Update: Griot's Random Orbital
 

Hi,

Well, spent the weekend finishing up restoring the finish on my Guards Red '99 with my new (now not so new) Griot's Random Orbital.

Griot's sells a kit containing Clay, Speed Shine, Best of Show liquid Wax, Machine Polish #3 (1 of 4 grades), an Orange Polishing Pad and a Red Wax Pad.

I removed the Headlamps, Side Intakes, Side Markers, Tail Lamps, Badge and Trim and did the whole car with the #3 Machine Polish - no swirl marks, all scratches gone. I applied 1 coat of Zaino Z5 to the hood and didn't think the true shine was there.

So, I went to a local Co. called the Complete Garage - selling mostly Fru-Fru Garage Cabinetry and such, but also a local Griot's Dealer to buy another Orange Pad and some Machine Polish #4.

The Machine Polish #4 made all the difference, increased the refraction and reflectivity of the paint tremendously. Finished the whole car with the #4 then 2 coats of Zaino Z5 followed by 2 coats of Zaino Z2.

The finish looks better than new and the Griot's was easy to work with as were their Machine Polishes. I recommend the system, but be sure to include the #4 Polish as a finish coat.

Well, that's all the planned maintenance for the year - Painted Calipers Red, installed new Brake Pads (Pagid OEM), Flushed the Brake System (ATE Super Blue), Changed the leaky Gasket, Fluid and Filter on the Tiptronic S, cleaned and waxed the Turbo Twists w/ Wheel Wax, treated and cleaned the leather with Leatherique Rejuvenator Oil and Pristine Clean and polished and Zaino'd the exterior. I think the results speak for themselves.

Now all that's left for me is the Intermarque Spring Car Show next weekend and DRIVING!...

Happy Motoring!... Jim'99

Some more pics...

Man, that paint and the whole car does look brand spanking new! Great work. I do hope you grabbed a lawn chair and a beer and sat in front of the car when you were all done to admired it for a while. :cheers:

Your pix have once again made me want to buy a red Boxster when I upgrade to a newer 987S model one day.

You have also inspired me to schedule a detail day of my own... :dance:

Very good job, Jim! eventually, im still using manual polishing technique (my hand) but soon, i will get either PC or Griots :)

Looks sweet Jim! The Gaurds Red on the roll bars and brake calipers looks awesome,it just runs with the rest of the car.

Totally stunning!
 

Sacred Feces, bat person, that looks liquid for sure. One of the best polish jobs I have seen. Trouble is I now have a matt finish Arctic Silver Boxcar in my garage where before your pics I thought I had a shiny beauty. Sheesh!!! Now I have to spend more money on a Griot job. Hope I have enough money left for gasoline!!!!

AKL :cheers:

VERY NICE!!

Like Randall, I'm gonna have to do a cleaning soon...

I've been waiting for nice weather on a day that I'm off, so that I can throw the Superclean (tm) on my car. It's due for a wash, clay bar, wash, polish and wax.

I'll also have to find a paint shop sometime this year. The car has about a dozen nicks and scratches... and a couple areas that a PO touched up that don't quite match... as well as a crappy respray of the front bumper... I'll have it all taken care of sometime. Although I may concentrate on the interior first. Probably going to have the center console and it's pieces, as well as the door pocket doors covered in black leather. Then I'll need a new shift boot, knob and e-brake handle. New floor mats, and then a good cleaning, and the interior will be nice and sorted.

Anyway, what does a good random orbital polisher cost? I have a buddy that is into nice cars (currently has an 04 Audi TT, and an 01 Saab 93 Cab) that might be interested in going half with me.

Great job. The red is the BOMB!

Looks stunning. I wonder how the Griots Orbital compares to the Porter Cable that I hear so many good things about.

Great job!!!! But somehow I think your car probably looks like this year round.
I always wonder how many uninformed people go ahead and repaint theirs cars when all it needs is some torque via an orbital polisher.
I just spent 6 hours this weekend and I'm still sore. I need a creeper seat asap. :o

The Griots polisher is very nice. Griots make very good 'old school' quality detailing tools. My PC was giving me hell this weekend I think it needs servicing. If its too expensive to repair I'm going to get the Griots or a Cyclo.

THe PC is often on sale, sometimes ridonkulus cheap. Lowe's and Coastal Tool often run sales on them. Detailcity.com have 10% coupon discount on their newsletter.

p.s.
During my 6 hour spring cleaning I washed the soft top with Raggtopp cleanser and got out the Craftsman wet dry vac and sucked out and dust, lint, etc. $60 well spent. Sprayed the top with the Raggtopp protectant and while each coat dryed I used the vac on the cloth headliner, matts and carpeting. If your soft top is looking faded a good wash and a few layers of RT will darken the top a few notches. It's good to do this first before washing/claying/polishing the rest of the car.

Hi,

@Perfectlap: That's quite a compliment coming from you - You're the MASTER DETAILER on this Forum!

Actually, I guess my car(s) never look bad, but this one had really accumulated a lot of swirl marks and scratches.

I also suspect the car was buffed prior to my buying it and lots of fillers in the compound made it look better than it was. The washings over the past 2 yrs. have washed out all the filler revealing more surface imperfections than I would have expected. I don't have that issue now because I clayed the car both before and after polishing it to remove any abrasive residue before going on to seal it.

Using the #3 Polish was agressive enough to eliminate these and the #4 gave it a uniform light-friendly surface. The Zaino (4 coats) is probably less than 0.5 micron in depth because after the claying and polishing, the surface was so smooth, there was probably not a lot for it to bond to. And that's one advantage to using a machine over hand polishing - uniformity, which creates a much more reflective surface.

Anyway, I'm satisfied, the car looks great. But, it was a lot of work, maybe 16-20 hrs. total - Wax ON... Wax OFF ;) . I figure I'll do this extent of a job every other year or so.

I agree that there are many hidden treasures out there just waiting to be released with some good old-fashioned elbow grease...

Happy Motoring!... Jim'99

Amazing Jim! My favorite color combo too. I don't think I could ever get my Box to look so good. Too many stone chips from running down those Vettes.

^ The car that saved Porsche. Not many cars still look current after 10 years.

It looks like it could sit in the showroom! Make me really hate the black.

Your exterior/interior combo is one of my favorites.

I have been seriously thinking about getting the PC (or asking for one for my birthday, soon to be here!). Anyone have any opinion on this "Ultimate Detailing Machine" kit? Can be had through AutoGeek (currently on sale) at:

http://www.autogeek.net/ultimate-detailing-machine-intro-kit.html

Thats a good machine. I have had that one for about two years and gotten good results even though I'm far from being good at it. The price with the sale is ok. The 7424 sells at lowes when they have a deal for about $90 to $100.

Add a cutting pad, some polishes then you are all set and ready for wax and/or sealant.

I have one of their polishers and it is an amazing tool. I used it on my Boxster over the winter and it brought the finish to life. Last weekend I machine polished and waxed our Suburu Forester and it looks better than new.

Ed

:cheers:

Man it looks cherry!! I am taking the easy way out tomorrow and having mine detailed by a guy that works for me. I dont have time before we go to the beach this weekend. I havent tried Zaino but have heard good things. I love the Finish Kare line... when that is done, maybe I will give the Zaino a shot.

Nice job.. is your arm sore today?

Have a nice holiday weekend!

Absolute perfection Jim!