# 1998 Isuzu Rodeo Extreme Makeover! - Single Stage Paint



## Mike Phillips (Jan 26, 2007)

*1998 Isuzu Rodeo Extreme Makeover! - Single Stage Paint *

This 1998 Isuzu Rodeo has an inexpensive single stage red *re-*paint on it. As far as we know outside of an occasional washing and drying, the paint on this car has never been maintained in any other way.

What's unique about the paint is that no matter where you look, no matter the location, the paint is UNIFORMLY oxidized and to be honest... simply ugly.

*Daily Driver = Production Detailing*
To tackle this project we're going to use the Blackfire Total Polish & Seal which is a One-Step Cleaner/Sealant or All-in-One.

A cleaner/sealant is in the same category of products called cleaner/waxes only instead of using a wax like Carnauba wax for the protection ingredients this product uses man-made, synthetic polymers. Same idea though and this means this product will,
*Clean*
*Polish*
*Protect*
And do all three in one-step. Then afterwards we're going to machine apply a coat of Blackfire Midnight Sun Ivory Carnauba Paste Wax for an extra layer of protection and to also really give the red paint that warm Carnauba glow. 
First, let me document just how bad the paint is on this old Isuzu so we can see where we're starting from. Remember, the power in the after pictures is captured in the before pictures.

When doing an extreme makeover to showcase your talent or your products it's VITAL to get great before pictures because after you buff out the paint you can never go back in time to get them. You can ALWAYS get the after shots but you only have one opportunity to get the before shots.

See my article on this topic here,

*The power in the after shots is created in the before shots*

*Without further ado....*

Here's the before shots showing how neglected and ugly the paint is...

*The paint is so flat it almost looks like RED PRIMER!*










*Absolutely zero gloss, shine or reflectivity in FULL SUN!*










*Looks like this Rodeo has seen a few rodeos in it's day!*



























*It's so oxidized it's turning white as has a texture like chalk!*










For those that don't know, this is call the,

High Overhead Hood Shot










*Here's the sun trying to reflect off the hood...*










*Trying...*










*The sun trying to reflect... kind of a lost cause...*




































*Even the paint inside the grill openings is uniformly oxidized...*










*Notice the Palm Tree off to the side of the truck...*










*Notice the lack of reflection of the Palm Tree on the hood...*










*And a cropped out section of the above picture...*










*Yep... this is what I would call a neglected vehicle...*










In my how to book I list 11 categories that describe the condition of paint on ANY vehicle. I would say this Isuzu falls into category #7


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## Mike Phillips (Jan 26, 2007)

Continued....

Here's what the paint looks like after moving the Isuzu into the studio...










This shot was taken with the flash OFF and this is what the paint looks like in person, there's no reflection or shine, just dull and chalky.










This shot was taken with the flash ON for reference...










Here we've taped off half of the hood....










This is what oxidized single stage paint looks like...










*Hand-rubbed, hand-massaged using #7 Show Car Glaze*
Here's one half of the hood rubbed out by hand using terry cloth and Meguiar's #7 Show Car Glaze. The cotton nap or little loops of fibers act as an abrasive to remove the dead paint while massaging the oils into the dried-out brittle paint bringing the color back to life but also reinvigorating the paint to make it safer to work on in the next step.




























Same shot as above only with the tape-line removed...










Now my team goes to work hand rubbing the #7 oils into the paint using small wads of terry cloth toweling and then after massing the oils into the paint using terry cloth to remove the oily residue.










Here you can see the color completely coming back. This is Jesse's first time with the team and his first time rubbing out paint the old fashioned way.










Here's Leo rubbing down the roof rack and John wiping some #7 off...










*No Pictures - Nanoskin Autoscrub Towels*
After removing the #7 we used Nanoskin Autoscrub Towels to decontaminate the paint. Sorry but I was busy rubbing a Nanoskin Towel over the paint so I didn't get any pictures of this process but the paint was very rough with contaminants. During this step we showed a couple of the new guys the "Baggie Test" and the difference between before and after decontaminating the paint blew them away.

*Machine Polishing*
Next up I let the guys choose and use whatever tool they wanted to test out or use as long as they used the correct buffing pads for the tool

*BLACKFIRE Total Polish & Seal*
For this step we used BLACKFIRE Total Polish & Seal which is a light cutting one-step cleaner/sealant. This removed any left over dead, oxidized paint as well as leveled out any of the shallow swirls and scratches. Best of all, it did it in one-step.

Here's Tim and Antti working on the roof.










Here's Tom using a Porter Cable to work on the front of the Isuzu. Tom recently attended on of our *Cars & Coffee shows* and then decided to join us for a Thursday night project. Thanks Tom!










Working on the back of the roof with one of the prototype Duetto's sent to me by Rupes last year is Antti while down below to the right is Den using a Flex 3401.










Here's Jesse using a Porter Cable 7424XP










This is called teamwork!










Here's Larry working the lower rear of the car using a Flex 3401 with the Lake Country Backing Plate Adapter System and a 5" Hybrid Orange Cutting Pad.










Den continuing to work the passenger side of the Isuzu...










Jesse working his way down the roof while Annti switches over to a Griot's Garage 3" Mini Polisher...




























Here's Orlando using a Rupes Bigfoot 15m to work the driver's side of the Isuzu...










*Blast from the past...*
I met *Orlando aka landochiva* back in April of 2007, that's 7 years ago, when he attended a Roadshow class I taught at Jimmy Buff-its shop in *Indianapolis, Indiana*. 

Good to see you again my friend! 










Down in front is my good friend Jeff using the Flex PE14 Rotary Buffer, glad you join us last night Jeff!



















*Machine Waxing*
After machine buffing the paint with the Total Polish & Seal next we topped the results using a non-cleaning finishing or show car wax to maximize gloss and richness of color. For this we're using BLACKFIRE Midnight Sun and applying it using Rupes 4" white finishing pads on the Griot's Garage 3" Mini Polisher.

If you're still waxing by hand you're doing it the old fashioned way... machine waxing is the only way to fly!
































































_Time to eat some pizza!_


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## Mike Phillips (Jan 26, 2007)

Continued....

Here's what a machine applied coating of wax looks like, it's thorough with complete coverage.










*How To Inspect a Microfiber Towel*
Tim gives all the new guys a quick lesson on how to inspect a microfiber towel using the Robert DiTerrlizzi Method before wiping the wax off the paint.










Time to get wiping...



















Look at the shine start to appear.... look at the big screen in the back of the studio, you can see the before picture of the front grill and hood and how dull it looked before....










*Before pictures of the roof*
I didn't take any before pictures of the roof but you can imagine being a horizontal surface, never getting waxed that it was just as oxidized as the rest of the Isuzu but look at it now!



















Next up.... the after shots!


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## Mike Phillips (Jan 26, 2007)

Continued....

Here are the amazing after shots from this extreme makeover here at Autogeek's Show Car Garage!































































































































Looks like a new paint job!

_Great work guys!_
Here's the AG Extreme Makeover Team...


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## Mike Phillips (Jan 26, 2007)

Couple of pictures to put this transformation into perspective....

Before










After










Before










After



















Before 









After


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