# Arden Blue VXR- Gleammachine.



## Gleammachine (Sep 8, 2007)

A recent "Paint Correctional" detail completed for forum member MattJ VXR.

Having been contacted by Matt in early January regarding his Arden Blue Astra VXR, he explained that the car had been owned from new 07' and only washed by himself using safe wash practices, the car had gone into Vauxhall for a service and they unfortunately gave it a wash, leaving the finish a little poor to say the least.
Obviously to Matt's frustration and despite the effort, he couldn't restore the finish to it's former appearance and contacted me regarding my services.
Work completed over 2.5 days.

*Upon arrival.*



















Looking pretty tidy you say?



















Starting with the alloys, tyres & arches.





































Iron fillings removed.










Citrus APC applied through the foam lance, left to dwell shortly and then rinsed.










Various parts of the exterior trim cleaned.



















Washed using the typical safe wash practices, rinsed and de-contaminated.










Vehicle dried using plush towels & the Black Baron.



















The vehicle was then pulled inside, vunerable trim masked up and paint depth readings taken.










Having tested various polishing combinations, it was found that Menzerna IP3.02 on a LC Hydro polishing pad (Tangerine) was giving the desired results.










50/50 example panel-panel.










A few before and after panels, prior to refinement.

*Rear Qtr pillar.*





































*Rear O/S qtr.*



















*Top of door edge.*

















*Roof.*





































*Front N/S wing.*





































*Boot lid.*



















Rear lenses brightened up with Festool 11000 using a polishing 4" pad.



















Paintwork refined using M205 on a 3M blue pad.










Vehicle rinsed down to remove any polishing dust.

Trim dressed using 303 Aerospace protectant.










Alloys sealed throughout with Blackfire WD Metal.










Paintwork protected using Swissvax Shield, applied and left for 2 hours curing before removal, whilst curing the various other parts of the detail were completed.










Glass cleansed and sealed using Werkstat Prime.










Tyres dressed with Swissvax Pneu.










Rubber seals nourished with Swissvax Seal Feed.










As per Matt's request the "Astra" badge was removed before the start of the detail.



















Chrome polished using Optimum metal.










Shuts polished and sealed with Werkstat Strong, followed by some of the usual tinkering with cotton buds etc.. a final wipedown to the paintwork and glass and the car was ready.

*Final results.*













































































































Many thanks to Matt for taking the time to bring his car down to me, I know it wasn't just round the corner and it's much appreciated, great to meet with you and a real pleasure.:thumb:

Comments welcomed and appreciated.


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## Scrim-1- (Oct 8, 2008)

Fantastic, very nice


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## Jamie-O (Jan 28, 2010)

Absolutely stunning! Hard-on blue is awesome, common but its clear to see why!


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## Edward101 (Jun 5, 2009)

Looks great, always a great colour when properly done :thumb:


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## slrestoration (Nov 11, 2009)

Top results as always Rob :thumb: Great write up & superb pics.


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## Auto Finesse (Jan 10, 2007)

Tidy job that Rob :thumb:


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## -tom- (Jan 27, 2009)

rob very nice work :argie: the depth u have got there..


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## shane_ctr (Dec 17, 2006)

Lovely work there, Im In Ipswich, Suffolk and after something like this for my 2003 Impreza WRX, Could you pm me an idea of a price to have the above done on my car please

Cheers
Shane


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## Refined Detail (Nov 27, 2006)

Stunning example of a VXR there now - great work Rob. Arden blue when polished up looks brilliant!


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## Eddy (Apr 13, 2008)

That is mental, looks absolutely perfect, but the owner was chuffed to bits.


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## Beau Technique (Jun 21, 2010)

Nice work Rob. Looks lovely now.


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## MattJ VXR (Aug 11, 2008)

Absolutely brilliant Rob :thumb:

Thank you so much for sorting my car out for me. I am gobsmacked at some of the before and after photos. It was worse than I thought in places. 

The local dealership who caused it ..... well 

I will definitely make sure no else at all the dealerships on the planet, who think washing it is a nice gesture, gets near it. 

I am really pleased with it, just like a brand new car, but a lot better. When picking up on Saturday, could not believe the finish of the VXR under the garage lighting, its never been like it is now, not even when I collected it new in September 2007 

It will be a little scary washing it next weekend :doublesho

For everyone reading this, I highly recommend Rob to work on your car, no matter what car it is and what kind of condition it is in. 

I spent about four months on this forum getting an idea of what detailers were out there and reading all the threads and comments. Rob/Gleammachine impressed so much, as did others.

I live 98 miles from Rob and every mile travelled and every penny spent has been worth it. 

Thanks!


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## P200MSD (Jan 5, 2009)

Awesome work! All that swirling from one poor wash!


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## Mercury Detailing (Jan 26, 2011)

Nice work Rob

I think we must all be having a Blue week looking at the threads today :lol:


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## HeavenlyDetail (Sep 22, 2006)

Lovely work Rob!!
You have to be honest and say these are nice cars to work on , when i book one of these i sigh relief as they always go so well compared to some of the hard paintworks you probably invariably hit. Arden blue when done well like this has does look awesome.
Fantastic finish matey!! Nice to see Shield used aswell , such a great wax often over looked by others.


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## MattJ VXR (Aug 11, 2008)

Heavenly said:


> Lovely work Rob!!
> You have to be honest and say these are nice cars to work on , when i book one of these i sigh relief as they always go so well compared to some of the hard paintworks you probably invariably hit. Arden blue when done well like this has does look awesome.
> Fantastic finish matey!! Nice to see Shield used aswell , such a great wax often over looked by others.


So nice to have you, of all people, to make these comments 

Your Arden Blue VXR was one of the reasons I went and bought mine :thumb:


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## gotamintvtr (Sep 25, 2006)

great turnaround. glad i dont deal with dealers anymore afterthey screwed up my fiesta. ill stick to cars that are old enough for me to do myself


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## HeavenlyDetail (Sep 22, 2006)

MattJ VXR said:


> So nice to have you, of all people, to make these comments
> 
> Your Arden Blue VXR was one of the reasons I went and bought mine :thumb:


Well thats good! Rob has certainly done a fantastic job on it which you can now preserve and im sure he has informed you how to.


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## Summit Detailing (Oct 9, 2006)

Excellent stuff Rob & on one of the best shades of Blue when prepped properly:thumb:

Best of luck with keeping it that way Matt:thumb:


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## piemp (Jul 14, 2010)

WOW lovely turn around there! gotta love a VXR thread


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## riles (Jan 27, 2011)

nice turnaround stunning work.


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## Black Magic Detail (Aug 17, 2010)

top work rob


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## rittz (Mar 1, 2011)

nice write up as always


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## DetailMe (Jan 13, 2011)

Fantastic work rob! Love Arden, think it might even top fords pacific blue, and I'm an RS man! 

Chris


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## Deeg (Mar 30, 2009)

fantastic finish on a lovely motor


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## SimonBash (Jun 7, 2010)

Looks stunning now, nice write up to :thumb:


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## squeakyclean32 (Mar 13, 2010)

Lovely car & a great finish :buffer::thumb:.....The colour really seemed alive once the car was outside :thumb:


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## Jorge (Oct 12, 2009)

Fantastic work Rob!!!! :thumb:

Best regards,

Jorge


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## Andy. (Apr 11, 2010)

Lovely work, love the Arden blue as a colour option.


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## Gleammachine (Sep 8, 2007)

MattJ VXR said:


> Absolutely brilliant Rob :thumb:
> 
> Thank you so much for sorting my car out for me. I am gobsmacked at some of the before and after photos. It was worse than I thought in places.
> 
> ...


Thanks Matt, it's comments like yours that make all the effort worthwhile.:thumb:



Heavenly said:


> Lovely work Rob!!
> You have to be honest and say these are nice cars to work on , when i book one of these i sigh relief as they always go so well compared to some of the hard paintworks you probably invariably hit. Arden blue when done well like this has does look awesome.
> Fantastic finish matey!! Nice to see Shield used aswell , such a great wax often over looked by others.


Cheers Marc, first Astra VXR I've detailed and was pleasantly surprised how receptive the paintwork was to what I'd class as a mid range combo of IP 3.02 and a firm polishing pad.
Yes nice cars to work upon, although lots of trim and edges to mask up.:thumb:


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## Nanolex (Jun 8, 2008)

Very very nice! That finish is stunning! :thumb:


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## Ojai (Feb 24, 2008)

Love the Arden Blue. Great job Rob!


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## Gleammachine (Sep 8, 2007)

Detme said:


> Fantastic work rob! Love Arden, think it might even top fords pacific blue, and I'm an RS man!
> 
> Chris


Thanks Chris, aren't the RS a Performance Blue?


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## andye (Apr 15, 2007)

Fantastic job, great colour Arden Blue :thumb:


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## o0damo0o (Feb 15, 2011)

very nice


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## ae1whia (Jan 10, 2011)

Top job and great photos


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## Quackers (Jan 30, 2010)

Finished results are brilliant. Really good write up too!


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## Nudenut (May 13, 2009)

Great work Rob that looks stunning, some serious swirl shifting there!

Looking forward to catching up next month, washed mine today, you're in for an easy ride I'm sure!! :lol:


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## Exclusive Car Care (Jan 14, 2007)

what more can I say that already hasnt been said mate - excellent work:thumb:


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## cfherd (Jan 14, 2010)

Always enjoy the Gleammachine write ups, car looks cracking. :thumb:

Is it me or is it always sunny at Gleammachine HQ?!


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## Gleammachine (Sep 8, 2007)

Nudenut said:


> Great work Rob that looks stunning, some serious swirl shifting there!
> 
> Looking forward to catching up next month, washed mine today, you're in for an easy ride I'm sure!! :lol:


Cheers Nigel, do I detect a hint of sarcasm? :lol:



cfherd said:


> Always enjoy the Gleammachine write ups, car looks cracking. :thumb:
> 
> Is it me or is it always sunny at Gleammachine HQ?!


Thanks, "the sun always shines on the righteous"


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## MattJ VXR (Aug 11, 2008)

Gleammachine said:


> Thanks, "the sun always shines on the righteous"


Sure was a lovely day when I picked it up!!

Have been online shopping and ordered towels, mitts etc. New stuff throughout for me now 

Just need to choose a good shampoo that won't undo all the hard work.


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## Mr Face (Jan 22, 2009)

Had to look twice, not black and no rings on any of the badges :doublesho 

MattJ VXR. I had a similar thing with Lexus, grrrrr. Next time they will pay.


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## RandomlySet (Jul 10, 2007)

Very nice work. Love the Arden Blue colour... And always something nice about seeing an Arden Blue Astra VXR detail? Maybe it's because it always reminds me of the "famous" VXR Marc thread that really got me "into" detailing

:thumb:


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## Dimon (Mar 23, 2011)

Hi from Russia, How do you find this?


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## james_death (Aug 9, 2010)

Very sexy lady...:thumb:


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## Serious (Mar 19, 2008)

Dimon said:


> Hi from Russia, How do you find this?


look for the one with the lights on.

Cracking work as always Rob:thumb:


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## Gleammachine (Sep 8, 2007)

Dimon said:


> Hi from Russia, How do you find this?


Not sure I understand?



Serious said:


> look for the one with the lights on.
> 
> Cracking work as always Rob:thumb:


Thanks bud, quality reply regarding the lights.:lol:


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## B&B Autostyle (Apr 4, 2010)

Awesome as always Rob. Enough said.


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## Ultimate Shine (Jun 3, 2008)

stunning mate just stunning. Lovely crisp colours in the after shots mate.

By the way like the wifes new car in the background:thumb:


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## mislavto (Jul 3, 2010)

reflections are :doublesho


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## Dimon (Mar 23, 2011)

I wanted to show the reflection and luster on my astra.
The car was processed Glare (Advanсe), if you know this!


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## Dimon (Mar 23, 2011)

another


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## MattJ VXR (Aug 11, 2008)

Dimon said:


> another


Looks a very nice car 

You should really put it in its own thread as this one is to show Robs work


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## RICHIE40 (Jul 9, 2007)

Nice work there, another quality writeup.keep them coming :thumb:


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## Dimon (Mar 23, 2011)

MattJ VXR said:


> Looks a very nice car
> 
> You should really put it in its own thread as this one is to show Robs work


Yes, I would gladly have published a post, but why can not I,
I do not understand why?


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## Marchosias (Jan 27, 2011)

Awesome job tidying that up, gorgeous job there pal :buffer:


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