Ooooh, that would be cool dave!

You've done quite a bit that could serve as your 'core' FAQ list. Remember the bee poo?

There could be many ways this can go ...

Removal of special contaminants...like the bee poo, bird droppings, sap, tar, whatever else you've encountered, glass cleaners, tire finish, wheel cleaning/protecting, carpet oh the plethera of stains you've come across - ink, vomit, lipstick, tire marks (for those that like to throw a spare in the back seat) etc, tips to get into tight spaces (like the vents), and don't forget odor removal...geez, I don't even want to go there!

I see a ton of possibility, and of course, I love the idea!

 

Dave, that would be a great idea for the weekly tips. The suggestions that the others would be valuable for searching / etc. Also, now that I live up in the soggy northwest, I would also suggest that you attempt to keep your detailing tips to seasonal topics as well. Think about us in the winter / rainy driving conditions that may have different needs during those seasons vs. your perpetual summer conditions! The three seasons of OC, before summer, summer, and after summer don't necessarily apply to the rest of us!

I really do look forward to the posts you make as your are very descriptive which makes your posts very valuable.

Keep it up!

 

Hi Dave

Thanks for all of the useful advice so far. I never knew this kind of service existed. I just assumed if you had scratches and poor paint one would take it to the body shop.

When I get some free time and the monkey off my back for a little bit, I'll be sure to butcher your methods. In the mean time though, how should I go about picking a professional detailer in my area? I'm sure there's only one place, maybe another because I think Canadian Tire does it as well. I will add the pictures I took of my nose and mirrors as a reference.

Pictures are here.

 

Yikes, those are some chips!





I see a full bumper respray coming your way to remedy that. No amount of detailing will remove those I'm afraid.

 

Ha! I just took it to the detailer, he said go get yourself a touch up pen and get to it. So I took it to the body shop. Told me just to drive it. If I wanted a respray, it would be $1000 cash, as opposed to whatever he'd charge some random, and he'd strongly suggest blending with the hood and fenders. However there are some chips on the hood too which necessitate a front end respray and then I'd have half new paint, half old so I might as well do the whole bloody thing.

With that said, to respray the front bumper is $1000, but to do it on my Camaro which is a larger bumper I'm looking at $350... is that the Jaguar bump?

 

Fedoraja1, I know how you feel I need my roof, and rear bumper resprayed, and there are other faults on the car, so when everything is said and done I may as well go for the full respray. However, at that much money, for a quality respray, I could buy another car. Right now, I'm just waiting. For what, I'm not sure. Maby I'll win the state lottery.

 

Sorry to get back to you so late, but here is a link that will take you to a few different detailers in Canada. Not sure which is better, you might have to check them out for yourself.

Here is the Autopia link.....................http://www.autopia.org/find-professi...elinks.php?c=8

Hopefully this will help you out.

BTW, I will have to agree with h20boy.......those will need refinishing for sure!!

 

Hello David,

I am new to forum but have truly enjoyed your write-ups and videos. I recently purchased a Lunar Grey XF R and was wondering what you would recommend as far as polishes, sealants, compounds, etc. for this color. Also, is Jaguar paint considered soft or hard?

Thanks in advance for any help and keep posting those Youtube videos, they're great.

George

 

George,

Thank you for your very kind words, I am glad you enjoy the content of my projects...It's a lot of work and it never ends...

As far as my recomendations, would you be applying these products by hand or by D/A? I definitely would stay away from compunds........You can never go wrong with Meguiar's M205 for your polish and Meguiar's M21 for your sealant, both are fabulous products. Regarding the Jaguar paint, I would have to say they are very delicate, easier to scratch than they are to correct.....so it's better to always stick with products that are not aggressive to avoid scouring the finish.

 

David,

Thanks for the reply. Based on a prior post of yours, I purchased a PC 7424XP, so I plan on applying most products with the PC.
Regarding the M205, I do have some of those swirls I've seen in your before pictures, will the M205 be sufficient to remove those or do I need use something like M105.

Thanks again for your help. I want to keep my XF looking nice but also nervous about ruining the paint.

George

 

George,

As I have said before, taking the least aggressive approach to start is always the best method. If the M205 and your pad combo does not remove the swirls, you can change your pad combo so that you use the same polish but just a more aggressive pad. What brand and style pads do you have?.......

 

David,

I have Lake Country Orange, White, Blue and Red pads to go along with the PC 7424XP. Also, for the glossy black trim between the front and rear windows, should the swirls on these be removed with the XP or is there a specific product for this type of material?

Sorry for all of the questions and thanks for all of the advice.
George

 

Thanks for the details.......no pun intended

With you arsenal of pads, have you used the M205 with the Orange Pad?

If you have and did not see improved results then you will need to bump up to M105 with the Orange Pad. Follow up with the M205 and the White Pad and check for the desired results. If you have achieved the desired results then wax or seal using the Blue or Red Pad and your wax or sealant.

For the B, C pillars and their gloss black trim, use the same method.....I prefer to step down to a 4" backing plate and pad for these smaller detail areas.

 

David,

Thanks again for all of the advice. Now I just need some nice weather so I can get out there.

George

 

Your are very welcome George, good spring weather is surely on the way!

 

I have a brand new 2011 xj in black on Monday I brought to a hand wash for the first time, I noticed a scratch on the bumper asked the man to buff it, he used no 7 compound , now I have a haze that won't come out, I took it backhand he tried maguires compound it got lighter but still no luck,..
What should he do ? Use a buffer isn't compound too strong ? Did the man mess up? Please advise.

 

Dave,
just wanted to thank you for calling me and giving me a contact for the NY area.
People with Jags in California get your car over to Dave to keep your paint in shape. He's a good guy..
thanks

 

Jerry,

It was my pleasure......Thanks for the recommendation!

Enjoy the new Jag!!!!

 

just found it today my front bumper the plastic fender , some ******* must have swiped with a beach chair . two spots scraped the paint off. i guess i have to get it painted .
need help its killing me .

 

Hey i was wondering about the best way to deal with rust on body. the corners of my my rear license plate seem to have had intimate contact with the metal of my trunk at some point (there's no plastic interface between the two, I need to find one) and I found four unfortunate spots where rust had set (yay for used cars!). thankfully the spots are mostly obscured by the plate and only the edges are seen (i filled them with touch up as a temp fix)

-I guess i should get to the point, what is the best course of action to removing the rust and restoring the paint without respraying the whole darn trunk. to make things more difficult, id like to do it all by hand as to keep the amount of repainting minimal, not touching any unaffected areas ( the spots are quite small).

I was thinking of taping off the rusted spots, getting something like sandpaper and finger-sanding the areas clean, then using many delicate coats of touch up to cover my tracks, but i'm probably way off.

-Many thanks in advance