In-Progress: 1986 Porsche 951 (Guards Red)

Thanks for the kind words everyone. I feel like I need to post a disclaimer though: The pictures make it look better than it really does in person. :-) There are still flaws all over. I'm sure my work isn't as even as it could be, etc... in my defense though, I'll refine it further when I do the polish step. Heh.

Couple days worth of update:

I got the driver's door, mirror and glass finished. The mirror housing isn't as nice as I'd like and I'm having a hard time getting the tight details around the window trim, door handle and mirror. I would have pulled the handle off; but I don't trust the plastic linkage inside to go back on properly or not break. The last picture is of my 1st thin paint mistake (kinda). The upper rails are aluminum and were already buffed really thin by a previous owner. I figured a light pass wouldn't do much, but was WRONG. LOL. Literally a single quick pass took it down to the sealant where it was thin. I'm disappointed, but want to be honest with everyone and show you the bad with the good! As a possible solution, I received my 2oz of single-stage touch-up today, so I may be able to remove the rails and airbrush them to restore the color. If that doesn't work, I'll have them painted when I get the front fender painted. Of course, I'm itching to test the touch-up on my dozens of chips! I think I'll do some testing on the most hidden blemishes as my next project to see if it's going to give a good enough result. As always, thanks for reading and your support. On to the pics for today!

Click the pics to see them in full size/resolution

View of the finished door/side


Another shot


Burnt through roof rail fail!
 
I'm still telling you this is an epic rehab and you are doing a very, very good job. It looks so much better than before, even with any 'mistakes/learning moments'.
 
Thanks Scott! I get excited about the results and then demoralized by the damage found under the coating of flat red. It's been a great learning experience so far and I'm not even half done.

Today's update will be split into two posts.

I spent like 4 hours on it and got multiple things done. At the end of my last post I said I may move on to touch-up paint testing... it didn't happen yet. Instead I decided to take it a little easy and do the windshield. A cleaning, clay bar and cut pass with the UC made it look and feel amazing. See the pics below (and yes, every 944/951 dash is cracked, another project). After that, I noticed that someone in the past had bent up the lower skirting at the bottom of the front fender by incorrectly putting it up on a lift. (Common on this chassis if you don't know where to raise it) So, I pulled the trim, re-bent the bracket, used the heat gun to release the incorrect bend and reinstalled the trim. It came out pretty nice; of course I just noticed the other side needs it too. LOL. On to the pics!

Click the pics to see them in full size/resolution

Bent-up trim panel before:


Straightened trim:


Windshield before:


Windshield after: (LOL, you can see my natural gas furnace intake and vent lines in the reflection!)
 
2nd half of the day's work:

I decided to start on the hood. It's a mess. It has the worst original paint on the car and is the largest panel. I'm doubting my ability to bring this back! To simplify things I removed the washer nozzles. That was a treat! They are installed in typical German fashion with stainless clamps, braided hose and manually-pinned wiring that isn't safely removable. When I got them out I was thinking... "Hmm, this was touched last by a West German craftsman before the fall of the Soviet Union" HEH! Using the same process as before I've cleaned, clay bar, hand rubdown with Meguiars #7 and let it sit for 24 hours. It's improving but wow; the 1st coat of M7 soaked in so fast it was crazy. I think I used 1/8 a bottle just for that coat. Pics!

Click the pics to see them in full size/resolution

Closeup of the paint's color and condition:


The paint under and around the nozzle!


Hood "Before"


Hood "After cleaning and clay bar" Not much visual improvement?!


Hood after 1 rubdown of M7 and 24H
 
Drastic difference! Keep on slathering it on and letting it sit! Again, such a cool project!
 
Some great work going on here. I'm learning a lot. Thanks for sharing.
 
Thanks for the comments, I'm learning a lot too! Today's job was to finish the hood. It took a couple of evenings because I ended up doing 2 complete passes on it with the UC. The pics make it look a little better than it really looks under my LED lights. There are still lots of mid-sized scratches, lots of pitting, and some blemishes where something (tar, bird droppings, etc...) had been over the years. However; it's now RED and SHINY! :-) I discovered more burn through on the trailing edge where it's 'raised', and on the hood crease left side. This time I was REALLY careful to avoid those areas and I think I've improved. Heh. The next step is the front bumper/hood blend. Pics for today:

Click the pics to see them in full size/resolution

'After' pic


Another angle, yes you can still see my furnace vent pipes in the reflection
 
Wow... looking great. On the remaining scratches, pitting, etc: that can't be helped. What can be helped you're doing an amazing job of.

btw, we all suffer from being familiar with every square inch of of the cars we work on and we see every little defect. And most people are looking at it from a few feet away, not 6". Everybody else is just going to see how much better this car looks.
 
This thread just keeps getting better with each panel. Awesome results. Lifting off that sprayer nozzle must have made you smile knowing what potential was there on the hood:)
 
RippyD said:
Wow... looking great. On the remaining scratches, pitting, etc: that can't be helped. What can be helped you're doing an amazing job of.

btw, we all suffer from being familiar with every square inch of of the cars we work on and we see every little defect. And most people are looking at it from a few feet away, not 6". Everybody else is just going to see how much better this car looks.
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So true Rippy, so true...


Sent from my iPhone using Autogeekonline mobile app
 
I totally agree RippyD! But it still grates on you a little when it's your car right? :-)

Question time!!!!

I've been having issues where the panels meet with dark "marks" or some type of residue. The clay bar doesn't touch it, the Meguiars #7 doesn't touch it, the Ultimate compound seems to make a dent, but I REALLY have to beat on it. It's almost like the dried deposits that form stalagmites. Brownish-gray, rock hard, satin finish. I'll post a pic below. This is where the hood blend panel meets the top of the front bumper. I've already washed it, used the clay bar, and 2 coats of M7. Does anyone know what it is, and how to safely remove it? Thanks!

Pic of the offending "stuff"
 
No idea what that is. Hopefully somebody else knows. I would try some tar remover first. If that doesn't work, maybe acetone or mineral spirits. Lightly and carefully.
 
RippyD said:
No idea what that is. Hopefully somebody else knows. I would try some tar remover first. If that doesn't work, maybe acetone or mineral spirits. Lightly and carefully.
Click to expand...

As this is an older single stage paint, wouldn't acetone or mineral spirits also take the paint off too? I am certainly no professional, but I would be nervous using those products here.
 
Very possibly, hence my lightly and carefully comment. I was thinking a small amount on a q-tip. That was probably a bad recommendation, especially without suggesting testing a hidden spot first. So scratch those and stick with tar remover that's ok for single stage or something else safe.
 
maybe very lightly wetsand a spot with 2,000or finer? or maybe a more aggressive compound?
I might be hesitant to use a chemical like mineral spirits or acetone

it seems these days people throw the word Amazing around all the time so I only like to use it when its appropriate and dude......the job you have done on this car is AMAZING!
 
Not sure what that is. May have to up your compound/pad in that area, just watch your paint thickness!
 
Could it be that the road film that often is oil and petrolium based has stained the paint? One thing that comes to mind is an AIO/cleaner wax or a paint cleaner. Apply it and let it dwell for a little while before you wipe it off. I don't know if #7 contains any chemicals that would desolve the oil and petrolium based embedded contaminants. It's a sensitive area so as Scott recommends get a paint thickness reading and see what you have to work with.

Or could it be that the paint is thin and the primer is showing darker on there.

Do you feel if it's something on there or is it a smooth feeling?
 
Thanks for the suggestions! To answer a few of the questions, as a follow-up to the suggestions: I tried an IPA, no change (no damage though) Heh. It seems to be on top of the paint, not really rough feeling, but a satin/dull texture. It looks slightly raised rather than a thin spot. The primer on this car is nearly white, so it's really obvious when you get down to it. The Ultimate Compound does cut it down, but really slowly and I fear for the surrounding paint. I also tried goo-gone (nothing), and Kaboom! (Yes, the tile cleaner as it's excellent on hard water deposits) and it made no difference.

Progress from the last few days:

I've been working on the front end. It's a complex bumper and is of course REALLY beat up from the years of driving and neglect. I've disassembled the turn signals, sidemarkers and some other trim to make it a little easier. After that, it got a cleaning, clay bar and 3 coats of M7. Then, I did a single pass with the UC. Since the bumper is rounded, complex and plastic it certainly shows my lack of experience. I had to do the UC on an applicator by hand to get around the light and air openings and in the grooves. Then I used a smaller (4") pad to go over the rest. It's shining up nicely but there's just too many rock chips and sandblasting to make it truly nice. But, as was mentioned before; this is to be expected and it does look a lot better! I'll work hard to further refine the finish when I get to the polish stage as well. I also polished the fog lights and that made a nice improvement! Before people ask: 1) Yes, I have the original crest to go back on when I'm done. 2) I'll be doing lots of touch-up to reduce the appearance of the worst chips.

On to the pics.

Click the pics to see them in full size/resolution

Before:


After:


Before:


After:
 
I’ve seen areas like that above in the body seams. I own/Owned classic cars so I’m kinda familiar with this issue. Usually it’s years of road film build up. I have had luck with products like prep-sol. If not, a compound worked wet with some make shift tool and a terry cloth may work. But work with caution.
 
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