Jaguar XJ-Type R

[Woodie]

This past Saturday I got to spend some quality time with a wild cat. Tony (owner of the car) had attended our last detailing class and decided it would be easier to outsource the detailing of his Jaguar and them simply attend to the maintenance aspect thereafter.

The black paint on this car was very soft, and in certain areas such as the boot lid, just wiping the surface with a microfiber towel was enough to create light scratches in the paint. Siya (Starvekos) joined me on the detail and between the two of us we put in close to 20 man hours taming this beast.

The basic process was wash, clay, correction (Meguiars DA Microfiber System - cutting pad + DA MF Compound), refining (Meguiars M205 + finishing pad) and topped off with a layer of Blackfire Wet Diamond Sealant. As mentioned, the paint was soft and although the DA MF Compound removed the swirling and isolated scratches, it lest the finish hazy. I initially tried refining the finish with the Meguars DA MF Finishing Wax, and although it improved the finish, there was still a definite lack of clarity. The combination of M205 and the soft finishing pad was just what the doctor ordered and left the finish clear and glossy.

I'll let the photos do the talking. With winter around the corner, daylight hours were limited and we finished off in very poor lighting. Thanks to Tony for taking some excellent photos on the Sunday and sending them to me for inclusion in the thread.

Before

















Foamed and ready for a good wash







After washing and claying











The troublesome boot - those aren't reflections of clouds. Swirl and holograms galore.







After the compounding - swirls and scratches gone, but a very hazy finish











Unfortunately I didn't get any more shots during the refining process, but these are the afters Tony took the next morning.

















And some B&W shots for good measure









Thanks for looking.

[Lambros]

Nicely done guys - car looks amazing. Those B&W shots of the car also look super professional.

[Lambchop]

well done lads

[Carn]

Lovely work Sean, great to see you detailing again

Super soft blacks can be a right PITA...

[calypso]

Love those cars. Great work

[Audioholic]

Great work! Love those cars as well! B & W photos look really good, could be mistaken for an advertisement in a magazine! Thumbsup!

[onyx]

Turned out great!

Well done guys

[PrevanP]

Awesome work guys....the car looks great

[TOGWT]

Nice work and pro looking B&W shots

[zckid]

That's very nice Woodie
the BW shots are a beauty.

I like the reflection on the 1st one esp.

[TOGWT]

Excuse my post jacking-

Great avatar Audioholic (Exceldetail in CA used one that was similar)

[springbok]

Super shots Woodie. Liking the B&W ones especially.

Are you impressed with the Blackfire Sealant? Where did you buy it?

[MK V GTI]

Well done guys ...excellent work there ..

[Woodie]

Thanks for all the comments guys.

As far as the after photos are concerned, I can't take any credit. Those were done by the owner and I think they came out fantastic.

(12-06-2011 11:17 PM)springbok Wrote:  Are you impressed with the Blackfire Sealant? Where did you buy it?

I've been using Blackfire for close on 2 years now and it's fantastic. I originally bought a kit via Proper Auto Care and then got another 32oz "refill" via Dave with one of his bulk orders from the US.

[Starvekos]

Really impressed by the Meguiars DA microfiber system.

[Jughead]

Not sure how I missed this one ...

Awesome work Woodie !!!