Tony Prodigy

I woke up this morning to inspect my handy work and It struck me I hadn't treated the door rubbers. So I got my trusty Aerospace 303 Protectant and went to work. I like to keep all the door rubbers and surrounds soft and supple so they don't dry rot. I cannot speak highly enough of the 303 product, and not to be confused with that rubbish armor all. This stuff is the real deal when it comes to protecting plastic and rubber surfaces and it doesn't leave a greasy finish either. It will go on shiny initially, and then as the material absorbs it, it will leave a matt like finish, making it look fresh and new. Also has built in UV protection. Did the door cards, all door rubbers, inners and outers, including that strip along the bottom under each door and the boot rubber. Did the kick panels, runners and scuff plates. Sorry about the picture quality, the morning sun was in my face.

Hahaha.. Kingswood Country. An old favourite of mine.. "Pickle me Grandmother, Not the Kingswood, I just glad wrapped the number plates " !!!! The rear brakes have around 5mm left. I think I'll just do both front and rears. I'll check the fronts again in a few months, but I'll definitely order the pads in the meantime and be ready to pounce.

Thanks for your kind words Robert. Go online and research clay bar and clay mitt procedure before you dive in. Knowledge is key.

Just a few more...

The finished product.. Phew !! I'm buggered..

Rear brakes. Original pads.

The inner guards all clean and dressed.

These are the clay mitts used to remove fallout and make the panel smooth again. Also my Big Boi air dryer. it's a four stage dryer that blows warm air.

Ok, It's done ! I finally finished the big detail. Gave it a nice bath this morning, foam cannoned the entire vehicle, including the engine bay (yes, I wrapped the alternator with a plastic bag) and then began the decontamination process. Allowing the foam to create an emulsion, I pressure cleaned it down, then did the two bucket hand wash as I've always done. The surface had what we refer to as, fallout contamination, which makes it feel like sandpaper, a little rough. For this I used a clay mitt, using the clean wash detergent, you go back and fourth until it feels smooth. This removes all the iron and other airborne contamination. Then another pressure clean, and it's time for my favourite part. Aqua wax. Using a dry and clean microfibre towel, I spray a few sprays onto the towel to pre lube it, then I spray one panel at a time (whilst wet) and then proceed to dry. As you dry, you apply spray wax and this in turn puts a layer of sealant on the paint. It will make it slick to resist even bird droppings and makes the next wash a breeze as the dirt doesn't cling as much. After the car was dried, i pulled out my Big Boi air dryer and blow dried the engine bay and all the nooks and crannies where water just loves to sit. This was very satisfying. After the car was fully dried I then dressed all the inner guards and hoses with a Meguiars rubber/vinyl and plastic protector. The brake hoses really benefit form this as does the suspension bushes. After the inners were done, I remounted all the wheel and torqued to 76 ft lbs. Nice. I had a lunch break, then after did the glass treatment. It's finally done. Here are some pics of today's exciting work.

It's the OCD in me Ashley. I got the clean freak bug from my Mum. Couple this with my love for anything with a motor and whammo ! I also use Rain - X on my Glass.I also clean the wiper blades really well then apply rain x to them also. I first use the 2 in 1 to clean, then I apply Rain - x water repellent. You can literally drive on rainy days and Never use the wipers. That's how slick this stuff is. It's the closest you're going to get unless you go the next step and that's to ceramic coat the glass. That's truly spectacular !!

That's very prudent BigMike

If I lived near you BigMike I'd come and help you do the brakes no problem. It's an easy job. Ashley was on the money too with brake pad/rotor longevity. I checked my fronts yesterday during my wheel off situation and this morning I checked my rears. My fronts have so far 2 years and 7 months on them and my rears, believe it or not are still the originals and look to have around 30 % left. So 3 years for the fronts is achievable if the car isn't driven by a maniac, which of course the Gentlemen we are, they aren't. lol..

It's something most never bother with, but for me it's almost like a ritual. I don't always remove the wheels just to clean them. Maintenance time allows me to do a more thorough job that's all. During my maintenance wash I use a barrel brush to be able to get in there and this also gives the calipers a decent going over. These are some of the brushes I use.

I tried peeking in through the sides but I had no chance. It was off with the caliper. I didn't torque these back to spec the last time I did the brakes,(just tightened firmly) if you all recall, and so I thought I'd do it this time just to see how much tension it really requires. So out came my 1/2" drive torque wrench and due to it's longish size I found it difficult to position inside the wheel well. I did manage to find a sweet spot for both bolts and torqued to 79 ft lbs. I think this is correct. I looked it up online. Happy to be corrected if it's wrong. I'm going to buy a smaller torque wrench for such situations.

That's exactly what I did. A friend of mine who's also into detailing gave me a bottle of Turtle wax shine 'n' seal to try out. https://www.supercheapauto.com.au/p/turtle-wax-turtle-wax-hyb-seal-n-shine-473ml/573164.html I applied two coats to both sides after the wheels had dried of course. You can feel the slickness now. It's hard, almost impossible to do this while the wheels are on, so When I have the opportunity to do some wheel off maintenance, I tend to follow the same regiment. Admittedly, the outside of the wheels get a lashing of Meguiars Aqua wax during the drying phase of the car itself. It not only acts as a drying aid (using a quality microfibre towel) but adds that layer of protection over and above the sealant already put on the paintwork. https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Meguiars-3-78lt-Synthetic-X-press-Spray-Wax-D15601/142952513264?hash=item2148a23ef0:g:XHMAAOSwFYJbyQWs

I purchased 3 different kits from ebay that pretty much cover all bases for not much money actually. There's nothing worse than having none when you need some and the dealership are quite expensive just for one single piece.

These are just the front wheels. The barrels aren't powder coated but rather just raw alloy and the brake dust tends to cling. You'll need a proper wheel cleaner to get these clean, believe me. I wasn't able to get right into the back of the spokes, but it's good enough i think.

Few more.. I used my foam cannon to help loosen off the dirt after I sprayed the wells with General purpose cleaner..

Here's more..

My plan for today was to do a full detail inside and out as it's been a while since i've been able to get to it. I vacuumed the insides, washed the matts, cleaned the leather (including steering wheel), and then cleaned all the hard surfaces with Meguiars interior cleaner. That's the inside sorted. Next was to do a full and proper clean of all the under/ inner arches and both sides of the wheels. I needed wheel cleaner for the barrels as they were pretty dirty. These wheels have a raw alloy for the barrel so the brake dust tends to cling. I use a non acid wheel cleaner. Much safer. Then I tackled the inner guards cleaning everything in sight. I figured I'd do this before putting the wheels back on so it's done properly. I'm only posting up the before shots for now as It's still not quite done yet. I plan to give the rest of the car a pressure wash tomorrow, aqua wax it, then apply plastic sealant/dressing to the inner guards etc. She was pretty dirty..

Front pads will need replacing soon too. Didn't get a chance to check the rears today, but will do this tomorrow as it's still on axle stands for the time being. Not going anywhere anyway.. This will give me an opportunity to try out those Remsa pads too. I'm guessing maybe another 3 months. What you reckon guys ? Had me also thinking the last time I replaced these and I went back and had a look. It was October 14th 2017 !! Wow, how time flies ! 2 years and 7 months. Seem to have lasted ok in my opinion.

I decided to do the brake fluid flush, so I put the car up on axle stands and removed all the wheels for easy access. To my horror, I didn't realise how dirty it was getting underneath so that was next on the agenda for today. So I rigged up my pressure bleeder and set about flushing with 1 lt of DOT 4 fluid.

Good for you Ash. I am still hoping to that job soon, once I get passed a few other things first.

Yeah, that's just human nature. There some artists I never got into all that much and when they had passed (R.I.P.) I don't go about on a listening quest. It's pretty much those that I have followed since a little bloke that I'll always have that connection with. I don't mind the 60s era, but it was a little before my time, however, there are many great bands that set the scene for those to follow. When the 70's hit, music really hit its stride, then came the 80s, wow ! The 80s was my era being a young teenager and all. I like most music genres these days, but it was mainly rock and pop music, with a dash of funk too. I also recall the rap/break dancing era too from the mid 80s. I used to break dance with my schoolmates during lunch break. Great times.

I used to ride my BMX bike to my local shopping centre, leave it just inside the doors, (didn't have to worry about it getting stolen then). purchase a record for the store and ride home. Innocent times and very exciting it was. I still remember the smell of the new vinyl when you just opened it and playing it for the first time ! Magic ! I too have been going through my collection Robert. I decided to re sleeve all my albums (haven't done them all yet) and store them in road cases. Purchased several hundreds of Archival quality blakes crystal sleeves, MOFI rice paper inners and storage cases. It's a time consuming process too, but necessary if you want your precious albums to stay minty. My 7 year old did ask the question though.. "Dad, what are these ?"..... Albums are very special to me because they come from a time when things mattered and Artists put a lot of time into designing them. The artwork on some is just mind blowing. It's a lot nicer having something tangible and of value than the modern MP3 download garbage.This modern generation have no clue about sound quality. How times have changed.