131 911 & PORSCHE WORLD TECH: DETAILING PRACTICAL PORSCHE The three Ps, which is, of course, preparation, preparation, preparation! The scratch is isolated by masking round it. Ingrained dirt is removed and the Chipex paint mix is applied and built up layer-by-layer, before finally being cut back and blended in WE WANT YOUR CAR We don’t just want to make our own cars super-shiny, we want to work on yours, too. Drop us a line at porscheworld@ chpltd.com and let us know why your car could be a detailing candidate A s owners of track-bred machines, it's only polite to hoon around the odd circuit of a weekend. Alas, this can be murder on the paintwork, with stones being thrown up by the car you've been about to pass for the last five laps chipping the shiny bits. Even on the road, regardless of how carefully we drive, there will always be a rep-mobile trying to prove its 1.9 litre diesel is more potent than our flat six with an audacious overtake. Scratches, road rash, stone chips and scuffs – they are all nigh-on unavoidable, but thankfully they can be fixed quite easily. In the old days your only option was a body shop, which involved big bills and irritating logistics. With the turn of the century 'Small to Medium Area Repair Techniques' (SMART) repairs became available, which offered the convenience of a mobile service. A conventional smart repair required masking off a large area, sanding the paint down, then re-spraying paint and lacquer on top – essentially a mobile body shop. Though effective, it was still rather expensive and not something to be attempted as an amateur. Chipex revolutionised the market by providing a product that could be applied quickly and easily, either by a home user or a professional, at a fraction of the cost of a bodyshop or smart repair. Kevin Ford of Goldcrest Valeting in Croydon shows us how to fix some scratches on this 996 Turbo using the Chipex system. The first step is to clean the scratches and carefully mask around the area. Kevin is using a special trim tool to gently hold back the rubber to make the masking process more accurate. Then use the Chipex blending solution to remove the ingrained dirt in the scratch itself, which will allow the new paint to bond properly. Chipex produces custom colour-matched paint for all Porsche models from the paint code, which can be found on the driver's side door sill (except Cayennes, which have their code in the boot). Remember to shake the paint bottle well before opening, particularly for metallic paint. Use the micro brush to gently dab a blob of paint into each scratch and then smooth it along the length of the mark. For the best results it is always wise to use multiple thin layers rather than laying it on thickly. Ideally, leave the new paint standing slightly proud of the surface. Unlike normal automotive paint, the Chipex solution dries within ten minutes and contains lacquer so it is much easier to use. One can also further accelerate the drying process using a heat gun on a low setting. The paint also has filling properties and we have seen chips up to 1.5mm deep being repaired successfully. Once the paint has dried, a special cloth combined with a minute amount of blending solution can be used to smooth the surface. Though Chipex originally designed the solution to be applied by the home user, they have recently teamed up with the Professional Valeters & Detailers Trade Association to create a UK network of approved repairers. As an approved repairer, Kevin has some extra tricks up his sleeve to turn a 90% perfect repair into a 98% perfect repair. The first step is to use an eddy-current paint depth gauge to measure the paint thickness in microns around the scratch. Once it has been established that there is sufficient clear coat to machine polish, Kevin uses a dual-action polishing machine to refine the surface. Finally, a coat of protective wax is applied over the treated area to give that extra bit of protection and gloss. Although not completely invisible on close inspection, the repair has had a dramatic effect on the overall appearance of the Turbo. The repaired section only took an hour to fix, and there was more than enough paint left over to treat all the stone chips on the nose and some road rash around the arches. As a long-term client of Kevin's, the proud owner of this car gets any new chips fixed every time he has the car valeted – a perfectly valid excuse to go on monthly track days! PW DETAILING SCIENCE: PART FOURTEEN PAINT CHIP REPAIR sponsored by TIME REQUIRED: 1HR PER TREATED AREA Stone chips, scratches, road rash, call it what you will, but our precious paintwork takes a hammering on the road and the track. Here we look at how to use the Chipex system to effect a paintwork repair that is near impossible to spot Kit List The Chipex repair pack contains paint, blending solution, blending cloth, microbrushes, blending block, liquid wax and instructions Optional: Latex gloves, heat gun, paint depth gauge, polishing machine, compounds and pads, masking tape, trim tools detailch.qxp:PW Template 9/17/15 1:53 PM Page 131