We just added some photos of this Audi RS5 to our Portfolio. The car looked great for 20 feet away but it had a ton of swirl marks all over along with lots of dirt and contamination. It took us a solid 2 days to finish all the detailing and paint correction, which turned this paint around completely. After the paint correction we applied Paint Protection Film to the entire front end of the car, then coated everything with CQuartz Pro ceramic coating. Check out the portfolio page for some before and after photos!
After planning this for a while, we finally made a quick little video to introduce ourselves at Lustr and show a few of the cars we work on every day. The plan is to do a few simple videos monthly with some input on what we do as well as provide detailing tips and tricks for our fans and clients. Check it out and leave any feedback as we greatly appreciate it.
Here’s a quick video summarizing the extensive work we performed on a black Ferrari F12. The paint was in bad shape for a new car, riddled with swirl marks, buffer holograms and many random sanding marks. We did 3-4 stages of paint correction to restore it to perfect condition and make it a shiny, new Ferrari.
After the paint correction, Suntek Paint Protection Film was applied to the entire vehicle. On top of the PPF we applied GTechniq CSL protective coating for added gloss, ease of maintenance and extra protection. Enjoy the video and definitely watch in HD!
A few months ago we were contacted by a client to prep his brand new Porsche GT3RS before a full car PPF/clear bra application. While it’s a brand new car, it definitely suffered from bad swirl marks, buffer holograms and even sanding marks left over from the factory. By performing a very thorough paint correction, we were able to make the paint look like it should have for a brand new Porsche.
After we were done with it, the Xpel PPF was applied to the entire vehicle for the best protection. Finally, 22PLE protective coating was applied for added gloss, ease of maintenance and extra protection. Check out the video below showing the process we performed on this gorgeous GT3RS.
A year ago we teamed up with Big Media Productions in their series portraying the Dodge Viper. Two Dodge Vipers were brought to use for a thorough paint correction and coating. We performed a 2-stage paint correction on the vehicles and then protected the paint with a long lasting protective coating.
Recently, our episode on correcting and protecting paint was completed and can be viewed on Youtube so please check it out and let us know how you like it. We’re very happy with how it came out.
It seems that 95% of the time we are doing some level of paint correction and applying a ceramic coating to a vehicle. That is our specialty and what most clients need for their vehicles. However, we also do quite a few additional services. These include interior detailing, headlight restoration, paint protection film (PPF), etc.
In this case, we were asked to bring back to life some old and weathered headlights on a client’s Chrysler Pacifica. The car came in dirty, so we were hoping most of the haze on the headlight would wash off.
Unfortunately, much of the haze was in the actual headlight lens and would need to be thoroughly corrected.
A close up shows the damage from regular driving and road debris. This not only looks bad, but can greatly limit the light output of your headlights and be a huge safety concern.
We decided that in order to correct these headlights, we needed to fully sand the plastic lens and then polish them to perfection. First, we masked off the adjacent paint to protect it.
We then completely sanded the lens leaving a very hazy finish. This was required in order to remove the deep scratches, chipping and faded layer.
Sanding was followed by two stages of machine polishing in order to correct the haze and bring back perfect clarity. We were extremely pleased with the results as the lens looked almost brand new.
Even up close, the headlight was near perfect and improved greatly over the previous condition. The fade was gone and light output was now 100%.
We normally apply a protective coating after a headlight restoration, which keeps the lens from fading for up to a year, sometimes more. This time though, the headlights turned out so well that the client decided to have us apply some protective film before we put the coating on, for even better protection and preservation.
The protective film (PPF) is only visible if you’re a few inches from the lens and looking around the edges. Otherwise, it’s invisible to the naked eye and looks great on the headlights. Not only does it allow light through easily, the film helps to protect the lens from UV radiation as well as daily road debris causing damage to the headlights.
Needless to say, our client was extremely pleased with the results and we were as well. The photo clearly show the huge improvement made by correcting the headlight. These headlights are now protected for years to come and only maintenance will be to replace the film for under $100 after a few years depending on how it wears.
For these headlights the protective film investment may not have been a “must”, but when you consider most cars these days come with HID headlights and many luxury manufacturers charge well over $1000 per each headlight, it becomes a great investment.
You can see some a full list of our car detailing and additional services on our Services page. Don’t hesitate to call or email us with any questions or to schedule your appointment today.
This Audi A7 belongs to a regular client, who comes roughly once every 1-1.5 years for paint correction and protective coating application. In this case we also replaced the Xpel PPF/clear bra on the hood due to it being fairly worn after almost 2 years of use. The car required two stages of paint correction to achieve a nearly perfect finish, which we then protected with the 22PLE paint protection coating. The A7 came out extremely glossy and is now well protected for 1-2 years with the paint coating. We apply the 22PLE paint coating on top of the Xpel PPF both to make it look glossy and offer great protection, making it much easier to clean going forward. For the complete article, please visit Audi A7 Paint Correction Detail & 22ple Paint Coating Application on the Detailed Image Blog.
Check out some of our recent work performed on a few very nice cars. The BMW i8 came to us brand new from the dealer for a major protection package. The paint was polished and then protected with Xpel Paint Protection Film as well as OptiCoat paint protection coating. The BMW M3 received a very similar treatment except with the CQ Finest paint coating. Both cars had a wheels off detail with coating included. Lastly, the BMW 540i was brought back to life with two stages of paint correction, then protected with GlossCoat paint coating. Click the links below for more info and photos.
BMW i8 Paint Correction with Protection Film and OptiCoat Paint Protection Coating
BMW M3 Paint Correction, Paint Protection Film and CQuartz Finest
BMW 540i Paint Correction and GlossCoat Paint Protection Coating
This gorgeous R8 came to us practically brand new for a paint correction and CQuartz Finest paint protection coating. It wasn’t in the greatest shape from the factory (holograms and sanding marks), but the dealer also decided to put some finishing touches of their own, such as buffer holograms and swirl marks. Due to the hard Audi paint, it took us 3-4 compounding stages on most deep defects but at the end it came out perfect. Once polished to perfection, the R8 was coated with CQuartz Finest and looked amazing!
Below are some before and after photos of the R8.
Here is another correction detail performed by LUSTR Auto Detail on one of my favorite exotics to date. The 458 Italia is an upgrade to the 430 and it is definitely quite an upgrade. The styling is a big step up and the interior is simply amazing. Unfortunately, Ferrari still keeps sending out vehicles with paint in sub par condition. This 458 was scheduled for a new car detail as soon as the client received it. We had only scheduled a day for it, but once we saw the car it was clear that it would require quite a bit more work. As you can see on our Ferrari 458 Italia portfolio page, the paint was in need of some major overhauling, even for a brand new car. Not only did we deal with the notorious Ferrari sanding marks left over from the factory, but the dealership had performed a poor quality prep on it, leaving holograms all over the paint finish and wax residue in all the possible crevices on the vehicle. For the complete article, please visit Ferrari 458 Italia New Car Prep and Paint Correction on the Detailed Image Blog. That’s where I wrote the original article and documented the defects in detail.
