Metallic Black Jaguar XK Has Its Cherry Flake Restored

According to Jaguar, the XK is “a Grand Tourer with the heart and soul of a sports car” with the luxury and power of the coupe promising to make “every journey unforgettable”. Sleek, elegant and with a 5.0 litre V8 engine rumbling under the bonnet, it’s easy to see why it’s accumulated so many fans in the eighteen years it has been in production.

Whilst it has the performance of a sports car, the practicality and refined luxury of this Leaping Cat makes it a popular ‘daily driver’. As a result they tend to incur more than their fair share of wash swirls, scratches and various other signs of wear and tear. This XK was no exception and on initial inspection was recommended for a Full Paintwork Correction Treatment, along with an Alloy Wheel Refurbishment and a ChipEx Paint Repair Treatment.

The XK paintwork was a lovely colour, with a red flake in the black – a colour Jaguar calls Cherry Black Metallic. I’ve seen similar paint colours before and they look fantastic when they’re pristine so I knew once we were finished treating this XK it was going to look great. Unfortunately when the car came to us it had multiple stone chips, scratches and swirl marks, plus there was a patch on the roof where bird droppings had etched into the lacquer. – Derek Ginger, Master Detailer, UDS

On arrival at the Ultimate Detailing Studio the Jaguar XK was decontaminated using Bilt-Hamber Korrosol to remove the iron fallout, then it was degreased using Surfex-HD, before being pre cleaned with Ultimate Snow Foam to remove any larger particles of dirt. Rinsed clean the XK was then re-foamed to use the thick bubbles as a lubricant for the Dodo Juice Square Sponge Clay Pad, designed to pull bonded contaminants away from the surface of the paintwork. Thoroughly decontaminated now, the car was rinsed free of pre-cleaner and then washed using the Two Bucket Method, Swissvax Car Bath and a Swissvax Waschpudel wash pad. After rinsing the XK was dried using soft Swissvax Micro-Dry Wonder Drying Towels.

At this point the Jaguar XK was brought into the studio and the wheels removed for refurbishing.

The wheels were scuffed so there was no point applying a protection sealant to them until they were back to ‘as new’. So the car went on to axle stands, the wheels came off and whilst waiting for them to be professionally repaired I got on with the rest of the correction work, starting with applying the ChipEx Paint Repair System. ChipEx is different to most paint repair systems available because the paint supplied is coded to the actual paint code of the manufacturer, so you know it’s going to be exactly the right colour. Stone chips are difficult to repair as it is, so having precisely the right paint colour to do it with makes the job that much more effective. – Derek Ginger, Master Detailer, UDS

To use ChipEx first the affected areas were cleansed using a little of the supplied blending solution to remove any wax or silicone residues.

Then the ChipEx paint was applied onto the chip and dabbed with a fingertip.

This process was repeated to all the stone chips over car – most of which were over the bonnet and along the sills. The repair was allowed to cure for around fifteen minutes before being wiped over with a cloth treated with a small amount of the blending solution. This action removes the excess paint without affecting the repaired site.

With the stone chips attended to the next step was machine polishing.

The paintwork was quite challenging to work with as too much heat or friction resulted very quickly in holograms. To combat this I used POLISHANGEL Master Compound I with a 3M Yellow Polishing Pad on my FLEX PE14-2-150 Rotary Machine Polisher to remove the more severe marks including the patch of bird lime etch. I find Master Compound I very easy to work with on dark paints and paints that mark quickly. – Derek Ginger, Master Detailer, UDS

Due to the characteristics of the paint it took several passes to remove the blemishes.

Refining this type of paintwork takes particular care, otherwise it’s easy to put micro marring into the surface. I used the RUPES BigFoot LHR15ES with a 3M Black Polishing Pad and SCHOLL Concepts S40. The combined action was just right to get the paintwork to that perfect, glossy shine. – Derek Ginger, Master Detailer, UDS

With the paintwork now smooth and glossy the cherry flake really began to show through. To protect the finish two layers of Swissvax Crystal Rock premium carnauba wax was applied. This wax has a very high carnauba content, the effect of which is to deepen the wet look shine. This works particularly well with black and dark coloured paintwork.

Carnauba also brings out the warmth in the flake, whilst providing a long lasting protective layer. Treated correctly, two layers of Crystal Rock will last nine months or more.

The Jaguar XK wheels were returned fully refurbished and looking as good as new.

It’s really worth taking the time to have wheels refurbished properly rather than using the quick ‘road side’ repair services that are widely available. Quick repairs are fine as temporary fixes, but if you’re investing in having your car properly detailed and protected ideally you want the same for your wheels. Once I’d cleansed the alloys I protected them with Gtechniq C5 Alloy Wheel Armour, front and back and then replaced them on the vehicle. We then affixed the new centre caps – original manufacturer ones we’d sourced on behalf of the customer. – Derek Ginger, Master Detailer, UDS

C5 Alloy Wheel Armour is a highly heat resistant, chemical resistant coating which forms a hydrophobic oleophobic barrier that helps prevent brake dust adhesion to the wheel surface. This makes them easier to maintain during the weekly wash, without the need for aggressive wheel cleaners which may attack the wheel lacquer.

The glass was first cleaned with Gtechniq G6 Perfect Glass before being sealed with Gtechniq G1 ClearVision Smart Glass. This sealant forms a highly hydrophobic barrier which encourages rain water to bead and blow off the surface of the window during motion, making driving less tiring during bad weather conditions. Additionally, G1 helps prevent ice and snow from bonding hard with treated windows making them easier to clear on wintry mornings.

The final step was to dress the tyres with Swissvax Pneu, a water-based tyre dressing which imparts a natural satin sheen, providing the perfect finishing touch for this now highly sparkling Leaping Cat!

Ultimate Detailing Studio – Award Winning Detailing. Call 0845 838 1200 to discuss your requirements and arrange a free vehicle appraisal.

Ultimate Finish – Innovative Automotive Care since 1999.