Stutopia

I’m just cutting up my credit card to stop me spending...

I’m just cutting up my credit card to stop me spending...

Can't beat a brand new set of Rays though. Lots of leaflets full of Japanese writing you've no hope of understanding, mmmm.

Welcome along.

I've found a 'magic sponge' works to get rid the of the steering wheel grease in seconds. You've just to be careful to keep it wet and only give it as much wipes as required - as it will start taking the leather off.

Autobrite Direct's Leather cleaner and conditioner are superb - a quick wipe on mine (had dreaded two tone by the thumb grips) had it back to brand new. Couldn't believe how much it shifted - I was damn ashamed!  

 
Their Xmas sale starts on the 2nd Nov, might be worth waiting for it to be on offer.

I haven't seen any of the new ones yet so I'll reserve judgement but Ed was literally the only good thing about the show, Mike is entirely unwatchable and cringeworthy.

It's good that people try unorthodox approaches, without it, there would be no reverse cowgirl

It's good that people try unorthodox approaches, without it, there would be no reverse cowgirl

It's good that people try unorthodox approaches, without it, there would be no reverse cowgirl

It's good that people try unorthodox approaches, without it, there would be no reverse cowgirl

It's good that people try unorthodox approaches, without it, there would be no reverse cowgirl

I used to use my heel to blip the throttle, now I do it this way most of the time. Both have pros and cons and I switch by accident sometimes 
One thing I could never do is use my heel on the brake and toe on the throttle. My feel are too big in this car and I lose brake control which I consider more important than a quick throttle blip. 

Although I had this on order a while ago, giving in to my powerful lust for modification, last weekend I did the CAT Cornering Masterclass and Colin suggested an extended accelerator pedal to assist my heel and toe, thus turning what was very nearly a frivolous mod into a necessary driving aid
For anyone who hasn't fitted a Cusco pedal extender, I suggest you cut out the 10 minutes I wasted upside down in the footwell trying to fit this in situ and just whip the accelerator pedal assembly out - it's 2x 10mm and a cable clip. Simples.

 
 
Not only does it look sexy and obviously is properly race car, it actually adds a bit to the pedal height (and obviously width) which means that not only is it easier for my right foot to reach, the dab of heel elicits a few more RPM than before, which is good because I was struggling a bit with the throttle response compared to my 350z. It's totally reversible when you sell up and, like a professional beating from an American cop, it leaves absolutely no marks.

I've been heel and toeing for around 15 years. I just roll my foot, so the right side of my foot, the protrusion just below your little toe blips the throttle. Having tried doing this in a lot of cars over the years, I reckon the GT is one of the easiest to heel and toe in. I am a size 6, so I don't have big feet. Try some decent driving shoes, that will help. Though I admit, I drive barefoot through the summer and have no problem heel and toeing that way either. It's better if anything. 
You can use your heel but there will be a lot less finesse. 

Although I had this on order a while ago, giving in to my powerful lust for modification, last weekend I did the CAT Cornering Masterclass and Colin suggested an extended accelerator pedal to assist my heel and toe, thus turning what was very nearly a frivolous mod into a necessary driving aid
For anyone who hasn't fitted a Cusco pedal extender, I suggest you cut out the 10 minutes I wasted upside down in the footwell trying to fit this in situ and just whip the accelerator pedal assembly out - it's 2x 10mm and a cable clip. Simples.

 
 
Not only does it look sexy and obviously is properly race car, it actually adds a bit to the pedal height (and obviously width) which means that not only is it easier for my right foot to reach, the dab of heel elicits a few more RPM than before, which is good because I was struggling a bit with the throttle response compared to my 350z. It's totally reversible when you sell up and, like a professional beating from an American cop, it leaves absolutely no marks.

After messing about taking bolts out, measuring, putting them back, I have a list of sizes to dress up the engine bay. In case anyone else is looking for the info:
 
Bolt A - Wings & Bumper
23x M6 countersunk bolts, 15mm length
23x M6 countersunk washers, 19mm o/d
 
Bolt B - Slam Panel
2x M8 countersunk bolts, 20mm length
2x M8 countersunk washers, 25mm o/d
 
Bolt C - Airbox and Noise Maker
2x M6 countersunk bolts, 35mm length
2x M6 countersunk washers, 19mm o/d
 
Bolt D - Bonnet & ABS Unit
6x M8 flanged hex, 20mm
4x M8 flat washers
 
That will give you most of the OEM bolts around edges of the engine bay, plus the bonnet. I've not changed the ones on the pulley covers, or throttle body as I'm replacing these separately with something aftermarket, so they're not included in this list. Neither are the ones for the strut braces or the suspension, they're in good nick on my BRZ. I may do some more in future, I'll add any further specs as I find out.
 
For reference to off the shelf kits, you can put this lot together for about £85 from pro-bolt. Though this list is not quite as long as some aftermarket kits.
 
Some Of The Bolt Locations





 
This is all for info only, don't replace strong steel fittings with soft ally or cheapo items, stay safe  

Freshened up the bay with a splash of colour and got rid of the painted OEM bolts.


Though I realise they might be a bit fruity for some

I've changed the mats, had the binnacle cover and dash panels covered in alcantara, dome light in red and changed the shift knob (either an Anarchy Motive one or a Beatrush one)

IT will get worse I thought the same thing at first

24 hrs, not bad...

A few pictures from Bedford yesterday with the new rear spoiler fitted. The Spec L exhaust recorded 80dB at 4500rpm, plenty of headroom for when the stock manifold is ditched 
 

Thanks, I love a good bead. 
I'm not sure on that £750 equipment, it appears to be a hoover basically lol. 
 

An exciting opportunity presented itself for me to spend time at a local detailing company, Deadeye Detailing. The detailer in chief, John, would be spending some time showing me around DAs, pads, polishes, and also a glimpse into the world of nano-ceramic coatings. This post covers having a go at working on my car both familiar and new steps in doing a one stage correction. I should start off by saying I have enhanced some of the images in this thread in post, not to remove blemishes and defects but to increase contrast and definition to show the defects in my paint. One of the first things I’ve learnt is that it’s not as easy I thought to capture the look of paint and paint defects on camera!!!
My own experience as a little DA use before, mainly correcting cloudy headlights, but only briefly on the soft paint of my previous 350z. Many people have advised me that you don’t need training to use a DA, do some reading and YouTubing, understand the process and then only the simplest of simpletons can do damage. However, I’m hoping for more than not doing damage, I’d like to start off with decent technique and achieve some gloss enhancement, perhaps even correction. The biggest obstacles for me thus far has been having to work on my own car, with no space for a scrap panel to practice on and having to do so outdoors. Which is always a mixture of too hot paint and all manner of dusty contaminants blowing onto the working area, that’ when it’s not raining. This was a chance to work indoors, out of the elements and with proper tools to help find the pesky defects.
 I started by tidying up my garage and arranging some of my stuff. This had absolutely no bearings on proceedings, but it felt like suitable pre-study

Naturally the first order of the day at the workshop is a snow foaming. Good to see a familiar product from my shed, in the professional domain, Bilt Hamber Autofoam.

One of the many perks I was going to enjoy in a professional environment is the tooling on hand, like a serious jet washer which makes petrol smells and super thick foam.

Another familiar face, the Gyeon Q2M Silk Dryer is my current favourite drying towel. This absorbs water like nothing else I’ve used and is super soft on the paint. It’s a distinct step up from the excellent Woolly Mammoth I was using before, it’s just so soft. If I had one complaint, it’s difficult to wring out once it gets saturated, but that doesn’t matter if you’re doing a BRZ sized car and you’ve sheeted most of the water off first.

More exciting tooling up next, possibly my favourite piece yet, a dog blower. This is a leap up in drying, even from the excellent Gyeon towel. No more water lurking in badges, handles or wing mirrors.


I’d have one in a heartbeat, if they weren’t £750 a pop! I must find a budget alternative, eliminating touching the paint during the drying phase is surely worth it.
Next up some new-to-me product Optimum No Rinse Wash & Shine (ONR). I don’t know what this product is meant to be, it has several claims, but it certainly does the job as a clay lube.

Also new to me, Zaino Clay Bar, more like a putty or plasticine than the Meg’s and BH clays I’ve used previously, very nice to use, and soft.

No horror shots of a filthy clay bar I’m afraid, my paint was more or less spotless.
 
So that’s the easy bits out the way, time to try something new; a paint activated, three digit, random number generator. You pop it on the paint, wait a split second and it display a three-digit number, usually in the one hundreds. I Some say these numbers measure the depth of primer, paint and lacquer on the pane, I’ve no way of knowing about this black magic. Apparently, these numbers mean there is “plenty”

As well as minimising the risk of my incompetence, part of the reason for the upcoming pad and polish combo is that my paint is in fairly good nick. This is it, post clay and naked, like Demi Moore in Ghost – ask you parents kids. As mentioned earlier, it’s quite difficult to pick up scratches on camera, particularly without the lights, which were in use on another car.


Low on swirls but with quite a few random deep scratches, like this pesky bugger.

After a thorough demonstration, I was handed a what was described as a safe (read idiot proof!) combination of products, so it was time to get cracking on my paint. The combo in question is a DAS-21 polisher, a yellow finishing pad and Scholl S40 polish, all primed for my beautiful WR Blue Mica paint.


S40 bills itself as a gloss enhancing polish, free from fillers, so it is safe enough for a clown like me but also doesn’t flatter me too much by filling up the scratches instead of removing them. I have no frame of reference on this versus other products, it’s my first proper run, but I liked the enhanced gloss and reduction in scratches after the passes.
The bonnet on the BRZ is nicely shaped for a noob and divides nicely into 4 sections. There are no significant creases and no furniture like washer jets to get in the way, a good place to start. I don’t have a 50/50 to show you as I was way too absorbed in what I was doing to bother with photos mid-way through, got a rather nice one after finishing the bonnet though. The gloss coming out very nicely if I do say so myself, quite pleasing for a first run. Unlike when I’ve done this previously on warmer paint with Menzerna Medium and Super cut polishes, the Scholl doesn’t dust, it can be worked for ages, and even after all these passes it was still quite oily. This was great for me as I have previously mistakenly used too much product, hoping it will keep it wet for longer, when really a sprtiz of cold water was needed – lesson learned. The process on these sections for me was two cross hatch passes at 5-6 with some pressure on the DA, then two more at 3-4, also with pressure, then two at 3 with only the weight of the polisher pressing down.

Next up the roof and boot lid – all of the easy to reach and work on horizontal surfaces.



A little roof reflection shot.

Not perfect, but not many defects left. I did have the chance to go more aggressive, but for a car that never goes indoor, I elected to keep some of these and keep the paint for inevitable future corrections. The roof on the BRZ is a bit of pain to work on, it’s super flexible in the middle and prone to bending under pressure. Fortunately, the roof doesn’t attract much in the way of scratches, so there was less need for pressure on the machine. I quite liked the way it looked afterwards.
Here’s a quick vid of the boot after the right half has been polished, left side naked. 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUd3M3GSYzk
 
Once again I got to enjoy access to a bigger selection of tools than I have at home, namely the Vertool Mini DA a.k.a. “the 75”. This little thing is ace for a noob like me. It’s light, it doesn’t fight you and it simply refuses to bog down. It is used at lower speeds than the DAS-21 steps outlined above. The width is perfect for the boot spoiler, A pillars and roof sides on the BRZ. I can all of a sudden start to see why pros have so many different polishers, the versatility of size and throw is super useful. My Meg’s DA is a butter knife compared to this scalpel. Sorry for the brochure shot of the 75, I forgot to take a real pic. You can see how compact this little guy is compared to the DAS-21 – the only downside is the speed selector dial is located out of view when operating it.

Tomorrow we get her up on the ramp and move on to the horizontal panels, then, with a bit of luck, onto nano-cermaic coatings. Oh and the small matter of dealing with this absolute bugger of a defect the PO skilfully buried under a mountain of glaze.

If that image isn’t scary enough, check out the horror movie!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ViJtmvU-ooQ
 
Last but not least, a bit of a secret project this one, so don’t tell anyone. I’m genetically engineering caterpillars which eat dirt and excrete gloss. Once we get the mutation just right, this will be huge. I might start a crowd fund

 
P.S. if anyone sees a mutant 9ft, 300lb purple caterpillar which answers to the name Archibald, please let me know…

Now that the coating has cured and it’s safe to do so, I’ve done some beads for the other detailing tragics like me.









 
Due to the unseasonably warm weather these were created in a controlled environment, they not naturals. These beads are high and tight, just how I like to wear my afro!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRXrSe9SbXY