This Scion FR-S was bought new in 2013 and since then had only seen some basic detailing from other local companies, as such it was in need of a serious polishing. After an inspection and some discussion with the owner, a one-step correction process was decided upon, along with 22ple’s VX-1 Pro coating to protect the car and reduce maintenance needs for the coming two years. As you can see in the before pictures, the car had plenty of straight-line marring, contamination and was still covered in salt from the winter months.
Before:
Heavy salt accumulation was present on the lower panels:
Wax residue still remained from whoever had detailed the car previously:
The wheels showed a fair amount of baked-on brake dust:
Even through the dirt the damage to the finish could be seen:
Some areas showed deeper marring and scratches which would require additional compounding to remove:
To start the car was washed with Chemical Guys Citrus Wash & Gloss using filtered water, then iron deposits and tar were removed via CarPro’s Tri-X while Sonax Wheel Cleaner Plus was allowed to dwell and loosen up embedded brake dust. Following this the body was further cleaned with Clay Magic fine grade clay. Numerous pad/polish combinations were tested with the Rupes 21, finally resulting in a mix of Griot’s Fast Correcting Cream & HD Polish, followed by a quick refining pass with HD Polish (all on LC polishing pads) to achieve the desired ~85% correction rate.
Here the result of compounding with Griot’S FCC & HD Polish can be seen; swirls and marring were almost entirely removed and gloss was improved. After this the finish would be refined further using just HD Polish, creating greater depth and making the metallic flake more evident:
Following all polishing steps the car was rinsed with filtered water and wiped down with CarPro Eraser to ensure proper bonding of VX-1 Pro.
Here you can see the coating being applied to the hood:
After:
The metallic flake really came to life after polishing and coating:
