or rather lack of, was just plain scary in some locations!

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We had to be very careful, and could not achieve 100% correction on all panels simply due to the lack of paint. Nonetheless, the difference was night and day! We had to use some fairly aggressive wool pads for the initial cut, and then were able to refine this.

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The car literally looked a different colour!

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Flawless:

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And the beautiful metallic fleck is now visible too!

The car was given another wash, and the engine bay too:

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And after the application of Opti-Coat, under 'the light of truth' (the sun). Practically flawless:

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The metallic is just gorgeous.

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Finally some nice shots of the car before it was given back to its incredibly happy owner! (Please note all the white dots are stone chips not dirt!)

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This was not a small job by any means, but it helped the car was quite small! Scott was stunned, the car looked brand new, and made a fantastic wedding car. Thanks to Scott and the CSIRO for further verifying why Opti-Coat is such a gread product, and for choosing Obsession Car Detailing.

Products Used

Exterior


  • Rupes Bigfoot
  • Das Pro Random Orbital
  • Optimum Hyper Polish
  • Optimum Hyper Compound
  • Scholl S17
  • Optimum Opti-Bond Tyre Gel
  • Optimum Opti-Coat
Interior

  • Autoglym Leather Cleaner
  • Optimum Power Clean
  • Optimum Opti-Guard
  • Optimum Leather and Vinyl