Not an F-body, but a hard day detailing a Grand Am

**9t8z28** · 05-10-2009, 07:08 PM

This is a Grand Am we just picked up. The car is in tiptop shape but I do not think the car was every wash.

To top it off, some asshat decided to try and paint some of the panels and did a piss poor job. Most people would pass up this car but I myself realized that with some elbow grease, this car could buff up nice.

I began with the hood.

Notice the reflections? Huh? OH, you mean the reflection through the orange peel! Yes~
Notice the reflection of the clouds?

And here you can see the house reflecting on the hood?

And lastly, here are some trees and clouds reflecting on the hood.

After wet sanding with 1500 grit for a couple of hours and to top it off, it looks like it will never buff out!

Ahh, now you can see the trees and clouds!

And heres the house reflecting and yes that is a dent in the hood. Dry Ice should fix that.

Some clouds reflecting to perfection!

The fenders are next!

What did I use? Believe it or not, I used cheap ass Turtle Wax compound. It required more time but got the job done. Then I used 3M polish for dark cars. This stuff works great. I found the best results running the buffer at 2K with medium pressure then light pressure as it dried. It's all in the technique (buffer angle and pressure)

All of this work was done with no supervision of any kind. I am a rookie when it comes to this kind of stuff. It just goes to show you that anyone can do this if they put their mind to it.

Just thought I would share my hard work I did as a Mothers Day present.

**Y2KPewterSS** · 05-10-2009, 07:13 PM

I guess a turd does polish up afterall

**SHovV** · 05-10-2009, 07:29 PM

amazing what a little know-how will do

**david_viny** · 05-10-2009, 07:34 PM

Wow! So did you end up sanding through the clear coat? What steps was it exactly; 1500 grit, 3M, turtle wax? I need an old car to practice on lol.

**Mr. Luos** · 05-10-2009, 08:40 PM

Originally Posted by Y2KPewterSS

I guess a turd does polish up afterall

**9t8z28** · 05-11-2009, 04:29 AM

Originally Posted by david_viny

Wow! So did you end up sanding through the clear coat? What steps was it exactly; 1500 grit, 3M, turtle wax? I need an old car to practice on lol.

Yes, I sanded through the clear coat. If you buff it good, you can't even tell the difference and it holds up just as well.

The steps are correct but after the compound I used 3M polish and then waxed. Some steps I repeated, such as wet sanding and compounding. After you compound a few areas, you might find some spots that you want to go back over. The edges of the hood are most critical. With too much pressure or the wrong angle, you can burn the paint off of a corner before you know it. On edges, you want to make sure you angle the buffer so that it only travels off of the hood and not onto it.

**Th3unwant3d1** · 05-12-2009, 03:45 PM

a pain in the ass isnt it! lol. I bet you were thinking about 20 min into it, what a stupid ass idea for mothers day....Yea atleast thats what I was thinking (along with my brother) when we were digging a 5ft long by 3 foot wide by 2 foot deep pond.....

turned out really nice though

**9t8z28** · 05-12-2009, 03:56 PM

Originally Posted by Th3unwant3d1

a pain in the ass isnt it! lol. I bet you were thinking about 20 min into it, what a stupid ass idea for mothers day....Yea atleast thats what I was thinking (along with my brother) when we were digging a 5ft long by 3 foot wide by 2 foot deep pond.....

turned out really nice though

Ha, thats awesome!

I was thinking the same thing!

**mpfranks** · 05-12-2009, 09:33 PM

buff up the chevelle!

**levityinc3** · 05-12-2009, 10:04 PM

Real nice job man, looks new.

**9t8z28** · 05-13-2009, 05:04 AM

Originally Posted by mpfranks

buff up the chevelle!

Not until it gets the NOS $1,400 GM 1/4 panels put on!

**pajeff02** · 05-13-2009, 04:53 PM

And heres the house reflecting and yes that is a dent in the hood. Dry Ice should fix that.

Time out. Tell me more about the dry ice thing -- I have never heard that. I have two tiny dimples in my quarter panel about the same size as what I see on your hood that I would love to be able to remove.

**9t8z28** · 05-13-2009, 05:41 PM

Originally Posted by pajeff02

And heres the house reflecting and yes that is a dent in the hood. Dry Ice should fix that.

Time out. Tell me more about the dry ice thing -- I have never heard that. I have two tiny dimples in my quarter panel about the same size as what I see on your hood that I would love to be able to remove.

Get a slab of dry ice (basically a 1"x10"x10" cut) and lay it on top of the dent and it should make the dent pop out.

**pajeff02** · 05-13-2009, 05:51 PM

Ok -- that is way too slick. I just Googled it and watched both the dry ice method and another one using a hair dryer and a can of compressed air. May have to give this a try over the weekend.

**Y2KPewterSS** · 05-13-2009, 06:02 PM

I forgot to mention it with my initial comment, it did turn out nice Brandon

**9t8z28** · 05-13-2009, 06:04 PM

Originally Posted by Y2KPewterSS

I forgot to mention it with my initial comment, it did turn out nice Brandon

Thanks. Now I gotta do the rest!

**02Sweet** · 05-13-2009, 08:01 PM

damn!!! looks great, what a good son.

What kind of buffer did you use?

**9t8z28** · 05-14-2009, 04:55 AM

Originally Posted by 02Sweet

damn!!! looks great, what a good son.

What kind of buffer did you use?

I used a standard porter cable buffer.

**TempleU_WS6** · 05-14-2009, 02:12 PM

Looks great Brandon!

I gotta get a dent out of my rear DS quarter panel, maybe the dry ice method would do the trick. Definitely post your progress and results!