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Thread: Prepped my new 2014 Mirage

  1. #1
    Member MyNewMirage's Avatar
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    Prepped my new 2014 Mirage

    I bought my new Mirage DE with CVT on 4/4/14

    But it came with defects, the car had 9 miles on it but already had swirls in the paint, they said the car was never touched, I said that's impossible ,cars that leave the factory is darn near flawless, it's after it leaves when the problems begin. (I'm a professional detailer and paint corrections. cajundetailingbykevin.com

    Anyway......

    They asked me if I wanted them to wash The car , I said might as well looks terrible , but only to me, everyone there thought I was crazy, all they continued to say was "The car is brand new", whatever, wash it I must go.

    I just had surgery so I worked on it a little each day starting on 4/5/14.
    Took me a few days,I wanted all defects gone and add several coats of protection.

    I took a few pictures before I began but I'll only show one being the entire car pretty much looked the same




    The paint was rough and IMO didn't shine as it should have so I did the following.


    Two bucket wash using Chemical Guys Maxi-Suds
    Using my new Handy Prep towel I removed all contaminants, defects really showed up. Lol
    The paint however was smooth as you'd want, so on to my test area, the hood.

    First I used the Optimum Fine Polish with a white pad and my Porter Cable 7424xp, did nothing, moved up to the orange pad, again nothing.

    Up next Meguiar's 205 Ultra Fine Polish using a white pad, hmmm, looked good, I inspected it in the sunlight and figured this would do the trick.
    I did the entire car, after I was all done there was still areas that had defects, like wth?
    Hard paint come to find out.

    Took a day off to rest, the pain was starting to effect my work.

    So I thought, I must get it this time so I took my Wolfgang Uber Compound and a white Lake Country Flat 5.5" pad.
    A little each day I worked at it, did the hood and did another inspection , looked good so I finished it with the Uber.

    Step two....

    PC, White LC pad and the 205, took my time with it.
    By this time the paint was popping but I wanted better.

    Step three...

    PC, black Lake Country 5.5" Flat Finishing pad using the Optimum Fine Polish, again a little each day, taking my time.
    The reflection was to my liking
    I got it about 95% defect free mostly because I couldn't use the required pressure but I was happy, hey, you do all that you can, newbies, remember that

    Now to protect the paint and my work...

    I applied one coat of Wolfgang Glossy Paint Sealant, two coats of Collinite #845 Aquawax , applied a coat of carnuba , let cure well between coats then I hit it with some Duragloss 951, man what a shine and so slick

    Next up protect all plastics using the Wolfgang Trim Sealant, two coats , a must if you want to keep your new plastics looking new.

    Tires...

    I coated the tires using the all new Turtle Wax Tire Coat Kit, not the spray type, applied it with the applicator pad that came in the kit.
    Three coats and they looked great. It should last months being it's acrylic based.

    It's not my dream car but I needed something that got great gas mileage , 40 plus, I'm getting that in town.
    I travel 100 miles each day to and from work, 100 miles total.

    Yesterday I had to run a few errands and here's what I got.



    I want to detail and protect the interior next, then the engine but for now here are the end results.





























    Well that's it for now, thanks for looking, comments or questions welcome.

    The sealant should last me a year so basically I'll do a rinse-less wash and maintain it what the Duragloss 951 which is a sealant also.

    Kevin



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    Member MyNewMirage's Avatar
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    Later I added a little graphics and pinstripe ,also changed out the OEM wheel covers, the black caps look better IMHO.



    The engine wasn't too dirty, mostly dusty, rinse -less wash then coated it using Wolfgang Trim Sealant which will last months.

    For those who never used the Wolfgang Trim Sealant it's one of the best, it's not a dressing, 100% sealant that protects rubber and plastics.
    UV protectioni could wash the car 50 times and the sealant would still be present.

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    Senior Member IchabodCrane's Avatar
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    Wow. That is some aggressive detailing.
    Far more effort than I would put in for sure but your results are awesome. Looks like a high end paintjob.

    Thanks for the Wolfgang trim sealant tip though, I hate when the plastics fade over time. I would rather maintain it than try to revive it later..
    Will weld for beer.

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2014 Mirage SE 1.2 automatic: 45.3 mpg (US) ... 19.3 km/L ... 5.2 L/100 km ... 54.5 mpg (Imp)


  5. #4
    Member MyNewMirage's Avatar
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    If you apply the trim sealant every four months it will NEVER fade.
    The paint looks amazing , it was worth the effort.
    I've done a full paint correction for a a customer last year, it took me 36 hours with short breaks.
    I'm an engineer during the week and a car detailer on weekends.
    I do about 30 each years part time.

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    Beautiful job.

    Car looks great!

  7. #6
    What kind of engineering?

    That looks impressive. It makes me want to see what pro detailing looks like in person.

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2014 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 63.2 mpg (US) ... 26.9 km/L ... 3.7 L/100 km ... 75.9 mpg (Imp)


  8. #7
    Member MyNewMirage's Avatar
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    Mechanical Engineer.
    For me detailing isn't work, it's therapy that really works after a hard week.
    I also own black '08 RAV4 , now this isn't a hobby working on this one, it's job and a must if you want to maintain that new car look.

    My new Mirage is slick as ice, I clay barred it really well, it felt rough like I said, I told the sales rep that most of their new cars on the lot looked and felt the same but they really don't care because all a customer sees is a brand new car.

    In three weeks I'll wrap the roof in black matte and the wing using 3D carbon fiber, that should really make it all come together.
    While I'm at it. I may do the pillows between the two doors.

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    Senior Member kerc's Avatar
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    That's fantastic work! Looks great. Luckily, mine had a pretty decent finish.

    Caught my attention that I had initially installed those same wheel covers. I then switched to ones that are completely dark, not exactly black but rather a very dark gray. I like both looks, but I really like how the new ones "hug" the wheels closely, and that the "bolt" pattern is narrower.



    Congrats on your car!

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    Looking Good!

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    Senior Member Rkt Ship's Avatar
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    looks magnificent.



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