So this is my little progress log for my Zed.
Had it a week or so now and due to work and weather, not had much time to get anything done.
First job was to give the car a good wash and decontamination. De-tarred with Tardis and Clayed with Bilt Hamber Medium Clay bar. I could then see what state the paint was in as it was difficult to tell when the car was dirty.
Next up was the Lotus White seats and trim which was very grubby indeed.
Unfortunately once I started cleaning it quickly became apparent that the seats had previously been re-dyed and as I was cleaning the dye started to come off!
I cleaned them up as best I could without removing any more dye, but to be honest they will need recovering or replacing.
I've saw a lot of people here re-dying their seats and they looked great, but I was always wondering what would happen during cleaning and now I have first hand experience.
So be careful with dyed seats, it will come off if you have to give them a good clean.
Next was the carpet which was soaking.
I used my wet/dry vac to get the majority of it from the carpet and the floor underneath, but I could feel the sponge insulation under the seat was still wet.
Seats will need to come out and the carpet to get it dry.
Not sure if this is because the car has no rear window or a leak from elsewhere...time will tell once I get a window fitted.
All the interior plastics and dash had a thorough deep clean and then dressed with some Megs Hyper Dressing.
I'm still not happy with the black plastic on the door cards and dash, so I'm looking at products to bring this back up...it's ok ATM, but not where I want it to be.
Today I had a free day so I set about bringing the paint back up to a decent level as it was trashed!
Black cars are always difficult, and given the car is 16 years old you can imagine it was in a bit of a state!
So I set about compounding the car with megs M105 and my DA polisher and megs purple cutting pad.
Working 2'x2' portions at a time and between 2 & 4 sets I went around all the panels.
I then went over it again with a chemical guys green hexlogic pad and scholl S20 black, followed by a final buff with M205 on a black finishing pad.
The results aren't bad, not perfect but the difference is night and day.
When I get another free day I'm going to polish the front and rear bumpers & concentrate on individual scratches, but for now, just getting the paint back to a good standard was the goal.
Pics to follow...
Had it a week or so now and due to work and weather, not had much time to get anything done.
First job was to give the car a good wash and decontamination. De-tarred with Tardis and Clayed with Bilt Hamber Medium Clay bar. I could then see what state the paint was in as it was difficult to tell when the car was dirty.
Next up was the Lotus White seats and trim which was very grubby indeed.
Unfortunately once I started cleaning it quickly became apparent that the seats had previously been re-dyed and as I was cleaning the dye started to come off!
I cleaned them up as best I could without removing any more dye, but to be honest they will need recovering or replacing.
I've saw a lot of people here re-dying their seats and they looked great, but I was always wondering what would happen during cleaning and now I have first hand experience.
So be careful with dyed seats, it will come off if you have to give them a good clean.
Next was the carpet which was soaking.
I used my wet/dry vac to get the majority of it from the carpet and the floor underneath, but I could feel the sponge insulation under the seat was still wet.
Seats will need to come out and the carpet to get it dry.
Not sure if this is because the car has no rear window or a leak from elsewhere...time will tell once I get a window fitted.
All the interior plastics and dash had a thorough deep clean and then dressed with some Megs Hyper Dressing.
I'm still not happy with the black plastic on the door cards and dash, so I'm looking at products to bring this back up...it's ok ATM, but not where I want it to be.
Today I had a free day so I set about bringing the paint back up to a decent level as it was trashed!
Black cars are always difficult, and given the car is 16 years old you can imagine it was in a bit of a state!
So I set about compounding the car with megs M105 and my DA polisher and megs purple cutting pad.
Working 2'x2' portions at a time and between 2 & 4 sets I went around all the panels.
I then went over it again with a chemical guys green hexlogic pad and scholl S20 black, followed by a final buff with M205 on a black finishing pad.
The results aren't bad, not perfect but the difference is night and day.
When I get another free day I'm going to polish the front and rear bumpers & concentrate on individual scratches, but for now, just getting the paint back to a good standard was the goal.
Pics to follow...
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surprised there isn't one tbh 
.
