The Details
Year: 1999
Manufacturer: Nissan
Make: Skyline BNR34 GT-R V-Spec
Colour Code: Sparkling Silver
Condition: Heavy swirling
Paint Type: Hard
This beautiful GT-R belongs to a close friend of mine. He’s had a bit of a tough time in regards to the car and had to have the engine completely rebuilt from scratch (which means his odometer reads about 10000km atm). So during the detail he stuck around to take some process photos and whatnot, with the photoshoot being performed by myself.
The car had pretty heavy swirls and also clear runs from a bumper respray. After product testing, I found the HD Cut and M205 worked extremely smoothly with zero dust on the Japanese paint (which was surprisingly hard).
Originally the owner wanted ArtDeRaven applied to the car, but due to time constraints and an upcoming car meet, we opted for Sonax Premium Class Carnauba.
We both thought the meet was several days away until we found out it was actually planned for the day after the car came in. Finishing at 5.30am, this is what I exited the studio to:
Let’s continue on. This was how the car was presented. Under normal lighting the car looked decent, however the halogens, LEDs and metal halides told a different story.
These beautiful lightweight BBS RG-Rs were coated with copious amounts of brake dust.
To remove it, we used Sonax Full Effect Wheel Cleaner and Wheel Woolies
Brushwork on the badges
And the fuel lid
0000 grade steel wool can be used to safely clean exhaust tips. These would be polished later with 1Z Einszett Metal Polish and sealed with Finish Kare FK1000P Hi-Temp Sealant.
A mixture of Optimum Car Wash, APC and Chemtech CT18 to remove any old waxes and glazes.
Prepping the 50/50 shot
Corrected with a Buff n Shine Microfibre Pad and HD Cut. Meguiar’s M205 and a Lake Country Black CCS Pad to follow.
Getting all the details is important. I removed the side indicators to clean old dirt and to obtain a more uniform polish.
Unfortunately the rear of the car had been involved in an accident and needed to be resprayed. The repairer had left runs of clear coat on the bumper that needed to be wetsanded. Extreme caution was required due to the curves surrounding the runs – where paint can easily be burned through by over polishing.
Wetsanded with 800/1500/2500/4000 grit and then cut with HD Cut and polished with Meguiar’s M205.
Before correction. Heavy swirling noticeable.
Corrected with HD Lambswool Pads x HD Cut and Meguiar’s M205 x Lake Country CCS Black via Flex XC3401VRG
Before correction.
Corrected. Areas under the spoiler were hand polished.
Before correction. The polish test patch square is visible at the bottom.
Corrected.
The BBS logos have a great sense of depth however they were tainted by the fading of the vinyl coat.
The same correction products were used to bring the logo back to its former glory.
The rear lights had been heavily faded by UV exposure.
They were removed and wetsanded with 800/1500/2500/4000 grit and corrected with the aforementioned combos.
70:30 before/after shot.
With the clarity restored, the car looks much more modern and vibrant. To maintain the finish they were sealed with Wolf’s Chemicals Hard Body
Sonax Premium Class 100% Carnauba Wax applied with a Dodo Juice finger mitt. Easy application and removal.
Buffing off with an Optimum Edgeless Microfibre Towel. My MF of choice.
The wax provided a fantastic wet-look shine. The fender really turned out well.
The following shots were taken with a Canon EOS 7D paired with a Canon 17-55mm EF-S lens. No HDR shots were produced.
As a fellow GT-R enthusiast, the client pays a subtle tribute to Paul Walker under the wing. May he rest in peace.
At 5:30 in the morning, the detail of the tail lights had me engrossed like a moth to a flame.
We recooped the next day for a daylight shoot.
The metallic fleck is now highly visible underneath the gloss.
Sneak peak.
Thank you for reading. If you’d like to discuss with me how we can get your pride and joy to the best possible condition, please do not hesitate to contact at info@affinesse.com
Jerald Liu
Operator