The last VXR Monaro - Tuned by Wortec, detailed by Shine On
Its current owner took possession of the car late last summer and set about making a few modifications to it, the most obvious being the bigger wheels and functional louvers in the bonnet to aid with removing the massive heat from the engine bay. The wheel arches were also inwardly rolled to aid tyre clearance, and all this lead to all but the roof and bootlid being resprayed in the original metallic Phantom Black. Back from the bodyshop, Shine On Auto Detailing were contacted to perfect the new paintwork and a Swissvax Best Of Show detail was chosen to protect it.
Upon arrival the car was already clean, only having travelled 5 miles since its new paint job.
A quick wash was all that was needed, followed by a pass over the car with a mild clay to ensure the paint was completely contaminant free. Its common to find small amounts of overspray here and there after a bodyshop visit, often felt as a rough patch rather than obviously seen. Claying removed any of this leaving a perfectly smooth surface. Whilst this was being done the sun started to shine a little, revealing swirls on the original paint, and the new paint in dire need of refining to remove the marring and holograms left by the bodyshop.
Experience has shown that defects like this are usually very light and a gentle approach is all that is needed, this was no different. After taping up rubber window seals, a test patch was carried out using Swissvax Cleaner Fluid Professional (a mildly abrasive product that leaves an ideal surface for wax to adhere to), and the results were immediately obvious, the owner being very impressed with the stark difference!
Happy with this, I continued along the offside of the car. As shown in the pictures below, the paint goes from looking quite grey, with a misty finish and the holograms mentioned earlier appearing as greasy looking marks that float on the paint, to a deep rich glossy black.
Here are some more pictures showing the paint correction that was being achieved.
Driver’s door.
Rear panel.
Bonnet.
Turning the car around to take advantage of the sunshine, these pictures again show the massive difference professional polishing makes.
Due to the original paint on the roof and bonnet being rather harder than resprayed areas, a slightly different approach was required with a heavier cut abrasive. Once corrected, they were then treated again with Swissvax Cleaner Fluid to prepare for the application of Best Of Show wax.
Wax was applied to the whole car by hand, and left to cure for around 30 minutes. During this time, the alloys were treated with Autobahn Wheel Wax, the exhaust tips polished and glass was cleaned with Crystal. Tyres were dressed with Chemical Guys New Look Trim Gel, chosen specifically for the wet look it imparts.
As the sun was setting, just enough time to take a few shots of the finished car.
This was the very kind message I received from the car’s owner after the detail.
“Paul – I know its your job and your paid for it but thanks again for bringing the car up to the standard that I really wanted. Nothing but compliments from all that have seen it so far and the looks now match the performance I have. This was the first time I’ve ever had anything detailed but it wont be the last thats for sure! Again many thanks and feel free to add this to your growing list of recomendations.
Roger.”
Testimonials
“I would definitely recommend anyone to use Shine On regardless of marque, Paul is a genuinely nice bloke who has the rare attributes of actually loving his job and doing it to the best of his ability (bordering on OCD). I personally plan to use this service at least every 8months to keep the cars looking at their best.
And to top it all off…..even my wife commented on how and I quote ‘amazing’ it looked, that testimony alone is worth its weight in gold!
Andy (M3 and Battle Bus!)”
