A new client that has had this Ford Focus ST170 since it was practically new. As an ex-demo, it is packed with practically every extra option available at the time. However, the years of ferrying kids around had started to take it’s toll. Initially this car was booked in for a Maintenance Detail and Headlight Restoration but by the end of day it had turn into a Minor Correction Detail. I apologise now for the lack of pictures. The day started with persistent rain and by the time it cleared, time was running out.
No before pictures of the headlights but they had the usual deterioration in the top half of the lenses. 400 grit paper to remove the discolouration, followed by various grades all the way to 3000 grit.
The sanding marks are then machine polished to remove them.
This is what the driver’s headlight looked like after 3000 grit paper….
…and a 3-stage machine polish.
Both headlights are then sealed with a nano-composite coating which has a strong UV absorption filter that prevents further problems. To replace these Xenon’s would cost a few hundred pounds each and the client was blown away with the results.
The interior shots before…
…and after. All plastics and minor stains cleaned with Meguiars All Purpose Cleaner and then treated with Gtechniq C6. All glass cleaned with Autoglym Fast Glass and, of course, a thorough vacuum.
The exterior was initially given a usual ‘Pro Reflect’ deep clean and all tar removed. The wheels had recently been refurbished so although they looked really bad at first, they cleaned up a treat. The ST was then clayed to remove further contamination. When I then spoke to the client, he wondered if I could do anything with the handful of suntan lotion marks that were dotted around. A single stage machine polish with Scholl S17+ took care of the suntan lotion, plus it removed some minor scratches, wash marks and generally cleaned the paint to leave a gloss that the owner had not seen in years.
Some deeper marks and bird poo etchings still remained for another day but overall the client was very happy with the outcome. This is how it looked at the end of the day.