The entire car was inspected using halogen lights to spot hazed and micro-scratched areas that would need more attention during buffing. The guys are making note of the abraded area where the old bra was flapping and trapping dirt. This area was going to need some care to bring back.
Orbital buffers were used with a mild compound, this removes material more slowly but is safer on the paint. The car’s paint was not in horrible conditions so a more aggressive compound was not needed.
The entire surface of the car was carefully buffed out with several different compounds of increasing finess. Special care was taken in the area where the clear bra damaged the paint.
The paint was buffed, wiped off, inspected, and rebuffed if needed. Small areas of the car were done at a time. Care was taken to remove micro scratching. Microscratching is hard to see but it subtly makes the paint less luminous. Once all the micro scratching and swirl marks were removed the car was taken outside and washed off of all polishing compound residue.
Next, the car was wiped down with alcohol to prepare the surface for ceramic treatment.
6 comments
Beautifully done! The IS-F has gained in value in the past few years, definitely worth preserving.
Wow! Huge transformation, I removed some clear bra sections off of my Scion FR-S and it was such a PITA. Here in Florida, like California we get year-round sunshine which really puts a beating on clear bras, paint, and pretty much anything it reaches. Mike, do you think Toyota/Lexus put in any extra work into the paint on this car being that it was a special edition? I know they recently have shown the paint process on limited colors (that fancy blue I can’t remember the name of) so I’m wondering if any technology similar to the Euro luxury brands was applied.
I think it’s a really good paint job, it still looks new after 10 years of daily use.
I thought you can’t clear bra over ceramic coat as it would peel much easier.
You sort of want it to be able to be peeled off!
Great thoughts were stated here, and they were not so difficult to understand. I wish people would be using these ways to solve their this issue. I am very hopeful.