# Polished Bliss: Probably the worst one yet...



## Clark @ PB

Once again, i feel i must apologise for lack of presence on DW recently. My computer had a couple of viruses which prevented me from getting much internet access and i've been tied up with various other things but hopefully i shall be on more regularly from now on :thumb:

Anyways, on with this detail.

This Lotus Elise was booked in for a 2 day correction as according to the owner it just needed a "light polish" (we hadnt seen the car previously as the customer had travelled up from Edinburgh):










I'd barely spent 5 seconds looking at it to know that this was going to need a good bit more than a light polish!...














































As you can see from the pics, the car has seen some bodyshop work in its short life (everything except for the doors had been painted) and to be honest i'm amazed how a bodyshop can hand a car back in such a mess 

They even got polish splatter inside the car!




























To make things worse, just about every single panel had huge amounts of overspray which left the paint rough and dull.

We explained to the owner that 95% + correction wasnt going to be anywhere near possible given the time limits and the horrendous condition of the car (if you think it still doesnt look that bad then wait for the halogen shots), so the main aim was to clean the car up as good as possible in the 2 days it was booked in for. I was already preparing for a late late late night!

So, 9am on day 1 beginning with the wash stage:

Pre-foam first:










This was left to dwell while i cleaned the wheels with Megs Wheel Brightener and Autosmart Tardis and the arches/tyres with Megs Super Degreaser.

I then rinsed the car off, taking extra care round the re-sprayed areas as there was some paint already starting to flake off which i didnt want to make any worse!

Zym0l Fabrique was used with a soft brush to clean the fabric hood:



















A megs triple duty brush and Super Degreaser was used to remove all the polish residue from the plastic trim. This alone took close to 45 minutes to completely remove it all:










I then washed the car with the 2 bucket method and Shampoo Plus before rinsing and moving it inside for claying. I skipped the Tardis stage as some of the paintwork hadnt been baked and some panels were only a week or two old so i didnt want to risk the chance of stripping any paint off (i've seen this happen back in my Valeting days at VW).

Claying took around an hour and a half with an aggressive clay bar to try and remove as much overspray as possible but to be honest, it didnt remove half as much as i'd have hoped for so i prayed that the polishing stage would help with this.

It was close to 3:30pm before i'd got the car all taped up and ready for polishing, purely down to the fact that so may areas of the car needed properly prepped before i could get onto the next stage. This in itself was pretty frustrating as the majority of it was down to the bodyshop being crap at their job (sorry to put it blunt but it was a disgrace)

With the car all dried off and ready for polishing, i took some more pics to try and show just exactly what we were dealing with:

Air bubbles in the paintwork:










Buffer trails:










Overspray:










More Overspray:










Wee bit more overspray (!)










These marks were apparantly from when the bodyshop put a cover over the car before the paint had fully dried (!?!?)










There were also a fair few swirls and RIDS:





































Up untill this car arrived, i'd have said the Evo V detailed in this thread was the worst:

http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=40926

I think loking back at the two that the elise was worse, purely for the fact that the Evo's paint was mostly just oxidisation and etching whereas the Elise had just about everything you could imagine!

Paint readings were taking with the Composites gauge (no metal panels on an elise):

The original paint (which was the 2 doors) was around the 100 micron mark:










The re-sprayed panels was around the 150-200 mark:










I removed several parts of the car to gain easier access for polishing too:



















I should add at this point that the owner had purchased the car after the rear end had been painted, and this was by far the worst area on the car (as you can see in the pics) however he had just got the front end and lower halves painted in recent weeks so i started with these bits first seeings as they werent quide so bad as the rear.

Considering the overall state of the paintwork it would have been pretty risky to use the rotary on this car as there was just too many exposed flaws (not to mention the higher risk of burning the paint on composite panels) so the machine of choice was the Meguiars G220 Dual Action Polisher.

I started off with a 4" Polishing Pad and Menzerna 106FA. This achieved an 80% level of correction with 1-2 microns of paint removal but didnt cut through much of the overspray, so i stepped up to a 4" Cutting Pad and Menzerna 3.02.

This achieved much better results with the soft-ish paint reacting well to the polish and pad combination:





































Overspray on front bumper:










After:










Before:










After:










It was now close to 7pm and with the completely screwed rear end still to come, Rich fortunately was able to join me from there on to get the job done quicker which was a huge relief as i was seriously thinking about doing an all nighter!

So now both armed with our G220's, we tackled a side each and powered on.

Again, i must stress that this wasnt a full correction job, but the shots below will show just how much of an improvement we managed to make to the overall look of the car:



















This shot shows just how much nicks and RIDS remained though:










I would estimate that to get the car looking as good as possible you would need it for at least 5 or 6 days with 3 or 4 of them being solid machine polishing and wet sanding. Even then i would still advise re-spray work of a decent quality to rectify some areas that were in all honesty unsaveable.

Rich and I agreed to get the car completely de-swirled (or as close as!) before caling it a night so that i could spend day 2 going back over the car with the finishing polish (the paint was soft in some areas and marred like mad so this needed refining).

When we finally fnished it was 2am (seems like a regular thing nowadays! :lol and we were both just so happy to have the main correction done that neither of us were paricularly bothered about what time it was.

Day 2 - 9am:

After around 4 and a half hours sleep it was back to work and on with the 2nd stage of machine polishing. I used Menzerna PO85RD and a Meguiars Finishing Pad which helped sharpen the paint up nicely and added a bit more gloss :thumb:

I then dusted the car down and then gave it a wipe down with Menzerna Top Inspection to allow Rich to apply a coat of Raceglaze 55 while i did the interior.

Interior Process was as follows:

- thorough hoover
- APC wipe down 
- Leather cleaned with APC
- Leather fed with Raceglaze Leather Balm (love this stuff! :thumb
- Shuts cleaned and protected with Werkstatt Prime Strong
- seals dressed with Raceglaze Trim Gel
- Glass cleaned with Meguiars Glass Cleaner Concentrate



















Rich also gave the car a final wipe down with Last Touch, dressed the tyres with Blackfire Long Lasting Tyre Gel, sealed the wheels with PB Wheel Sealant, polished the tailpipes with Raceglaze metal polish and "de-fluffed" the hood before applying Zym0l Field Glaze by hand.

The owner arrived around 15 minutes early and we finished pretty much bang on 5pm. This made the total work time around 32 man hours in 32 hours!!

Whilst i'm not going to lie and say the car was perfect, i'm sure you'll agree that in the available time we did pretty well. The Customer was over the moon with the transformation too which is the most important thing 

Not to many afters as time was short but here's the best of what i got :thumb:

Overspray gone on the door (excuse the slight smears):


















































































Roof was done too:









































































Thanks for looking :thumb:

Clark


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## monty537

stunning!! yours posts are always worth the wait!! :thumb::thumb:


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## 91davidw

Brilliant turn around !!! 

Cheers 
David


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## North east Car Care

Yet again you raise the level that others have to follow, cracking work clark:thumb:


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## mattm

Holy sh*t that looked in a bad way!

Amazing transformation Clark as always! :thumb:


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## Zax

Yet another cracking transformation .
Nice to see you two being kept busy 
After seeing the Black evo ( worst one up to that point ) the Elise must have been truly terrible to see but a realy rewarding correction.

Cheers for another good write up as well :thumb:


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## Mark J

You're a f*****g magician, Clark!(and Rich!) What a turnaround :thumb:

The owner should have got on his knees and kissed your feet !


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## keith84_uk

Truely awesome work there!!


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## E1Raz

Seriously that is some awesome work there guys. Your right that is probably the worst condition car ive seen you guys detail. Well done to you guys cos that just shows how good you guys are at your jobs.


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## -ROM-

**** me that's a turn around!


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## Mister-Jimbo

stunning. absolutely stunning. :thumb:

you have again altered my perception of what is achievable through detailing. i would have knocked 4k off the value of that car to pay for a quality re-spray if i was buying it, i hope the owner's jaw didn't damage the floor when it hit it! 

jim


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## acrebo

Sensational turnaround, can't believe the shocking quality of the paintwork before!


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## D2.

Shocking condition for such a young car but another amazing transformation! well done clark and rich


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## DE 1981

jesus those were some shocking defects, but the end result is nothing short of a miracle. 

Great read, cracking pictures and a smashing car. A+++++ Clark and Rich

PS congrats to your boys on the SCF(i suppose) lol.


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## Trist

Awesome turnaround, you had a mighty challenge there, turned out spot on though as usual :thumb:


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## diamond_ross

amazing mate well and truley


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## Graeme1

Thats really good. If i ever sent a car out at the bodyshop i work at like that i would get my balls chopped off. some shocking paint work there aswell.

this below happens when the car is wet in places and the sheeting that goes over a car goes on and when its baked it leaves that mark.









in the case of this car though i cant actually see where they have put the sheeting with the amount of overspray on it.

and also with regards to the air bubbles ( micro blister`s) they are pretty common on alot of fiberglass cars that have alot of flex in them.


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## flanker

rmorgan84 said:


> **** me that's a turn around!


Couldn't have put it better myself!!!


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## RB320~067

what a transformation top job yet again


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## visor

what a transformation, brilliant work! :thumb:


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## Phil1971

I always look for the Polished Bliss posts when I log on and had wondered where you'd been.....glad you're back on track and boy, what a comeback.....fantastic results - a real inspiration for a numpty like me whose still getting to grips with the G220....:thumb:


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## Ade R

Wow, fantastic correction of a body shop mess.


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## Ian Zetec - S

Wow, thats absolutely stunning. Amazing attention to detail.

Bit harsh that the police have camped right outside the unit so that they can catch you speeding away in the WR1...


Clark said:


>


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## dsolds

Clark, as always you have done the impossible. I was chatting to Rich last week and we both reckon you need a real challenge.........so I booked this one in mate. Hope you enjoy doing this as much as we look forward to the write up.
Seriously chap, most excellent work. Your skills and knowledge are an inspiration to us lesser mortals.
Dom


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## John-R-

Fantastic work guys :thumb:
Hope the owner is sending the bill to the garage/bodyshop as that is a pure disgrace to put a car out in that condition.

John


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## Ronnie

awesome recovery Clark!!!! It must be pretty dishearening though to bring a car in that state to such a beauiful finish and still know there is nothing you could do but repaint it!!!! Awesome work as usual and welcome back m8!


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## honda-r

Amazing turn around, well done


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## Neil_S

That really is enough to make many walk away or shake a head and wonder how on earth you are going to deal with that mess.

What a stunning transformation, really shows your skills!


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## Mossman

Awesome job Clark! 

 Sadness at the state of the car and the way a bodyshop business conducts work like that


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## PhatPhil

That was in an appalling state from the bodyshop!

Great correction work and write up as usual Clark


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## Ali

Sac using that bodyshop! lol


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## Mr Singh

Wot a nightmaire.. been there few times with black cars, know exactly the challanges you were facing.. Awesome turn around 










What did you do with this?


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## Sandro

thats infinitely better Clark! what a turn around!


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## rockape

clark you deserve a medal mate, that is just like a horror movie :doublesho. the worst i've seen on dw. brilliant work mate :thumb:


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## KnightUnit

Seriously nice work Clark, always enjoy reading your write ups.


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## Fursecul

Outstanding work :thumb:


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## rob750

Stunning transformation


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## ahaydock

That was indeed shocking but what a top job and lovely finish you have achieved :thumb:


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## Auto Finesse

great work as usual, that over spray and dodgy mark on the bumper look more like where the paint has got under the masking film and then sweated up in the oven, its a pain to sort out, i was not expecting it to look s good as it did in the end with in 2 days, well done


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## Deanvtec

Genious, what brilliant work as always, Thats some turnaround, as always a superb job.


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## Clark @ PB

Mr Singh said:


> Wot a nightmaire.. been there few times with black cars, know exactly the challanges you were facing.. Awesome turn around
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> What did you do with this?


Nothing at all mate, mainly down to the time limits but in all honesty i would have been a bit cautious about sanding it back etc as the paint wasnt exactly great and i wouldnt be too sure just how it would react anyways... 

Cheers again for the comments guys, remember Rich helped out on this one too - i sometimes feel he doesnt always get the credit he deserves when he helps me out from time to time :thumb:


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## geert dr

Amazing correction job you guys did on that Elise!! Respect:thumb::thumb:


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## ianking

Great result there and what a turn around.

Im from the Edinburgh area and I would hate for a body shop to leave my car like that. Im going to get my classic mini booked in for a wee bit paint soon. 
I hope its not the same place. Name and shame I say in order to prevent any more cars leaving like that.


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## Auto Finesse

Great job also Rich lol, i thought i spotted him in the reflections on final pics


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## hus55

nice work clark and company.....!

welcome back and dont leave it soo long again!!

call me rich, i need some more stuff mate.[after 4pm please,thats when the wife goes home!!]


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## Goju5

That was an utter inspiration!! I would never have believed that that was the same car :O Could u tell me how much that mammoth effort cost the owner please? Even a PM with a rough amount if poss, cos whatever it cost u should have charged double!! 

Amazing!

Greg


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## Summit Detailing

Top, top job as always chaps:thumb:

Have to say I've seen quite a few Elises in very poor condition, obviously not quite as bad as this one but nevertheless a surprising amount of unloved ones out there.:wall:


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## Affection to Detail

Great turn around. Shame about those RDS's!!


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## silver bmw z3

Clark said:


> Once again, i feel i must apologise for lack of presence on DW recently. My computer had a couple of viruses which prevented me from getting much internet access and i've been tied up with various other things but hopefully i shall be on more regularly from now on :thumb:


It's looking at people being tied up doing other things that probably got you the viruses in the first place clark 

Seriously though, that has to be one of the best transformations I've seen - I hope you charged the owner extra for the false description up-front!

And well done for Rich for doing some work..... just kidding


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## AW8

Superb work - wouldnt have minded getting hold of that cheap and taking my G220 to it before seeing a drink out of a subsequent sale. That said I suspect I would seriously struggle to get such results.


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## 111r

Makes me cry to see one in that condition. 

Clark, would you recommend i use a 4" pad for the entire car when I purchase a g220. (I'm just waiting for you to get stock )


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## uberbmw

Bloody hell! Hope the owner was praising you like mad after that detail!!

Well done guys!


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## stargazer

Great turn-around :thumb: well done
The scratches and defects are probably the worst ones I've seen to date - shocking:doublesho


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## hotwaxxx

I am astounded - absolutely astounded.

How someone can call that a respray is beyond a joke - and the customer should never had paid a penny for that workmanship.

But the detail is quite simply out of this world - a stunning transformation and probably one of your absolute best to date. In the words of Sir Alan Sugar...

*You're Hired.*


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## kk1966

hotwaxxx said:


> I am astounded - absolutely astounded.
> 
> How someone can call that a respray is beyond a joke - and the customer should never had paid a penny for that workmanship.
> 
> But the detail is quite simply out of this world - a stunning transformation and probably one of your absolute best to date. In the words of Sir Alan Sugar...
> 
> *You're Hired.*


What a transformation and a true test of detailing skill.

I would have loved to have been there when the owner picked it up just to see his face.:doublesho


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## S-X-I

That car was in a horiffic state, its amazing that body shops can get away with it!

You can see that you and Rich put alot of hard work into that with a great improvement seen!


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## Mr Mike

Well done guys, awesome results considering what you had to work with, nice to see you back posting Clark


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## WyattEarp

:thumb::doublesho:thumb::doublesho Oustanding transformation Clark. Keep up the great work.


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## block

Awesome as ever Clark.


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## oldgit

:thumb:thats some well done job mate you deserve a medal:thumb:


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## GlynRS2

That is one amazing transformation and a fantastic finish :thumb:


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## Cliff

:doublesho:doublesho:doublesho:doublesho Geez what a mess that was in.

Great turnaround as always, but as you say that has to be one that will stick out for a long while to come :thumb:


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## Tiauguinho

OMFG at the state of that car... Who in their right mind would do such a ****ty painting job. Professionals my a**!

Great recovery Clark! Fantastic what you were able to achieve in such a timeframe!!


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## scooby73

Awesome, amazing and superb job from the both of you!!!!!:thumb: :thumb:


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## Dan Clark

This has to be the detail of the century!?! Excellent work! :thumb:


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## cocker92

WOW, no wonder you havent had time to do many write ups !!!!
the transformation is the best we've seen i think.
how on earth can a bodyshop be happy with the end product they produced i will never know!
well as you have done it now and got the pc fixed i suppose we all expect alot more write ups from you clark! LOL


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## Clark @ PB

****er92 said:


> WOW, no wonder you havent had time to do many write ups !!!!
> the transformation is the best we've seen i think.
> how on earth can a bodyshop be happy with the end product they produced i will never know!
> well as you have done it now and got the pc fixed i suppose we all expect alot more write ups from you clark! LOL


2 or 3 more to come, i'm in the middle of one now


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## mattjonescardiff

fantastic work and write-up as always.


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## Rich @ PB

A few of my after shots taken on new camera equipment here...

http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?p=870219

:thumb:


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## KKM

Why somebody would produce re-spray work like that is one question, but actually accepting such a poor job in so many areas is another. I reckon the customer should name and shame the bodyshop. Chancers!!!

Cracking work as normal dude, When you see the final shots its amazing to see the difference.

:thumb:


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## Clark @ PB

111r said:


> Makes me cry to see one in that condition.
> 
> Clark, would you recommend i use a 4" pad for the entire car when I purchase a g220. (I'm just waiting for you to get stock )


I would try a larger pad first for the larger areas at least mate, then step up to a 4" spot pad if you're still struggling


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## dsolds

Was this from a pigeon which had eaten a can of black paint? :wall:


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## Russ and his BM

It's called a DA, not a magic wand!

Nice one, I can see why the customer was pleased.

What a rubbish bodyshop!


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## drka-drka

Amazing job that was in a fair old state


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## Mike V

Russ and his BM said:


> What a rubbish bodyshop!


Must admit does'nt seem the most profesional of body shops.

On the other hand fantastic work by yourself to try and bring it back to its former glory!


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## Mr.Mexi

that was rough - but you made it look 100 times better - bet the owner was chuffed- what a Pro!


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## Huw

Great transformation.

I don't know what surprises me more, a bodyshop thinking that level of work is suitable to return to a customer, or a customer accepting the car back from the bodyshop in that condition.


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## Multipla Mick

Stunning work, that was in a truly appalling state. Superb transformation :thumb:


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## theshrew

Fantastic job done there mate top marks 

How much of a clown must the owner must be. To buy that in the first place unless he got it cheap as chips and to accept the pi*s poor work from the body shop.


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## Anzafin

That car was wrecked! Amazing turnaround!


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## Tyrrell

What a brilliant job !!!! 

Awesome post !!! I can't believe that a body shop would allow a car to leave its premisis in that state !! it was a complete write off !! 

I'm not suprised the customer was over the moon, you made it look like a different car !! 

I take my hat off to you mate.


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## Rowan83

Holy sh*t!!!! :doublesho

That is one awesome transformation bud. 

It's scary to think a bodyshop can leave a car in that condition.


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## REFLECTS

Excellent job Clark.

Whats the mat that the car sits on for??

:thumb:


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## surgemaster

It's to catch the water & suds from the washing process as they can't let it run into the drains where they are based, & then it is drained into a tank for disposal.


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## Glennroy

stunning turn around.


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## Thomas-182

wow, how amazing does that look in the afters. Amazing work.


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## Doc

OMG how can anyone let a car get in that state, shame on the people working on it previously.
Your like Knights in shining armour, I bet the owner was ecstatic.


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## Clark @ PB

surgemaster said:


> It's to catch the water & suds from the washing process as they can't let it run into the drains where they are based, & then it is drained into a tank for disposal.


nearly mate, its because there is no drainage facilities at the unit at all!

Thanks again for all the feedback guys - its really appreciated :thumb:


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## jonnie5

Not read all the posts here but my thoughts are.......

You have done a cracking job there mate and Polished Bliss to me are second to none.

Although the Elise has so many convex and concave lines it does make it harder for the panel beater to spray, this however is not a excuse for poor workmanship. Who ever resprayed this car is not a tradesman and should be reported to trading standards.

Sorry to say to the owner, but its his own fault if he allowed it to be driven out the body shop like that, and if I picked up my car in that state, I would hand the keys straight back (well maybe not in this case as its that poor I wouldn't think twice).

The owner must of know it was bad if he's assessed the condition of the paint and thought it needs attention. Even if it was bought like that surely you would walk away when looking at such mess. Sorry for harping on. Thats just so bad that someone could do a respray like that and call himself a tradesman.


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## jamiesim

seriously good job!!!!

Its amazing how poor paint shops can be!!! my car is going back in after the BMW 'approved' paint shop at the dealer couldn't manage to spray the whole panel!! or put the bumper back on straight!!! twats!


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## Chris_R

Christ! Why on earth would anyone accept a car repaired like that at all?!?
Amazing turnaround and really shows what can be done with some time and the right products/skills.


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## Glider

I don't know the owner but you must assume to accept the car back from the body shop like that, he got what he paid for.
Cracking work by the both of you to turn the Elise round, I wouldn't know where to start with all those curves.


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## Tyrrell

jamiesim said:


> seriously good job!!!!
> 
> Its amazing how poor paint shops can be!!! my car is going back in after the BMW 'approved' paint shop at the dealer couldn't manage to spray the whole panel!! or put the bumper back on straight!!! twats!


I know exactly what you mean mate, i had a Bmw/Porsche body shop lie to me and do the most terrible job on my wheels, i gave them a second chance to sort it out and came back even worse with primer still showing!!!! I'm seriously looking into investing in a unit and opening a Detailing shop that also does paint and wheel refurbishment in my area also i'd like the to be able to offer a proper drive through hand car wash service using all the right products and not swirling peoples cars like all the other ones in my area, i'm doing my homework at the moment, i think that the hardest part of doing a project getting my dream business off the ground would be finding the right people to employ.


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## Clark @ PB

Tyrrell said:


> I know exactly what you mean mate, i had a Bmw/Porsche body shop lie to me and do the most terrible job on my wheels, i gave them a second chance to sort it out and came back even worse with primer still showing!!!! I'm seriously looking into investing in a unit and opening a Detailing shop that also does paint and wheel refurbishment in my area also i'd like the to be able to offer a proper drive through hand car wash service using all the right products and not swirling peoples cars like all the other ones in my area, i'm doing my homework at the moment, i think that the hardest part of doing a project getting my dream business off the ground would be finding the right people to employ.


And the fact that a decent wash/dry would take you best part of an hour at least...


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## Ron07

I am the owner some of you have been slating.

Firstly can i thank Clark and Rich for their brilliant work on the Elise. It really was an outstanding turnaround. Staying at it till 2am on day 1 was above and beyond the call of duty. I massively underestimated the poor condition of the paintwork (those lights are evil) and for that i appologise.

It is a 2002 car i bought second hand in late 2006. There were 2 previous owners before myself. I bought the car based on the way it drives and the price. I knew the paintwork was in bad condition but this was way down on my list of priorities at the time. 

The back end was sprayed by the previous owner so i had no control over that. The front end was sprayed by the Lotus garage in Edinburgh because it was damaged in their care. It was sprayed twice because they managed to do it the wrong colour (metalic black instead of plain black). The side sills were sprayed by Edinburgh Coachworks who i now realise are cowboys. 

Since owning the car i have religiously washed it using methods advised on the PB website but it was impossible for me to erase the abuse from previous owners and the car never looked properly clean. That's why i booked in with PB.

I am confident i can maintain it in the condition Clark and Rich left it in. I know it was impossible to reach perfection in the time available but I am a very happy customer.

Ron


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## TeZ

Looked ok to me


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## Clark @ PB

Ron07 said:


> I am the owner some of you have been slating.
> 
> Firstly can i thank Clark and Rich for their brilliant work on the Elise. It really was an outstanding turnaround. Staying at it till 2am on day 1 was above and beyond the call of duty. I massively underestimated the poor condition of the paintwork (those lights are evil) and for that i appologise.
> 
> It is a 2002 car i bought second hand in late 2006. There were 2 previous owners before myself. I bought the car based on the way it drives and the price. I knew the paintwork was in bad condition but this was way down on my list of priorities at the time.
> 
> The back end was sprayed by the previous owner so i had no control over that. The front end was sprayed by the Lotus garage in Edinburgh because it was damaged in their care. It was sprayed twice because they managed to do it the wrong colour (metalic black instead of plain black). The side sills were sprayed by Edinburgh Coachworks who i now realise are cowboys.
> 
> Since owning the car i have religiously washed it using methods advised on the PB website but it was impossible for me to erase the abuse from previous owners and the car never looked properly clean. That's why i booked in with PB.
> 
> I am confident i can maintain it in the condition Clark and Rich left it in. I know it was impossible to reach perfection in the time available but I am a very happy customer.
> 
> Ron


You shouldnt feel like you have to explain yourself to anyone mate. What some seem to forget is that us "detailing minded" people are still a small minority so the majority of people wouldnt know a good car from a bad car in terms of defects. I'm glad you were happy with the result we could manage in the short time we had it for


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## Ron07

Cheers Clark,

Just wanted to put the record straight on a few things. But i've learnt a thing or two so next time i buy a second hand car i'm taking a portable halogen lamp with me :thumb:

Thanks again to you both.

Kieron


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## supercharged

jaw-dropping gordeous!!!


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## Detail My Ride

Holy s*it that was bad. Ace turnaround, just goes to show how ace you are at detailing. IMO the best in the world.


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## baseballlover1

Ron07 said:


> Cheers Clark,
> 
> Just wanted to put the record straight on a few things. But i've learnt a thing or two so next time i buy a second hand car i'm taking a portable halogen lamp with me :thumb:
> 
> Thanks again to you both.
> 
> Kieron


You could even take a Paint thickness gauge next time to make sure they are not lying to you.

BUT GREAT JOB CLARK! Thats AMAZING!


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## fraz1975

Great turnaround on that one Clark :thumb:

Re the original condition of the car I think most of us, pre Detailing and OCD have had cars in a bit of a state, not known what they are looking at in terms of paint etc so a bit harsh on the Owner IMHO

Real test is how the owner keeps it now, not how it was before he looked up Clark and the Polished Bliss team - and he did state he bought it for the way it drives first and foremost :driver:


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## karburn

Adding value one body panel at a time...as usual. Well done.


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## Al Fresco

fantastic work! what's more I understood most of it too....:buffer:

Can you just tell me, when you "de-fluffed" the hood, how did you do that?

regards

Al Fresco


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## jamest

Amazing work. That was awful work from the bodyshop though.

You just added a couple of grand to the cars value.


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## Phil H

amazing work!


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## Clark @ PB

Al Fresco said:


> fantastic work! what's more I understood most of it too....:buffer:
> 
> Can you just tell me, when you "de-fluffed" the hood, how did you do that?
> 
> regards
> 
> Al Fresco


Masking tape


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## Ali

Lint roller no do the job?


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## GTIRed

Clark, Rich - The Dogs bollx. Absolutely fascinating how you can transform such a dog of a car. The question now is just how well the owner will look after the car from now on. I know you never got to see the car before hand but I hope you increased the cost for this job as the owner clearly has no idea of the amount of work that goes into this type of intense correction. For him to say it would only require a "Light polish" clearly shows he has little idea as does accepting it back from the bodyshop in that condition in the first place.

If he dosen't appreciate your work then every one on here does just by looking at your posts and making all the great comments. Keep up the great work.

PS. GTI still in the garage.....


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## Benskett

****ing awesome sir


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## diesel_dog

Wow wow and wow!!

That's some stunning work there, you should be well chuffed with yourselfs


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## Piratez

Great!!!!! I always love your work on negleted car, vaery awesome !!!!
:thumb::thumb::thumb:


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## Petrol-head

God that was in a bad way, fantastic turnaround :thumb:


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## Drew

WOW! wat a difference! wat a job!!!


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## nicp2007

amazing turn around mate :thumb: looks fantastic in the afters even though you say it was'nt perfect.


can i just ask,

if you book a car in for 2 days work do you give a flat rate for 2 days work,

if so do you ajust the price if you end up spending till 2am on the car?

thanks :thumb:


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## Monza Man

Another brilliant job guys, well done :thumb:


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## James_R

Only just read this.

Superb write up and photos Clark.

Car looked a sh!t heap when you started

Finished results are something the customer could not have been disappointed with.:thumb:


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## magpieV6

great thread! i cant believe how bad it was :doublesho 

excellent work! im even more inspired + determind to try n get as good as u guys!

thanks matie :wave:


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## Predator_VTR

my word what a correction :thumb:


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## reign

ohhhhhhhh!! those after pics are pure PRON!! WOW what a car! 

*swipes at drool*

and amazing turnaround.. oh, i want your life!


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## MrLOL

and another thread resurcted from the dead.


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## djpotpot

Your work is always fabulous Clark, an exemple for me, and I try to follow your exemple


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## Jesse74

Feck me that's some nasty paint work! Damn cowboy body shops :wall: Nice work boys!


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## audi2k40

Cannot believe the state the Elise was in after the bodyshop! :doublesho I would have asked them to get it detailed! Great job looks how it should again!:thumb:


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## matty007

Speechless, your work is rewarding for me to look at so i cant imagine how you feel to have the pleasure of standing back and admiring it a real heart in the job pleasure to read and see the outcome


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## gdavison

amazing recovery .....


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## Rasher

that was baaaaaaaaaaaaaaad Clark, superb job though


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## Louise

Amazing work Clark!!


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## Clark @ PB

What's this doing back up?! Lol


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## Auto Finesse

^^ i thought the same thing but had another little pic surf of the write up, and i dont think many have been worse still to date.


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## VIPER

I'd forgot just how bad this was :doublesho 

I still think the afters are different car  (only joking - phenomenal transformation!!:thumb


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## Eddy

Oh my word!!!! That is(was ) the worst paintwork I have ever seen.

Great turnaround


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## paranoid73

:doublesho, This the first time i hand seen this post, what a transformation, great work again :thumb:


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## FocusMarsh

i like the look of that! Top Work!


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## Aroutin

WOW that looks just FANTASTIC !
AWESOME !:doublesho


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## Wardy

Just seen this one too! Good grief, that was in a right state! Do you do pre-detail inspections now, based on this? Surely the amount of work required there, on what is quite a small car, was way beyond what you would have originally quoted for?

Excellent finish that though, especially considering the start point. I just can't believe that a bodyshop would complete work to that standard, and that the owner would accept it back in that state - it beggars belief, on both counts! :doublesho

Steve


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## dbaillie

ffs amazing work what a diffrence.


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## scottgm

swirls? what swirls?

MEHHH


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## Guest

Awesome...


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## *TAY*

Now that is some serious effort gone into making a terrible quality finish into a stunner! 

Well done guys, no wonder the owner was pleased ! 

:thumb:


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## ZetecBex

i'd like to think if i had a elize i'd look after it a little better than they did before you guys got hold of it!!! Well done it looks amazing.


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## Ballistic

This one and the EVO... wow! Tough jobs but pulled off nicely.:thumb:


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## catalin1984

Cand you please tell me where can i buy the inflatable mat from this picture?










Thanks a lot


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## ChrisJD

Another oldie:thumb:

That paint was horredous:doublesho

I bet the owner couldn't believe it was the same car, amazing turnaround.
Looks like one of those jobs that you look at and think oh no! but once you're under way you get a great feeling of satisfaction as the car is transformed.

Chris.


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## agpatel

Great job! How the heck do you get that much overspray, you have to almost try to get that much as well as getting polish inside the car! haha...


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## Clark @ PB

catalin1984 said:


> Cand you please tell me where can i buy the inflatable mat from this picture?
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Thanks a lot


See here:

http://www.morclean.com/


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## chrisfoster1971

Christ almighty you deserve a medal for sticking with it, what a nail that looked on the initial shots, now much better. I'm not surprised the owner was chuffed..superb turn around


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## details

Wow


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## angajatul

Words are not enough to describe the results....I looked at the Mitsu pics first and I thought , this could not be worst.....but it was...damn...

Very very very nice work.Finished pics look awsome, even if the car was not fully corrected :buffer::thumb:


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## RandomlySet

how have I only just seen this thread !?!?

That was a rate state!


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## Gus82

Cracking transformation mate top notch work.


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## russ9898

Great job there. The state of that was dire pre detail. Cant believe youve managed to do such a good turn around.


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## Edward101

Top work there Clark, hats off to you and Rich :thumb:


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## The Beast

Ohh man, the images don't work anymore:wall:


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## -Kev-

Clark - you need to upgrade to photobuket pro


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## Clark @ PB

I do have photobucket pro have done for the last few years 

Dunno why it's done that - they were fine yesterday and I havent uploaded anything else!


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## Railsbrough

Holy cow, what work


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## ashk

What a state that paintwork was in, great job on that one...


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## -Kev-

holy cow, what a thread reserrection! :lol:
well worth another read though


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## Clark @ PB

How do these ancient threads end up getting brought back to the top??


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## paulgjohnston

The change is nothing more than miraculous! Brilliant work. would love you to name the cowboys who did the paint job.......


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## Ultra

You had your work cut out there mate, first class work as usual :thumb:


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## Jav_R

Can someone deliver a resprayed car like that?
Amazing job man!


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## Superspec

Is the police van there to bust the driver for having a car in such a crap state?

Nice turnaround.


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## MattJ VXR

Pics work for me.

A brilliant turnaround :thumb:

I don't know how a Lotus Elise of all cars could possibly be allowed to get in that state.

Must have been very rewarding turning it back to how it should be. How is it in 2011 do you know?


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## detailersdomain

great job!


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## Ralphvxr

Am actually in shock at the state of that paint and how its been left 

Great job and all with a Da


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## TelTel

Thats incredible, i actually cant believe how bad the paintwork was, it really comes to light especially when proven through photographic evidence how unprofessional and rushed sprayers are. I do believe that there is a high collection of unskilled labour used to take out paint jobs on vehicles just to keep business running and hoping for no downfall or loss of customers, not a good advertisment for a so called " car sprayer "

An absolutely fantastic turnaround from PB, great write up, great work and great results, be proud of yourselves!!! :thumb:


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## uzi-blue

Amazing job, stunning turnaround


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## Clark @ PB

MattJ VXR said:


> How is it in 2011 do you know?


No idea mate, it was one of those few cars where we never saw it again after it left the studio 

Just had a re-read of this thread and it's amazing how many things you would do differently just a couple of years further on!


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## Leemack

Can't believe i never commented on this one (Slipped through the net)

What a complete mess that car was - Really nice work mate.

What things would you do differently?


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## riles

what a turn around, I cant beleive the owner let the bodyshop away with that workmanship,shocking


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## Brooklands

I'm not sure what is more incredible - the state of the car upn arrival, or the finished results. On word - Stunning!


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## nmavs

Ive seen some terrible resprays, but never have i seen anything that bad. What an amazing turn around youve done there pal. Good job :thumb:


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## Top Gear Dog

That body shop needs naming and shaming!! If that was my Lotus I would have gone fg mental!!

Brilliant job guys :thumb:


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## Henry33

amazing job love the finished car


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## gally

Nice thread bump and still a great read. How things have moved on eh!

Can I just say Clark, it looks like his mate painted it! Homer? Surely you would just reject that sort of work if a normal bodyshop did it?

To be fair it would never have left our paint booth if it had been that bad. If I wouldn't accept it on my car I wouldn't expect anyone else to.


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## Ali

Shocking! But a cracking turnaround considering!


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## Hamish_023

gally said:


> Nice thread bump and still a great read. How things have moved on eh!
> 
> Can I just say Clark, it looks like his mate painted it! Homer? Surely you would just reject that sort of work if a normal bodyshop did it?
> 
> To be fair it would never have left our paint booth if it had been that bad. If I wouldn't accept it on my car I wouldn't expect anyone else to.


Ha only just read that myself but what a bump it was too. Such a turn around


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## Lloydy

Amazing simple as that


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## shaneslatcher93

Amazing job as always, bet it was hard not to go the full hog on that Lotus and get it perfect, guess you have no when to draw the line though. Keep up the good work guys


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## Offset Detailing

Great work - can't believe what a mess it's in. I've seen things scrapped that were in better nick than that!


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## Exotica




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## ITSonlyREECE

As much as I'm laughing about this thread being resurrected, I can't believe how good the car looks! It's definitely one of the best turnarounds I've seen!


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## suspal

I wonder what I't like almost six years on :lol:


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## MitchB121

Stunning!! What a turn around!


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## zippo

:tumbleweed::tumbleweed::tumbleweed::tumbleweed: :thumb::thumb:


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## k9vnd

Just wanted to ask clark when your customers return for pick up do you have the car inside?
Because simply put with it being in that condition to returning to it in the condition it is now then the owner should have been doing cartwheel's.

Stunning transformation on a very poorly kept classic, wonder where or how it look's now!.


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