This was a built to order car and the owner took delivery straight off the truck. The owner watched as transit films were removed. No detailing was done at the dealership. One would think that this car should be in pristine condition having never been touched. Wrong. It's easy to overlook the process that occur at the assembly plant. Vehicles undergo several tests and inspections prior to leaving the assembly plant. I had the pleasure of seeing some of these activities first hand at the old Ford Ranger Plant in Saint Paul. I was responsible for preparing the site demolition plans and utility termination plans. Along with having access to the dam, steam plant and old tunnels, I also walked the production floor. Vehicles are inspected for paint defects and any defects found are hastily corrected. Vehicles are also leak tested. Not for mechanical fluids, but for rain. This is accomplished by placing it in a flood bay where the vehicles are drenched in high pressure water. In the care of the Ranger plant. Using potable city water would be expensive, so Ford pumped the water directly form the Mississippi River, which is listed as an impaired water for mercury and...fecal coliform. Just what I want sprayed onto my paint.
The owner plans to keep this vehicle for a very long time so he was looking for the best protection he could get. That came in the form of XPEL Ultimate self healing film (installed by Midwest Clearbra) and Nanohide Self Healing Coating. I want the paint to be as close to perfect as possible for the new owner. When a PPF is going to be installed on part of the car, I will perform the correction on those panels and approximately 1-foot beyond the extents of the film. Then after the film has been installed, I will finish the work. It means an extra trip for the owner. However, if the coating goes on before the film, I'm guessing where the film will end, the the paint may not have complete coverage. If I do the paint correction after the film, there is a risk of swirls being visible under the film. In this way, the risk of either is mitigated.
Process
- Wheels and tires cleaned with Meguiar's DUB wheel cleaner and Ardex Proper
- Prefoamed with CG citrus wash + Gloss and Bilt hamber Autofoam
- Hand wash with CG citrus wash daily
- Mechanically decontaminated with traditional clay bar
- Paint was compounded with Meguiars D300 on a Boss 21 with Meguairs MF pads
- Paint was polished with HD Polish+ on a Boss 21 with rupes yellow pads
- Bumpers were corrected with a DAS pro plus 15mm and 4-inch pads
- Tight areas were corrected with Flex Kompact rotary and various pads
- Paint was protected with Nanohide NH-A7 seal healing coating
- Tires were dressed with carpro PERL
- Wheels were protected with Pearl Nano HD wheel coating
- Exhaust cleaned with pinnacle exhaust cleaner and brightener
