Turning an 18 year old from Pink to Red

A client from Cirencester had a problem, having left his beloved Eunos Roadster (a Japanese Market Mazda MX5) outside for over a year while abroad with the army; it turned from a deep red colour to a less desirable pink. The paint had also lost all gloss, becoming dull and faded. Also different panels had faded at different rates, creating a checker board effect.

In order to remedy the situation our own Bert Youell set to work. The first step was to remove the dirt and grime that had accumulated during storage. Unfortunately the client had taken the car through an automated car wash that day, so although the car looked clean, there were micro scratches on the paint and ingrained grime that had to be removed. Mixing 50ml of Car-Skin Foamless Shampoo with 5 litres of warm water, Bert set to work with a Chenille wash mitt. Twenty minutes later the car was truly clean for the first time in many years. 

Using the Car-Skin orbital, duel head buffing machine, Bert then used Deep Cut on each panel one by one, carefully removing all the scratches and returning the paint to its original strawberry red. Special attention was required to equalise the colours between panels, especially between steel and plastic panels. On the lower photo the front nearside wing and folded headlight have been treated, whereas the bonnet had just been cleaned. The colour difference is clear. The middle picture shows the front nearside wing half way through treatment, the left hand side has been treated with Deep Cut to fix the colour, while the right hand side has been through the next step - sealing.

Approximately two and half hours from having the car delivered, the paint was back to show room condition. In order to keep it that way, Deep Clean was applied to prepare the surface, followed by CS12 for 12 months of protection. The final step was to treat the car with CS Pro for the ultimate deep shine; however, as the sun was burning bright, Bert turned his attention to the other parts of the car first. The leather interior was totally transformed with Leather Rejuvenator, and the OZ Turismo wheels were high power silver after three years covered in tar and grime.

After one afternoon the car looked like new and ready for a summer of R&R with its proud owner!

Bringing back a Phantom to its former majesty

This car was one of the first of the construction line and was used in testing and latterly loaned as a carriage for the rich and famous. After many miles of service with different drivers in different environments the old girl needed some TLC to restore her to former glory.

There were some quite serious scratches all over the car and previous attempts at re-sprays and rectification had only made it worse. Both Paul Taylor and Stephen Heywood were given the best part of week to bring the Rolls back to as-new condition.

Starting with Deep Cut Extreme, a paint depth meter and wet-and-dry they got the paint back to a consistent starting point. Then Deep Cut was used to restore the gloss and match the colours of all the panels. Deep Clean was applied in preparation for sealing with CS12 which would ensure the car would stay glossy and protected for many months.

The final touch was CS Pro, which made the paint work positively bounce with gloss and shimmer, blemish and hollogram free. 

19 Years of paint fade reversed in three hours flat

When this second generation MR2 was delivered to us in Northern Ireland it was in a very sad state. All the paint on metal surfaces had faded dramatically to a light rose colour, while the painted plastics, though dulled, had retained the original colour.

In order to return the car to an as new condition, we used Deep Cut, Deep Clean, and CS12. The orbital buffer made quick work of the body and three hours later we were done, with time spare to treat the bumpers with Deep Clean and CS12 to bring out the shine again.

In our experience, cars from the 1990's and early 2000's have water based paint that is prone to fading after only 8 years, with dramatic visible paint damage from 12 years onwards. Red cars are particularly susceptible, but this is because it shows more. If you have a vinyl sticker on the car for a year or two, and then remove it, you will clearly see how the paint has changed in that time. We recommend using Deep Clean and CS12 on an annual basis from three years onwards in order to preserve your paint. This way it will remain looking good and not require more intensive treatment such as with the MR2 here.

Some other Examples of Cars we have treated

This is an amazing Porsche 911 (993) Carrera 4 S with the proper air-cooled 3.6 Flat-Six engine and Split Rim alloy wheels

This is the bonnet of a Jaguar XKR Convertible with CS12 applied

This is one of our own, a 1935 Delage D6 3-litre, rejuvenated after spending many decades un-protected in a shed