# [WAX-IT] Porsche 550 Spyder



## Wax-IT.be (Feb 3, 2011)

A DW first? 

*You can have quick look:*

- on our webpage: *CLICK*

- on our Flickr page: *CLICK*

Or you could just continue reading here 

_More information about this specific Spyder at the Goodwood FOS. 
_





ENJOY!
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One ordinary saturday morning we received a phone call, someone asked if he could come and show his old-timer, and if possible leave the car with us immediately. No problem of course, if he could leave the car at least a week. Later during that day I heard a loud engine, a note I couldn't recognize, before we even knew, something low - very low, sleek and truly magnificent entered our garage. We were stunned by what just entered our facility. A real Porsche 550 Spyder, and as the owner told, not just any Spyder but the first one ever sold, the 550 was used for magazines, photoshoots and such.

We've had some special old-timers over here, but a car like this is truly special and it's a pleasure to work on something like this, and having the customers trust to do everything that's necessary.

*Experience*

A lot of people think that it's just due to the right products to receive a nice result. This is just a move in the right direction, this step is magnified by years and years of training and experience, knowing the products. It's not just that, it's knowing the paint, the surface underneath, paint thickness,… Our goal is to remove every scratch, every single bit of dullness to a level that equals and tops a new car. Every square inch get's a different approach to achieve this goal.

A classic like this makes the job just even better, special curves, chrome, old engines, special materials,… In this write up we're focussing on all the little details we've done to achieve a concours-like result.

*Treatment
*
The car was fairly clean when it came to us, a waterless wash or quick detailer was enough to clean the car. The dullness in the paint was clearly visible on the white paint, the interior had some marks too.





After fully checking the paint we could continue removing tar and dead bugs with Auto Finesse's Tar&Glue Remover. After a while you could see the contaminants loosening, removing them was made very easy!
We continued claying the car with AF clay and Finale.



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https://flic.kr/p/1


That paint had a lot of defects, things that weren't really visible at first. A combination of swirls, dullness and deeper scratches resulted in the car not being as shiny as it really should be! We attacked every panel in a different way, achieving the best possible finishing using just our Festool rotary. When everything was done we finished a second time using an dual action machine.

A lot of different polishes and pads were used. Swissvax Medium and Strong, Festool polishes and pads,… The different shapes, body panels, paint thickness and age pushes forces you to find a perfect combination time and time again.




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https://flic.kr/p/3

The leather strap that holds the hood created a lot of marks too. Loosening and folding it with tape created the space to attack this area with the rotary too.



The rear lights were dull and scratched too, not really unusual on a car this age. A combination of machine and hand work had the light looking as new again. One small step resulting in an even better overall finish.
We used the Cleaner Fluids to restore the rear light, afterwards it was waxed too.



The interior was done by hand and Cleaner Fluid, the rubber received Swissvax Protecton.





The small 4cyl engine couldn't be left alone. The magnesium wheel was polished using Swissvax Metal Polish to remove all the oxidation. The leather was cleaned and dressed. The tire had some Pneu,...

The underside of the hood was polished by hand using Cleaner Fluid and then protected using Nano Express.





Swissvax Metal Polish proved it qualities again on the various metal parts, even without using steel wool.



The Porsche 550 Spyder has no roof and barely any windscreen, it's just a piece of plastic that's "protecting" you. On this piece we used Swissvax's special kit to restore and protect plastic.
By manually polishing the vulnerable piece of plastic and then protecting the plastic using the special wax applied by finger. We didn't using any machine because there were some cracks already.



When using a car without a roof or windscreen you're fully exposed to the environment. This is great when the sun is shining, but it's painful when bugs hit you in the face, hard! The owner had special helmet and dust glasses to protect him. The ivory white helmet was polished too, removing the minor scratches and restoring the dullness in the red logo. The glasses had stains and scratches too. Machine polishing the helmet, protecting it with wax, cleaning the glass, feeding the rubber with Seal Feed, it's part of this extended treatment.





After many many hours getting lost in all the small details we could start working on the paint again. This was still in need of finishing - using Cleaner Fluid Pro - and paint prepping using Cleaner Fluid.

The old single stage paint was now ready to meet one of Swissvax finest. The 356 wax is made for use on this porous paint, resulting in an even deeper & wetter shine. The classic carnauba waxes still have true deep reflection and amazing wetness, something we only see in these kind of natural carnauba's.

When we moved the car outside, in this fine autumn sun it truly revealed it's beauty. What a presence, a true classic sportscar in all its simplicity!

Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed it!

Kind Regards,

WAX-IT


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## Swell.gr (May 7, 2008)

Excellent work as always Bert :thumb:


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## Leo19 (Mar 9, 2011)

Wow! That's stunning!


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## puppag (Dec 14, 2011)

nice work!


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## matzagrin (Nov 1, 2009)

Nice car! Great work...


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## abbacus (Mar 24, 2011)

WOW! :argie:

Stunning car with stunning results! :thumb:


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## Wax-IT.be (Feb 3, 2011)

Thanks a lot everyone!


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## Racer (Oct 27, 2005)

Great work Bert :thumb:


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## ford nut (Dec 12, 2011)

Fantastic work, Simply stunning car.... :argie:


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## Audriulis (Dec 17, 2009)

Superb, realy the highest quality work, and the car mmm.....


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## Wax-IT.be (Feb 3, 2011)

Thanks man!


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## Auto Finesse (Jan 10, 2007)

Errrm, WOW! now thats "detailing"


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## Eurogloss (Jan 22, 2008)

*Top job Bert:thumb:*


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## slrestoration (Nov 11, 2009)

Exquisite attention to detail Bert :thumb:


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## Derekh929 (Aug 28, 2011)

Stunning classic and great wow looks stunning


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## stangalang (Nov 27, 2009)

Awesome!


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## Posambique (Oct 20, 2010)

Absolutely stunning!

An amazing car and a wonderful job. :argie:


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## prokopas (Apr 29, 2010)

Stunning car and great work


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## Wax-IT.be (Feb 3, 2011)

Thanks everyone!


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## Wax-IT.be (Feb 3, 2011)

A customer told us there was an auction last weekend. One of the cars on the list was a 550 spyder so we were quite interested in how this would end... :doublesho

http://jalopnik.com/5892124/1955-porsche-550-spyder-sells-for-record-3685-million/gallery/1
http://www.goodingco.com/all_auctions/results/amelia_island_12



> *1955 Porsche 550 Spyder Sells For Record $3.685 million*
> 
> A 1955 Porsche 550/1500 RS Spyder sold for an amazing $3.685 million at yesterday afternoon's Gooding & Co. Amelia Island auction setting a new record price for a Porsche 550.
> 
> ...


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## 123quackers (Jan 29, 2009)

enjoyed that :thumb: 

nice history to the car and fantastic job :argie:


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## n_d_fox (Apr 18, 2007)

Absolutely stunning work on a fantastic car :thumb: :thumb:


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## Wax-IT.be (Feb 3, 2011)

Thanks man!


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## DMH-01 (Mar 29, 2011)

Cracking job there mate.


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## Vossman (Aug 5, 2010)

Great job, looks stunning.


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## Wax-IT.be (Feb 3, 2011)

I still can't believe we had this car over at our studio!


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