# Old Hondas never die



## Kotsos (May 7, 2011)

Hi all

After a year since my last write up I finally had some time to upload few pics from the work I did to my friends civic ek.

My friend Nick uses it as his workhorse so we decide to bring some gloss back, I knew it wouldn't be easy task.

Many pics to follow but I couldn't resist lol

This is car on arrival

From this distance all seemed ok



Closer look surely told another story















Prior to washing routine wheels cleaned using AS Smartwheels then IX used to remove bonded brake dust. Tyres and wheels arches cleaned using BH surfex

Safe washing routine using VP citrus prewash, maxolen foam and CG Citrus wash and gloss



Car moved inside dried and clayed.

This is how paint looked after decontamination , oxidation swirls holograms rds etc



























Paint condition was shocking but I knew I could exceed Nicks expectations

Paint readings were taking and everything was ready to start polishing



After a hit of Megs 101 on test panel results were looking promising.





So I continue to the rest of the bonnet

This is the difference under natural light





And this is how it looked under halide light











A pic during polishing in the rest of the bonnet when sun invades in the garage



Some reflections brought back to the paint



I continue to the rest of the car

As Nick bought this car used he never know that his paint had some nice flakes lol

50/50 and before after on right fender







Roof



Pillar



Passenger door





Rear door





Time for left side had come







Pillar





More work ahead













In case someone is wondering how polish changes the color follow pics can show the difference







Time to move on













After correction finished whole car refined using M205

Paint cleaned using 7010 ensuring no polish oils leftovers and perfect bonding with the lsp to follow.

Finally best part of the car had come. I used few good layers of ArtDeKotsos wax to seal all my hard work



Finals pics to follow please enjoy























Also few outside pics









Thank you very much for your time

All comments are welcome

Kostas


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## AdamC (Jan 31, 2013)

Brilliant work. So many great 50/50 shots.


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## nam1989 (Sep 1, 2010)

good work and amazing turn around


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## Shiny (Apr 23, 2007)

Great transformation. Tidy little Civic too. Ek4?


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## Rgk Detailing (Dec 6, 2006)

Top work Kotsos.


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## AMac (May 11, 2013)

That looks fantastic - inspired to give my daily civic a freshen up!


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## Uncle_Ben (Feb 3, 2015)

Crikey, that's very impressive!


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## NipponShine (Jun 19, 2012)

15 years younger


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## ardenvxr (May 22, 2013)

Great result


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## Bartl (Apr 3, 2013)

Great turnaround.


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## shaunwistow (May 13, 2011)

Awesome transformation, looks a totally different car, well done mate.


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## enc (Jan 25, 2006)

nICE 50/50S ... EXCELLENT WORK THERE !


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## stangalang (Nov 27, 2009)

Better than new bro, as expected :thumb:


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## salim (Apr 13, 2013)

That's a awesome turnaround. Love those civics. Did you use a rotary or da and What pads?


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## Rían P (Jun 2, 2014)

*Old Hondas never die.....*

.....they just get slower! 
Naw, but seriously brilliant turn around and excellent 50/50 shots. You guys make detailing seem so easy!!!!


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## J306TD (May 19, 2008)

Wow what a turn around 50/50 shots are unbelievable


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## James_R (Jun 28, 2007)

Brilliant work :buffer:

Must have taken a lot of time and patience to get that level of clarity on the assumedly soft paint. :thumb:

Car looks like a museum piece now instead of a daily driver


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## President Swirl (Oct 23, 2011)

Amazing mate. One of the best transformations I've seen on here.


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## Floyd (Jan 1, 2015)

Amazing mate, love the 50/50 shots, Always best to tape half of the panel off so you have a target to aim for rather than no ending point!


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## RichieM (May 11, 2007)

Amazing turnaround!
if Nick wasn't over-the-moon with this I will personally fly over and kick him in the nuts


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## Ed_VeeDub (Sep 22, 2008)

some of the best 50/50s ive ever seen!


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## danwel (Feb 18, 2007)

Great work, bet your friend was very happy with the result


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## T10NY-R (Oct 5, 2008)

good write up an great turn around


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## James Bagguley (Jul 13, 2013)

Marvelous work, the change you have wrought on that ultra tired paint is nothing short of incredible :thumb:


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## JBirchy (Oct 9, 2010)

I love transformations like this. Mega work, well done!


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## Gixxer6 (Apr 5, 2014)

Awesome work! :thumb: well done


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## tomo bpb (Sep 7, 2012)

amazing turnaround


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## saul (Nov 27, 2013)

What a transformation, the car looks a totally different. I bet your friend was very happy.


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## bigbaldyone (Nov 3, 2014)

Amazing finish. This is a wee reminder for us stuck in the middle of winter why we love detailing our cars. Roll on the summer can't wait to get the polish out and get cracking on.


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## Christian6984 (Dec 20, 2007)

Stunning work it looks better than new :thumb:, I'd imagine the good weather is quite hard on paint jobs esp black, not something we have a problem with in the UK.


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## Zolasbackheel (Feb 11, 2013)

Great work as always!! Those 50/50 shots are great.


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## yetizone (Jun 25, 2008)

A truly superb transformation with some great 50/50 progress shots. Must have been very satisfying to work on


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## Spoony (May 28, 2007)

Great work sir.


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## percymon (Jun 27, 2007)

Great job, many hours of effort have transformed it.

Just hope Nick has been educated in how to look after it !


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## charlie20vt (May 8, 2011)

Bravo reh ella


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## chummy325 (Jun 27, 2012)

top of the class for you


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## Kotsos (May 7, 2011)

Thank you all very much for your kind words



AdamC said:


> Brilliant work. So many great 50/50 shots.


Thank you Adam, I couldn't resist to take as many 50/50 I could



nam1989 said:


> good work and amazing turn around


Thank you nam



Shiny said:


> Great transformation. Tidy little Civic too. Ek4?


Thank you shiny, yes it is ek4 with few modifications



Rgk Detailing said:


> Top work Kotsos.


Thank you Richard



AMac said:


> That looks fantastic - inspired to give my daily civic a freshen up!


Thank you Amac, I hope it will inspire me to do mine lol



Uncle_Ben said:


> Crikey, that's very impressive!


Cheers Ben



NipponShine said:


> 15 years younger


Thank you very much Jackie



ardenvxr said:


> Great result


Cheers 


Bartl said:


> Great turnaround.


I think finished results were satisfying



shaunwistow said:


> Awesome transformation, looks a totally different car, well done mate.


Cheers Shaun, I think it's time to start using your lovely collection and post here



enc said:


> nICE 50/50S ... EXCELLENT WORK THERE !


Thank you enc.



stangalang said:


> Better than new bro, as expected :thumb:


Thank you Bro.



salim said:


> That's a awesome turnaround. Love those civics. Did you use a rotary or da and What pads?


Thank you salim.

I used my festool rotary. From memory I used lake country constant pressure pads in various grades http://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/polishing/lake-country-6-5-flat-pads/cat_79.html



Rían P said:


> .....they just get slower!
> Naw, but seriously brilliant turn around and excellent 50/50 shots. You guys make detailing seem so easy!!!!


Thank you for you kind words. It isn't easy takes a lot of time and hard work but it is really satisfying. Truth is that the current civic is getting slower as nicks other car an Evo 6 Rs is currently 1024 hp and getting faster lol



J306TD said:


> Wow what a turn around 50/50 shots are unbelievable


Thank you sir. The worst paint it is more satisfaction it gives lol



James_R said:


> Brilliant work :buffer:
> 
> Must have taken a lot of time and patience to get that level of clarity on the assumedly soft paint. :thumb:
> 
> Car looks like a museum piece now instead of a daily driver


Thank you James. It took me 3 4 days to finish it. Comparing it to newer Hondas I ve done paint was breeze to work.



President Swirl said:


> Amazing mate. One of the best transformations I've seen on here.


Thank you for your very kind words



Floyd said:


> Amazing mate, love the 50/50 shots, Always best to tape half of the panel off so you have a target to aim for rather than no ending point!


Thank you for the tips. I m struggling to get few decent ones but as always photobucket kills the quality



RichieM said:


> Amazing turnaround!
> if Nick wasn't over-the-moon with this I will personally fly over and kick him in the nuts


Thank you Richie. He couldn't believe the transformation so His nuts are safe lol



Ed_VeeDub said:


> some of the best 50/50s ive ever seen!


Thank you Ed



danwel said:


> Great work, bet your friend was very happy with the result


Thank you Danwel, he was more than happy



T10NY-R said:


> good write up an great turn around


Thank you tony glad you like it



James Bagguley said:


> Marvelous work, the change you have wrought on that ultra tired paint is nothing short of incredible :thumb:


Thank you James. it was really pleasure bring it back to life



JBirchy said:


> I love transformations like this. Mega work, well done!


Thank you Jon, it is my kind of detail also.



Gixxer6 said:


> Awesome work! :thumb: well done


Thank you Gixxer



tomo bpb said:


> amazing turnaround


Cheers tomo



saul said:


> What a transformation, the car looks a totally different. I bet your friend was very happy.


Thank you Saul
Both of us were excited. You realize the transformation after every work ends stand back and admire



bigbaldyone said:


> Amazing finish. This is a wee reminder for us stuck in the middle of winter why we love detailing our cars. Roll on the summer can't wait to get the polish out and get cracking on.


Thank you. Weather here is not very good also but I hope I will end my laziness and do mine next



Christian6984 said:


> Stunning work it looks better than new :thumb:, I'd imagine the good weather is quite hard on paint jobs esp black, not something we have a problem with in the UK.


Thank you Cristian, we have hot and dry weather here and summer is really hot so I guess causes some problems



Zolasbackheel said:


> Great work as always!! Those 50/50 shots are great.


Thank you very much my friend



yetizone said:


> A truly superb transformation with some great 50/50 progress shots. Must have been very satisfying to work on


Thank you. It's funnier than doing well care car



Spoony said:


> Great work sir.


Thank you Stu. Must try some HD goodies soon



percymon said:


> Great job, many hours of effort have transformed it.
> 
> Just hope Nick has been educated in how to look after it !


Thank you, he is good student



charlie20vt said:


> Bravo reh ella


Thank you my friend



chummy325 said:


> top of the class for you


Thank you chummy


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## Foxhound (May 5, 2011)

Awesome job!! it looks brand new!!!


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## saul (Nov 27, 2013)

These are the kind of before afters I like to see, good old dirty daily drivers. There's not much to see in newer shiny cars.


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## alcarp (Apr 28, 2010)

cracking results!! 
but wondering did you try the just the m205 first by itself? I had an ek4 and the paint was rather soft.


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## Clancy (Jul 21, 2013)

That's a fantastic turn around, great work well done buddy


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## HITCH2310 (Dec 17, 2013)

Awesome work. The transformation is incredible and love them 50:50 shots. Bet your mate Nick was over the moon with results.


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## bazz (May 15, 2007)

wow great job and hope your mate was happy


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## Starburst (Oct 10, 2014)

Wow! 

Fantastic work. :thumb:


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## MarkJ (May 13, 2009)

Great work matey


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## suspal (Dec 29, 2011)

My brother from another mother you and your jap paints lol, grand job well done.


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## wanner69 (Mar 14, 2010)

Kostas my friend, you are pure class in the detailing world, enough said:thumb:


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## WannaBd (Dec 18, 2010)

Wow! A satisfying job for you no doubt. I have an old Nissan micra with similarly bad paint to practice on, it's goin the scrap yard, so I am getting some much needed practice in, just waiting for some good weather. U have inspired me :buffer: haha.


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## Southy1978 (Dec 11, 2014)

Thats looking great! I bet your friend was well pleased, it's like a new car now.


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## B17BLG (Jun 26, 2012)

Threads like these will be the reason people start looking into detailing.

Brilliant work


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## Hassen (Aug 14, 2014)

Love those cars well done on the turn around


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## 5kinner (Nov 24, 2014)

Awesome work that!


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## GreenyR (Oct 26, 2011)

Wow, what a turn around. Fantastic work


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## V3nom (Oct 31, 2012)

Beautiful work :thumb:


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## alan_mcc (Oct 28, 2008)

Amazing work my man.


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## vek (May 3, 2011)

superb work,great 50/50 shots.


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## HLG (Feb 17, 2015)

WOW! :O 
Thats amazing, fair play man


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