[DETAIL] Mercedes ML 4WD Nanolex Paint Protection & Paint Correction

**CarCareProducts** · 19-03-2013 01:14 PM

It was sad to see the state of the paintwork on this beautiful dark metallic blue Mercedes ML 4WD!

This car was bought new not that long ago and the condition of the paintwork went downhill quickly thereafter. The dealer induced holograms, swirls and marring and unfortunately the car also hit 2 car washes. The results below say enough what a those “car washes” do to your paintwork.

Evidently someone whether it was the dealer itself or some Detailing Rambo had previously "a crack" at the paint before which polishing compound was still found between door jams, all over the plastics including under the doors (side-step area) and even in the engine bay (?!?!)

It also seems that acidic wheel cleaning agents were used that have caused oxidation, whitening and some corrosion of the calipers, caliper carriers and other parts including slightly damaging the surface of the wheels finish.

Now before we start

Two Bucket Wash!

The Two Bucket Systemis something we religiously stand by and recommend to all our customers - The reasoning is simply so, you are not dragging dirt bag onto your paintwork and leaving it to separate from your soft microfibre or lambswool mitt. This is quite important to maintaining your paintwork, and long term will avoid those "swirl marks", "spider webbing" and "marring" caused by the single bucket washes + those horrible sponges (ps. Apparently we heard there are “premium sponges” available these days… far as we knew they were all the same and offered you the same amount of damage to your paintwork as a $2 sponge!)

Duragloss Wax Eraser came into action to remove the excess polish residue found on pretty much the entire length of the skirting/valances on the Mercedes.

Polish residue found its way into all areas it seems

**CarCareProducts** · 19-03-2013 01:14 PM

With custom spider webbing and marring throughout the entire paintwork – unfortunately what this does it cause a camouflage to your paintwork hiding its true colour and in this case the beautiful metallic is barely visible.

Seems like they polished right over the plastic trim bits over the car!

3 Lines evident down the driver side of the car which we can assume could have been a tree/scrub/bush of sorts possibly.

The drive side mirrors health was a little sick as well.

Wheels were cleaned with 1Z Einszett W99 All Purpose Cleaner – Diluted for a strong clean to remove all the brake dust, road grime, debris and other contaminants inside and out of the wheels.

The Daytona Speedmaster Wheel Brush fit in well to reach right through the entire rim to clean also right to the back.

The Tyres received a good scrub down with the Vikan Wheel & Arch Brush with 1Z Einszett W99 All Purpose Cleaner (APC) to remove any previous product and a bit of browning as well before dressing was to be applied after the detail. This step is quite important if you find that your tyre dressing is not sticking or giving you the result you want, it could simply be that your tyres are dirty and not allowing the tyre dressing/shine to stick as it should and protect, add depth or shine to your tyres.

Don’t forget the Lug Nut holes! – The Mint Detailing Brush Set has a perfect brush that fits right into all cars lug bolt holes!

For something different on the bonnet vents we used 1Z Einszett Blitz APC with the Mint Detailing Brush to clean through the smaller areas to remove any excess polish as unfortunately the Wax Eraser cannot get into these tighter areas.

Following the initial big clean the car was dried and prepped with 3M Automotive Masking Tape – we cannot stress enough please do NOT use your normal white masking tape or cheaper tapes for domestic use as you will get glue residue stuck on your rubbers and plastics as well some discolouration at times. 3M Automotive Tape is specifically designed for Automotive Painting and cannot damage/mar or hurt your plastics, paintwork or rubbers! And best of all, it is very conformable so you can easily go around corners and angles with this tape.

**CarCareProducts** · 19-03-2013 01:15 PM

Continuing on with the paintwork marring and scratches visible as mentioned earlier.

Wheels have cleaned up well, but unfortunately from where it has been before has left scratches on the wheels from being cleaned with clearly a very strong brush that isn’t suited to its finish. (Note: The Brake Rotors on all European cars due to soft metal show surface rust during washes, this is normal so do not be shocked if this happens to you. This causes no harm or issue to your brakes/car)

Starting on the correction with Surbuf Pad and the DAS6 Pro this is after one pass; as you can see, it is not entirely ‘clear’ as of yet due to the micromarring – but you are removing the heavier marks to leave a smoother surface and finish ready to be stepped down to bring the gloss levels and clarity out from the paint.

After 2 passes, 1 with surbuf and FG500 followed with Menzerna PF2500 & Festool Orange Pad

Depth & Clarity and Metallic Pop was becoming more evident – Beautiful colour!

You could classify this as a 2-3 stage correction, where an initial cut was needed to remove the surface imperfections which allowed the paint to really pop and see colour and depth. This does not diminish or ‘harm’ your paintwork! Finishing with the Black Waffle Weave from Menzerna and Menzerna SF4000 the results you can see below.
Nanolex Trim Rejuvenator was applied to the skirting and other plastic trimming to rejuvenate and leave the trim protected and also with a natural deep finish for months to come.

[img] http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/n...5331d.jpg/img]

**CarCareProducts** · 19-03-2013 01:15 PM

Finishing results;

Tyres Dressed with Duragloss 253 Tyre & Rubber Dressing for that natural satin finish.

Paintwork was sealed with Nanolex Ultra Paint Protection, and also the Glass with Nanolex Ultra Glass for protection and high water repellency.

This work was all carried out at our Five Dock Premises which we do offer Paint Correction, Detailing and Paint Protection as well as Interior Fabric & Leather Protection on all vehicles.

Feel free to email info@carcareproducts or contact us any time on 1300 006 007. We can also recommend suitable Detailers that can also help in certain states as well.

**Leslie** · 27-03-2013 11:16 PM

very nice!

can you post a close up shot of the driver side mirror and tell us how you saved it?

thx

**CarCareProducts** · 28-03-2013 07:37 AM

Originally Posted by Leslie

very nice!

can you post a close up shot of the driver side mirror and tell us how you saved it?

thx

With very careful wet sanding the light marring was corrected. Thankfully a lot was dirt / mud than it was scratches however still a bit of wet sanding involved which we would not recommend to anyone without experience as you can harm/destroy your paint within seconds if you do not know what you are doing.