Custom Exterior Detail on a 2011 VW GTI

I finally got some free time to detail the exterior of my car. I haven't washed it all winter and the last time it had a fresh coat of wax on it was the first week of last October.



Here is a perfect example of paint that doesn't have any protection on it (wax or sealant). Notice the beads of water. They are large and disproportioned.



This is what waxed paint should look like when wet. The beads are much smaller and closer to each other.



Let's take a closer look at the wheel areas. The wheels weren't bad, just covered in pollen!



Wheel wells



Notice the paint fading and stripped from wheel weights. More on that later.



Exhaust tips needing some serious help. No matter what I do I can't keep these things clean.





Grime Reaper is my go to for cleaning wheel wells, exhaust tips, engine bays, etc. I used #0000 steel wool with Grime Reaper to clean up the tips.



Here it is working on the wheel wells



Time to wash the paint. I use Chemical Guys Maxi Suds II in a foam gun to make sure I get a lot of suds and a even coverage of shampoo.





Time for some clay. A clay bar helps remove dirt, tar, and other contaminates from the paint that doesn't come off during the wash process. Notice how blue the clay is in this picture.



This is after using the clay on just one door.



After claying the entire exterior, the car is hosed down to remove the oils from the clay lube. The car was dried.

It was a nice day out so I decided to clean the doorjambs outside.



I pulled the car back in and started on the wheels. Each wheel was taken off the car in order to paint the wheel weights and get an even coverage of wax. I painted the wheel weights first so they could dry before waxing.





I noticed some heavy swirling on the wheels. I went with Meguiar's D300 with an applicator pad. It's quite abrasive but finishes down well and is easy to remove.





Some swirls were left behind but overall a huge difference. Not bad for doing it by hand!



Blackfire Wet Diamond was used to wax the inside and outside of the wheels. It is easy on and easy off, while leaving months of protection.



While I had the wheels off, it gave me a good chance to dress the entire wheel well. I went with Meguiar's Hyper Dressing. It spreads evenly and leaves behind a glossy finish.







After shot of the wheel all buttoned up. Blackfire Wet Diamond Tire Gel was used to dress the tires.



Time to polish the paint. It wasn't too bad. It was covered in swirl marks, however they were very light. I decided to go with Meguiar's M205 with a white pad. It has long working time and buffs out very easily.



Some areas on the car had some bizarre marks. I have no idea where this came from!



After a couple of passes with the M205, it was gone.



After the entire exterior was polished, it was time to add some protection. I decided to go with Optimum Opti Seal. I have been using this more and more lately. It's an amazing sealant. You can seal a whole car with this stuff in 10 minutes and it will give you months of protection. It will also leave the paint extremely slick and smooth.



The exhaust tips were topped off with Chemical Guys Metal Wax.



Overall, they came out pretty good. Some contamination wouldn't come out.





RainX was applied to all exterior windows. This stuff is awesome. Rain will bead right off your windshield.



~~AFTER SHOTS~~

Cleaning Leather

Right side cleaned and removed of dirt. Left side has been untreated.

Exterior Plus package on a 2011 VW GTI

Here we have a 2011 Volkswagen GTI that is maintained on a regular basis. It is professionally detailed 2-3 times a year. While it makes sense for any car in any condition to get this package done, I HIGHLY recommend this to a select group. This group includes vehicles that are fairly new or any vehicle that is well taken care of.

The Exterior Plus package provides a barricade against the elements of the road while also allowing the entire exterior to POP. Almost every part of the exterior is treated with wax (paint, windows, exhaust, wheels, etc.). So, let's go!

Here she is upon arrival.

I like to remove both license plates. You have no idea how much grime and dirt hides behind there.

The wheels weren't too bad but the tires were looking a little brown. The brake calipers also had some built up dust.

Exhaust tips were asking for some help

SAP!

Here is the inside of the driver's door. There was some adhesive left behind from manufacturer stickers and the remaining sticker will be removed.

Enough nasty pics. Let's head into the washbay!

Wheels are always up first. Product goes on green then turns red when it has finished breaking up the dirt and contaminents. It also does wonders on brake calipers as you can see.

Here is one of the tires with a cleaner worked in. A lot of detailing companies will skip this step and apply tire dressing on a dirty tire. All your left with is a brown, glossy tire.

After the wheels, wheel wells, and tires were tended to, the foam gun came out and lathered up the entire exterior.

After the foam broke up the dirt, the paint was hand washed with a microfiber wash mint. The car was then moved into the "detailing bay" to be dried then clayed.

The one step polishing step was up next. I like to tackle the small spots first with a smaller pad. These areas include the whole rear, including the tail lights.

Here is a picture of the hood with the polished worked in, ready to be removed.

After the polishing is done, the exterior is washed again to remove all the polishing oils and any remaining oils from the clay lube. This allows the wax to bond to the paint without any barriers.

Like I said, almost EVERYTHING is waxed with this package. Here is a wheel with wax applied. Both the inner and outer parts of the wheels were treated.

The entire car covered in wax. I let the wax dwell for about 20-30 minutes. This allows the wax to settle in.

~~AFTER SHOTS~~

Gloss City

Wheels gleamin' with tire shine helping out

Exhaust tips cleaned and waxed

Sap removed

Stickers and adhesive removed

Book your appointment now! Thanks for looking.