Congratulations to Colin MacRobert for winning our July show n shine. After months of living on a building site and having to contend with mucky access roads, Colin finally found himself in a position to give his pride and joy a thorough detail; and not a minute too soon either, as a set of new wheels had been fitted the minute the roads on his estate were finally completed! The wash process commenced with the engine bay and wheel arches being degreased with Meguiars Super D-Greaser and then rinsed at low pressure. The new wheels were then washed carefully using the two bucket method in conjunction with a Meguiars Microfibre Wash Mitt and Meguiars Shampoo Plus. The bodywork was then washed in the same way, switching the microfibre mitt for a Lambswool Wash Mitt. Autoglym Intensive Tar Remover was then used to complete the wash process and remove six months worth of tar spots from the lower halves of the car.

With the paint now feeling perfectly smooth again, Colin examined the paint and the extent of any sub-surface defects present. Unsurprisingly, in light of the recent building work, much of the bodywork was covered in fine swirls. Having purchased a Porter Cable 7474 dual action polisher last year, Colin started the correction process using Menzerna RD3.02 and Lake Country CCS Light Cut Pads, using spot pads for the hard to reach areas and larger pads for the main panels. With the bulk of the correction done, Colin then switched to Menzerna 85RD using Lake Country CCS Polishing Pads in order to refine the finish and maximize the gloss. With the defects corrected and the flake popping, Colin then sealed the finish with a coat of Blackfire Midnight Sun Paste Wax, and did a final wipe down with Blackfire Deep Gloss Spray Sealant to ensure a perfect smear-free finish.

All of the exterior trims and wheel arch liners were then with Meguiars All Season Dressing, the exhaust was polished with Autosol Metal Polish and Meguiars NXT All Metal Polish, the tyres were dressed with Blackfire Long Lasting Tyre Gel, and the new alloys were sealed with a coat of Poorboys Wheel Sealant. To finish the detail, Colin dressed the engine bay with 303 Aerospace Protectant, cleaned the glass with Meguiars NXT Generation Glass Cleaner, dressed the interior with Poorboys Natural Look Dressing and vacuumed the carpets. In all, Colin spent 18 hours over two days doing all of the work mentioned, and the results were well worth it - the intense wet shine, the sparkling metallic flake and the attention to detail inside and out all make him a very worthy winner. Well done Colin!