Back to silver?!
Discussion
I was giving my car a quick clean over the weekend and could not get the silver plate at the back of the car clean - im being anal i know, but i want it to look great for summer. What are the best ways to bring it up (the exhaust could do with a once over as well!)
Alternatively, do you know any decent Valeters that will give the entire car the once over (stone chips as well ideally) so that I just need to maintain their work in the future – im happy to travel!
Cheers again
Mark
Alternatively, do you know any decent Valeters that will give the entire car the once over (stone chips as well ideally) so that I just need to maintain their work in the future – im happy to travel!
Cheers again
Mark
do you mean the diffuser? If so...I bought a new black one to then keep clean - makes the world of difference (especially because my car's black), and to keep it clean is fiarly easy - the old silver one just looked horrible (because it was tarnished).
Regarding a 'once over'...it will be approx £300 to spray the front from stone chips and around £150 to 'mop over' the whole car with a fine polishing compound (to a professional standard).
What I have been recommended by Miles at FibreGlass Services is to polish my car 3 times with halford's own brand coloured wax. If it still then looks scratched (which my black car REALLY Does) then he'll do the 'mop over'...but he said try the wax first because often it gets just as good a finish - it all depends on how 'sad' the car is looking. To give you an idea, my car has very light scratches everywhere (the sort the looks like soft lacquer and you can only catch in the sunlight)...and Miles said the black wax would work great.
So, buy a black diffuser, and get the coloured halfords wax and use it 3 times! Then see if you want to spend money with a paint shop
Hope that's all of help
Tony
Regarding a 'once over'...it will be approx £300 to spray the front from stone chips and around £150 to 'mop over' the whole car with a fine polishing compound (to a professional standard).
What I have been recommended by Miles at FibreGlass Services is to polish my car 3 times with halford's own brand coloured wax. If it still then looks scratched (which my black car REALLY Does) then he'll do the 'mop over'...but he said try the wax first because often it gets just as good a finish - it all depends on how 'sad' the car is looking. To give you an idea, my car has very light scratches everywhere (the sort the looks like soft lacquer and you can only catch in the sunlight)...and Miles said the black wax would work great.
So, buy a black diffuser, and get the coloured halfords wax and use it 3 times! Then see if you want to spend money with a paint shop
Hope that's all of help
Tony
Tony, great advice!
My car is red, but im getting the wheels darkened so it may look quite good - did you buy it from eliseparts?
As for the Halfords wax ill gave it ago. I would have bought the expensive stuff (zymol etc) but if the Halfords stuff is good I may as well give it a try.
My car is red, but im getting the wheels darkened so it may look quite good - did you buy it from eliseparts?
As for the Halfords wax ill gave it ago. I would have bought the expensive stuff (zymol etc) but if the Halfords stuff is good I may as well give it a try.
Apparently the halfords wax is made by a really well recognised company (in the trade)...a name I can't remember, but it is deemed very good stuff in such circles. I will be certainly giving it a go when the weather gets slightly more 'clean-car-friendly'.
Regarding the diffuser, I cheated slightly. Someone knocked into me at traffic lights and so rather than order a silver one when it was replaced (under insurance), they ordered a black one for me (same cost). I was just very lucky because I was going to get it done anyway! Apparently there was a limited edition of diffusers done in Switzerland in black (don't know part number, sorry) so it was a genuine Lotus part.
Regarding the diffuser, I cheated slightly. Someone knocked into me at traffic lights and so rather than order a silver one when it was replaced (under insurance), they ordered a black one for me (same cost). I was just very lucky because I was going to get it done anyway! Apparently there was a limited edition of diffusers done in Switzerland in black (don't know part number, sorry) so it was a genuine Lotus part.
enjybenjy said:
how about spraying the diffuser black, i'm thinking of doing this
I thought exactly the same thing, but the problem you are then faced with is not only that the paint will chip and flake (it is, aftearll, the 'underneath' of the car) with stone chips, but also that the rubber edging ont he leading edge is grey. This would look very odd indeed.
The diffuser I have (like I say above, a genuine Lotus part) is powder coated so when it gets attacked by stones it doesn't chip or flake badly like paint would.
I am, as you can tell, a big advocate of the black diffuser on any colour S2...not least because of how easliy the standard ali one tarnishes and looks poor.
I wouldn't mind answering but unfortunately I do not know, Graham! It was bought through an official Lotus parts supplier when an insurance repair was made to my car (and the diffuser had to be replaced).
As a suggestion, ring Miles at Fibreglass Services he may be able to help - he is an official Lotus Parts Supplier (and dealer) and it was him that repaired my car and got the part for me.
CORRECTION: I said above it is powder coated. I am wrong, it's ANODISED. As such, it does not chip or flake and you cannot see aluminium through stone chips. I'll take some pics at lunch for everyone with my phone and post up in an hour!!!
As a suggestion, ring Miles at Fibreglass Services he may be able to help - he is an official Lotus Parts Supplier (and dealer) and it was him that repaired my car and got the part for me.
CORRECTION: I said above it is powder coated. I am wrong, it's ANODISED. As such, it does not chip or flake and you cannot see aluminium through stone chips. I'll take some pics at lunch for everyone with my phone and post up in an hour!!!
Markizok, great minds think alike dude.
I'll see what he says re: cost. Black looks much more menacing, silver looks 'nice'. I was alos thinking of spraying my centre console Ruby Red, and maybe some other interior bits. I've done this on other cars and it looks fab.
Eliseparts have a fibreglass black diffuser, but it's 300 big ones. I'm hearing what Tony says about anodising, but it's worth a try to just spray the rear diffuser and maybe replace the grey strip with a black one. A nice black front splitter would be nice to complete the lot (£200)
I'll see what he says re: cost. Black looks much more menacing, silver looks 'nice'. I was alos thinking of spraying my centre console Ruby Red, and maybe some other interior bits. I've done this on other cars and it looks fab.
Eliseparts have a fibreglass black diffuser, but it's 300 big ones. I'm hearing what Tony says about anodising, but it's worth a try to just spray the rear diffuser and maybe replace the grey strip with a black one. A nice black front splitter would be nice to complete the lot (£200)
Here's a pic of my diffuser. I just took it in a windy car park at lunch (next to the river, so it's bitter cold!) so I took it quick and legged it...unfortunately, didn't show much of the diffuser but what it does show you is how, in my opinion, it 'completes' the rear end - doesn't make it look so 'bitty'.
I know that the company near me, Lepsons, will refurb AND spray wheels for around the £200 - £250 mark so you're spont on Marki.
I know that the company near me, Lepsons, will refurb AND spray wheels for around the £200 - £250 mark so you're spont on Marki.
Thanks for the photo. Just a quick question, why have you got a lotus badge on the back, mine just says Lotus?
Also, on a completly different note can you tell me how the hell you get photos off your phone onto your PC? I have tried it in the past but never with success - i think work needs to upgrade my laptop (or i need to move into IT - they IT bods at my company must get paid more than me as they all seem to have skylines, 911s and Caymans (not that i dont prefer my elsie
)
Also, on a completly different note can you tell me how the hell you get photos off your phone onto your PC? I have tried it in the past but never with success - i think work needs to upgrade my laptop (or i need to move into IT - they IT bods at my company must get paid more than me as they all seem to have skylines, 911s and Caymans (not that i dont prefer my elsie
)
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