Paint correction Cquartz Finest

[gjohnson]

Hi all, thought I would start a thread about the paint finish of my brand new VF2 redline ute.
On delivery I noticed a paint run above the SS badge on the drivers side, only visible from certain angles and virtually impossible to get a photo of it. Prob fair to say that most people wouldn't even have noticed it.
I do have an eye for detail I guess and this issue caused me to really inspect the rest of the vehicle. Whilst there were no more runs I really wasn't happy with the orange peel effect over the entire vehicle. Now I know that nearly every production car has some degree of peel in it but this ute was particularly bad.
I showed the sales guy and we compared other new black vehicles in the yard and it was agreed that mine was noticeably worse.
So Holden agreed to basically do whatever I wanted to fix the issue, now I wasn't about to demand a full respray of the RHS of the ute (which is the only way to remove the run and not be an obvious patch).
So after a lot of research I found a place in Melb , that after looking at their workshop and other jobs( check my other thread about Ferrari 458) ,I was happy to let them tackle the issue.
I pick the ute up tomorrow morning, after 3 days (and some late nights).
I will post up more pics and explain the process used then but here is an example.
Top pics were taken on delivery with iPhone in bright sunlight, bottom were taken in his shop under bright lights with iPhone and this was only halfway through the process!
No editing of pics has been done.
Cheers Greg

[Wonky]

It's amazing what a good detailer can do! At a detailing workshop I organised on here many years ago at Final Inspection Damian deliberately took to his girlfriend's near new Golf with coarse wet and dry on a section of the front guard. A few minutes work and it was invisible again!

[gjohnson]

Yeah agree Wonky, the part I'm interested in is the application of this paint protection called Cquartz finest. Normally I am very sceptical about these super dooper coatings after having many Ming moles over the years try to convince me to part with my cash haha. I'm happy to say I have never fallen for it yet but I've read a lot of good things about this system and I'll report unbiased because I'm not saving face for spending money on it. Holden are footing the bill and I'll be keen to see the results over time?

[Mozz]

Great thread, car looks schmick... just goes to show that spending a few hundred dollars (or do it yourself if you are so inclined, equipped and skilled) with a reputable detailer can make a car shine, regardless of new or otherwise...

[Wonky]

Yeah agree Wonky, the part I'm interested in is the application of this paint protection called Cquartz finest. Normally I am very sceptical about these super dooper coatings after having many Ming moles over the years try to convince me to part with my cash haha. I'm happy to say I have never fallen for it yet but I've read a lot of good things about this system and I'll report unbiased because I'm not saving face for spending money on it. Holden are footing the bill and I'll be keen to see the results over time?

A few years ago a fellow LS1er and customer at Chev's did mine with the standard Cquartz and it did come up very well! I can't really judge how well it lasted as due to my disabilities I have to get it washed at one of those places who do hand washes and occasionally even take it through a laser touchless wash and I don't know how clean their water is or how abrasive some of their products are, but it seemed to hold up very well! The Finest should be even better!

[gjohnson]

Well, to say I am impressed is such an understatement! The clarity and gloss level is nothing short of concourse standard. The orange peel effect has been flattened out by around 70%, much more than I even thought possible without wet sanding !
Also the way the light now bends and reflects over every curve the paint run is also near impossible to find.
Because the thickness of the original clear coat was reduced by the buffing they applied several coats of Cquartz Finest to thicken it back up and if you believe the marketing this is a much harder, more scratch resistant coating that is easier to clean. Even the wheels were coated for easy brake dust removal. Time will tell for that and I will update this thread in the coming months.
For now I couldn't be more pleased with the result. Anyone in Melb wanting a simple car wash while you wait or the full monty like mine give Sam a call at Final Finish Brunswick 👍
Cheers Greg






All of these are just from my iPhone 😎

[sjhugh]

[BTS666.0]

that looks sweet. wonder what my new to me 2000 vx clubbie would come up like? its white as well, so kinda the other end of the spectrum. keen to see how this holds up.

[gjohnson]

Couple of months later, must say I'm very impressed with Cquartz Finest. So easy to wash now! Nothing sticks to it. Still glossy, and still has that super smooth slick feel when I wash it.
I also now can dry it with a cordless leaf blower as the water just falls off.
Cheers