Archive for April, 2009

2002 Honda Civic

Last weekend we detailed a 2002 Honda Civic. It was a nice break for us to detail a car, as opposed to a 35ft. plus RV or boat. After detailing a few large detailing vehicles it’s easy to appreciate restoring the paint and clear coat on a smaller 2 door vehicle. The condition this Civic was in when we found it was poor. It had not been washed in a while and it was evident that there were many swirl marks on the clear coat.

This particular job called for an “immaculate exterior package” where we placed our focus just on bringing the paint back to life. For this detailing procedure, we began with a through wash, clay bar, 2nd washing, compounding, and waxing. Taking these necessary steps is what brought this car back to peak condition.

There were a lot of bird droppings on the car as the owner parks under a tree. As the result of the spring weather, the birds really did a number on the paint and could have potentially damaged the clear coat without the proper care. The clay bar took out the tree sap marks and removed any spots or residue from the birds.

The paint on the 2002 Civic was relatively easy to work with and had the ability to get down to a truly bare state after the compounding. Not every vehicle we do requires a full compounding job, but this Rally Red Civic needed that TLC before adding a coat of carnauba wax.

The final detailing steps were easy as the compounding took the majority of the time to work through. The coat of wax removed easily and left the paint in mint condition. The windows and plastic/rubber trim was also treated. This car really turned some heads when we were through with it. Another quality job done by Five Star Detailing!

Popularity: 17% [?]

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1987 Chris Craft Commander 392

Last week we had the pleasure of detailing a 1987 Chris Craft Commander 392. For a 1987 model, this boat was in good condition, but had not been covered or removed from this water this winter. This boat resides in Amityville and is large enough for overnight trips or long treks around the Great South Bay. When we found the boat, the back deck area was covered with leaves and dirt. The owner of the boat wanted a complete detailing consisting of compounding and waxing all fiberglass areas on the boat.

Navigating around the boat was challenging as it was in the water. The fly deck came out well as we provided a quality shine to all surfaces and special attention on the chrome fixtures. The chrome really needed polishing! As we finished the fly deck, we moved on to other areas of the boat.

The back deck cleaned up nicely after the first scrubbing using our specially formulated deck wash. After compounding and waxing, the entire area was in immaculate condition. The owner requested that we clean the storage compartments below the deck. They also came out to like new condition after cleaning and sanitizing the insides.

The bow of the boat was scrubbed down also using our deck wash. All smooth pieces of fiberglass were compounded and waxed. There were many black streaks on the fiberglass that needed to be removed as well. Most often, the compound is enough to remove black streaks, however this time we needed to treat them with our black streak remover. The black streak remover did the trick as is bought the fiberglass back to like-new condition.

Overall, we were pleased with the way this boat came out. Performing a complete detail while a boat is in the water is always a challenge. Luckily for us, none of our team members fell in the canal! We hope the owner and family enjoy the boat now that it’s in condition to take it out. All this boat needs now is warm and sunny days to be enjoyed.

Popularity: 6% [?]

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39 ft. Condor by R-Vision

This past weekend we detailed a 2004 39 ft. Condor by R-Vision. This RV was in good condition when we found it. However, this is Condor gets some heavy use during the spring thrrough fall so making it truly livable on the inside was the goal. The owners have taken this vehicle as far as Branson, Missouri . All other states visited have been appropriately marked off using decals on the door.

The dashboard area when we first found it did not look like it was ever dressed. We took our time to get all the vinyl surfaces back to new condition. We spent gave lots of attention to the leather seats because they looked liked they had never been treated before. The kitchen came out perfect as it was sanitized and cleaned thoroughly. All chrome pieces were polished, (sink and faucet) and the counter, microwave, oven, and the fridge were brought back to 100% clean condition, and sanitized to where this RV could be used immediately.

The bathroom was brought back to like-new condition. The shower, toilet, and sink areas were cleaned throrougly and sanitized. All mirrors were polished and special attention was placed on the floor and silicone edges that were in fair condition when we found them. The bedroom was detailed as well. We scrubbed all carpeted surfaces, cleaned to remove any dirt, stains, and odor. The beige carpet lightened up significantly and was more “liveable” when walking across the carpet with socks. All mirrors were polished, counter tops sanitized, and “wood” surfaces wiped down and cleaned. The TV was left dust free after we wiped it down.

The outside of the Condor came out better than we expected as we washed, scrubbed, compounded, and waxed all surfaces. The compound really did the trick for us and prepped the surfaced to be waxed. There were severe water marks on the sides of this RV. The sun really baked-in the dirty water marks. These marks only came out after agressively compounding the exterior. The outside surfaces really were smooth to the touch and left protected after removing the final coat of wax. All windows were polished and chrome pieces treated accordingly. We loved the “drunken squirrel” decal on side of the RV. The owner was kind enough to share the story behind that with us. Overall, this RV came out great and our customer were please with the results.

Popularity: 9% [?]

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1995 Chrysler Lebaron

This afternoon we detailed a 1995 Chrysler Lebaron. The vehicle was in pretty bad shape when we found it. In fact, this was one of the most extreme details we’ve performed in a while. The interior was extremely dirty and soiled with rocks, dust, and debris. There were spider webs and thick layers of dust on the dashboard as well.

The interior was the most difficult part as every fabric surface was shampooed and brought back to life. All fabric was scrubbed, leaving the material clean and smelling fresh. No car mats were used for a while on this car so we needed to put special attention on those areas. Overall, the interior came out better than the customer’s expectations. We’re sure he’ll be proud to show off the Lebaron as he was going on a hot date later in the evening.

The exterior of the car we used a clay bar to remove most of the dirt on the paint. After using the clay bar we compounded and waxed. The owner were very pleased with the results as the red paint really shined up well. The convertible top was in very poor condition even after washing it twice. Our specially formulated convertible top cleaner was able to treat and clean the top well. The black convertible top looked fresh again and brought the cars overall appearance to the next level.

After picking up the car, the owner took it out for a spin and was pleasantly surprised with the results. A few girls honked their horns at him and waived at stop lights. This 95’ Chrysler has some new life, and hopefully “did the trick” on a date later in the evening. I don’t think she’ll be complaining cruising with the top down on this beautiful spring evening.

Popularity: 12% [?]

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2004 Toyota Matrix

Today we detailed a 2004 Toyota Matrix. The car was located in Eastport, Long Island. The car was in pretty good condition when we found it with average wear and tear. The inside had a lot of pet hair and sand. It was clear that this car needed some TLC to get it ready for the spring time. Additionally, this car has not had a professional detailing since left the showroom floor in 2004. This was our opportunity to pump some new life into it!

The inside cleaned up nicely as the carpet shampoo rose much of the dirt to the top of the surface. With a combination of scrubbing, shampooing, and vacuuming, the dirt and pet hair was able to be removed. The windows polished up nicely. The dash was in great condition and really took well to the dressing applied. Much of the dash surfaces were very dry as they have not been treated and left for the sun to dry. We had some difficulty with the “aftermarket” mats as they had some mild discoloration on the edges.


The body of car had a few scratches, chips, and swirls. To get the paint looking fresh we started with a light clay bar over the panels and worked the clay to remove imperfections on the surface. Once the debris was removed the next step was compounding. After compounding the Matrix it was clear that it was turning out to be a beauty. The final coat of carnauba was really brought it to the next level as it sealed and protected the paint.

This paint on this Toyota Matrix really underwent a makeover, leaving a quality shine for the summer. All plastic surfaces and tires were treated giving it the showroom look. With periodic hand washings this car should remain in top condition for the summer season.

Popularity: 4% [?]

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