During my trip on April 5th to Chiba Prefecture to visit Worx Auto Alarm with my friend Dino, a slight sprinkling of rain hit the car on the way over. While I was pleased to see how well the Echelon 1043 Nano-Fil paint protection I had gotten applied during its full detail at Rapt was holding up, by the time I got home, I was too busy and tired to properly wash the salt spray (from the ocean) and dirt (in general) off the car.
So last weekend, I spent about an hour washing the car. Compared to previous car wash sessions where I would have to carve out a few hours time to ensure I would have time to give the car a quick once over after the wash to apply some Zaino using my Porter Cable orbital buffer, this time the wash was a strictly water and car wash (Zaino Z7) solution, because the Echelon coating is supposed to last a few years (and I don't want to scratch unnecessarily, right?)
Unfortunately, right as I began washing, I spotted this:
WTF? When did that happen?
So yes was not happy. I thought about if there had been any vandalism to the car, but since this was really the first time I had driven a long distance since getting the car professionally detailed, I was confused as to how this could have happened. Luckily, it's only a sticker, and so I will have it replaced with a new one soon.
Meanwhile, once I calmed down I continued to finish cleaning the car. After I dried it, I found this in my garage:
So this water repellant (i.e. Rain-X copy) product, called Clean View Glass Coat X2 Strong, made by Ichinen Chemicals, claims to last twice as long, and become effective at 38kph. It also claims to have 2 ingredients, fluoride as well as silicon. I almost don't think it's worth it, because one of Dino's questions when he drove my car was, "what did Kabe-san at Rapt put on the windshield?" pointing to how the rain rolled off the windshield. At the same time, I noticed for some reason that the rain did not fly off the rear window thus suggesting that other than a quick polish of the glass surface, nothing special was applied (there is an Echelon product for glass that is supposedly amazing but I don't recall paying for that...)
In any case, I figured I had nothing to lose, especially if I applied this to the rear glass. Application is simple, just like Rain-X. The liquid seeps though the large circular sponge attached to the end, and then you apply, let dry, and buff off. Presto!
close-up as it dries.
Now I'm not recommending this product, it was something I just found in my garage and further, because I rarely take the car out in the rain, I doubt I will be able to experience it in action. Until, at least, I next wash the car and then I will report...although based on the mediocre feedback on the Minkara Japanese language car blog, I'm not that optimistic.
In the meantime, I have a few real mods and some restore work coming to my car very soon. Stay tuned!
Here in Japan, it's a tradition at the end of the year to "clean up" - your house, your car(s), your finances, whatever... in fact it was hard to get a reservation to get my car professionally detailed so the following actually took place in late November of last year.
Anyway, so while I've been to RAPT several times in the past to get my windows tinted, my wheels painted, get a new look by painting the front lip spoiler and NISMO 400R side skirts installed, and the interior professionally cleaned, I've never yet had the exterior properly detailed. Until NOW.
So here is the car before I took it in. This was when I went back to the Nissan dealership to pick up a few parts - details coming soon! LOL.
Yes, very clean by any standard, but not clean enough....
When I dropped the car off at RAPT, initially we decided to go with his "standard" glass coating package, which is "G'Zox" from Soft99 Corporation.
Now, I'm not an expert on these so called "glass coatings" - I know they are big here in Japan, and presumably do away with the need to wax, polish or apply sealant to one's car on a frequent basis. Supposedly, instead of just coating the paint, these products "bond" to the paint, hence their longevity of 2-3 years at a time.
However, a day later Kabe-san called me to explain he had changed his mind. He wanted to use a different product, the top of the line one he offered called "Echelon Nano-fil" - and this also is a "glass coating" like the G'Zox. Best I can tell from the propaganda, this one has a more interlocked structure, which presumably explains why it lasts longer, but also might take longer to set.
Kabe-san explained the reason why he wanted to use the Echelon is because I keep my car fully garaged all year round, and don't drive in the rain, this would allow me to take advantage of the month that it takes for this coating to fully cure. The G'zox works great but has a much shorter curing time, and he confessed, a shorter lifespan. With the Nano-fil, he expected protection to continue for SIX YEARS, although I would not feel the slickness after "only" two years. For the price I paid, I think I can redo this every two years without my wallet complaining...
Anyway when I picked up the car 10 days later (both Kabe-san and myself laughed at how over the years I had until now never gotten him to detail the car... "Finally!!"):
First, at RAPT (the pictures don't do the work justice - there is a certain gloss and sheen the human eye picks up that simply can't be replicated even with a DSLR - and of course the paint feels super slick and smooth):
Under his lights, car looks almost light grey!
Yes, he cleaned and then coated the wheels AND the brake calipers with the glass coating too
I took this opportunity to replace both rubber bump stops on the hood. A worn out one on the right side was causing the hood to droop a little on one side.
This is where that rubber bump stop goes.
So now the bonnet is lined up properly, or at least, the best it can be given 1990s Nissan body gap quality/technology:
Photo of the new one installed
Before bidding me farewell he also gave me this nice little maintenance kit:
Then later in my garage at home, under daylight and "normal" fluorescent lights:
Note the hood STILL isn't perfectly lined up, but at least it's evenly off...I'll fix soon...
Admittedly, on a silver car it's very difficult to see the differences, at least in a photo. Up close in real life, what I notice most is the marked reduction in swirls in the clear coat (the existing paint has to be perfected before a glass coating is applied), as well as the removal of built up grime and such in crevices. For example, he took special care around the headlights, bringing back the black lining on top of the headlights, as well restoring the black on the turn signal grill slits and other black plastic.
Anyway, the car now looks great. Now, going forward, anything body work related will be to touch up or fix areas that need work, such as the front lip spoiler which always gets scraped up, and maybe replace the front GT-R emblem which always gets dinged up. I also have collected some interesting parts that need to be added too, so eventually need to add those.
Most problematic now is, what am I going to do with all the Zaino stuff I have now... Kabe-San says that application of other products can sometimes make things look worse...??
So for the past few months, in addition to my R33 GT-R (on the other side of the center wall), I've had THIS:
Living in my garage. No, I haven't decided I have a sudden need for an R34 GT-R; my friend Ross in Canada happened to buy a near pristine KR4 (same color as mine!) zenki (1999) BNR34 at auction (with only 20,000 kms!) and needed a place to store it during the snowy season in Canada. He would then have the car shipped to him in March, to arrive just about now.
Naturally, as a GT-R fan I couldn't say no, plus I had that extra space doing nothing.
Here's a video shot by Derek Wheldon of Pacific Coast Imports, who did the actual buying of the car at auction for Arneja Trading, the agent who imported it into Canada for Ross.
First order of business once the car was in my hands was to take the car to RAPT to get it properly detailed, and those ugly foglights removed. Kabe-san, giving the car a once over, believed the car's mileage to be genuine. However, he postulated that the car must have been left outside for much of its life. Clues to this included some hairline cracks in the paint, some discoloration spots UNDER the clear coat, etched in rain spots on the glass and flat surfaces, and a badly cracked old style Nismo sticker on the trunk (as seen in the video).
As many houses in Japan don't have enclosed garages, this wasn't necessarily a sign of abuse; in fact given that many Japanese live in apartments, outside uncovered parking isn't unusual. In any case, I was confident that Kabe-san could either fix or minimize the damage, and 72 hours after I dropped the car off, it looked like this:
Amazing what a professional detail can do!
Weird black spot under the clear coat.... at least this is on the bumper, easily resprayed (you can see Kabe-san's reflection!)
Note yes that there are still a few places where a respray will be needed, but to me a respray is cosmetic and takes nothing away from the mechanical condition of the car, which is what is most important.
Anyway, once I got the car back from RAPT, I ordered a car cover, and put the car away for a few months.
Meanwhile, Ross had found out that my friend Dino Dalle Carbonare was looking to sell his Mine's BNR34 titanium muffler and Mine's BNR34 carbon wing mirrors. A negotiation ensued, a price was decided - and then someone (me) had the brilliant idea that, since I have a long running relationship with Mine's - why not get Mine's to install those Mine's parts? Plus, do a once over mechanical inspection to ensure the car was in good shape. So I called Mine's and arranged for a little visit to do all this in early March.
So the day we went to Mine's the skies were overcast and it was drizzling...
just my luck, as it hadn't been outside since the detail...
On the way I had to get some gas... and the tires felt a bit soft for some reason...
Arrival at Mine's...yes despite being Italian Dino was there EARLY and I was 30 minutes LATE...
Some good company... that NSX-R was awesome!
The car gets pulled into the Mine's garage. World famous Nakayama-san (center) is ready to go
Last shot of the RSR muffler,
shortly before it was yanked off to be replaced with Dino's old Mine's titanium unit
When all the parts were put on, and the car given a clean of health - of course we had to ensure that people knew that Mine's did the work:
Mine's Takayanagi-san putting on the sticker....Turns out the sticker on my car was never offered for sale publicly...
found only on certain cars like their demo cars and a few select customer cars! yay!
OK - now for what people really want to know - my driving impressions.
First, it wasn't my car, so I wasn't going to go crazy with it (and, as Nakayama-san at Mine's pointed out later, the tires were hard and cracked... could they be the original OEM tires?!! I knew they felt funny). Second, I only drove in the city and the expressway. Third, it's hard to compare this 34 with my car because my car is tuned up both in power and handling - however I have tried to compare to what I remember when I got my 33 back in 2005 when it was near stock. Also, this 34 had an aftermarket exhaust and suspension, so that may also have affected my perceptions.
First, the good. The engine, given how little it's been used, absolutely purrs. But, I also believe that build quality must have been better, as my car's OEM engine, with only 50,000kms on it, was not as smooth. Clearly, there is also more boost off the line, which makes the car feel more peppy? In any case the engine felt "just right" -not weak, not overly powerful - for the job. And this could have been the gearing as well - in any case, the car felt very easy to drive. Also, the body rigidity was clearly better (I think mostly from the extra rigidity in the C pillars/roof area), and yes the car does feel a bit smaller than the 33. At expressway speeds, however, the 33 is a better drive - a bit more stable, although I think the 34's underbody aero does a lot to minimize the differences. However, the 6 speed Getrag on the 34 sure is nice to have, as 6th acts as an overdrive to lower the RPMs at speed (and thus makes the engine and thus car a bit quieter).
Next, stuff that is not necessarily good and not necessarily bad. I am not sure to what extent this is due to the narrow OEM tires, but the steering was extremely light, and also somewhat numb. The car felt like a luxury sedan in that respect. I definitely wanted more feedback, and would have preferred less power assist. But, it did make for extremely easy driving in the city. So together with the gearing and the extra boost, Nissan DID manage to accomplish one of its goals, which was to make the car easier to drive than the 33, which was deemed fast enough.
Also, I liked the Multi Function Display - it was fun to fiddle with, but I am used to 3 gauges and so having only 2 there... but the ability to change the display is cool. The MFD would probably be useful on the track, if it was preset to show the important stuff like oil temperature and boost.
yes, fun in the beginning but do I really need all that info?
Lastly, the bad. For the price of the car, Nissan really cheaped out on the interior of the car. The car's interior is much more plasticky than the 33. Yes the 33 is plastic too so it must be a different type of plastic. The seat fabric too, even though the seats are desirable from the perspective of having two harness holes, the fabric itself felt cheaper vs the suede-like material in the 33. Continuing on the interior - the gas level and engine temperature gauges in the gauge pod are huge, compared to the 33. Frankly they were distracting to me, I much prefer the cleaner 33 gauge pod (plus, the straight down and 90 degree needle positions on the 33 give that car character... in the 34 they are like just like any other car...)
Meh... just doesn't look as good, sorry. And does a stock 34 really rev up to 9000?
Subjective, I know, but somehow it just looks better
So there you have it - my impressions of the 34 vs the 33. Clearly, these cars are very similar - and it makes sense as the engine and chassis are fundamentally the same. The differences, both good and bad, are minor, and nothing that money can't fix or improve. Again it would have been nice to see the differences on the track but that wasn't going to happen, hence my picking on relatively superficial aspects of each car. Hopefully sometime in the future I will be able to drive a 34 similarly tuned to the specifications of my car, so I can do a direct comparison!
In any case - a week after the Mine's visit the car was picked up to be put onto the ship. Thanks Ross for trusting me with your car - I certainly hope you enjoy it!
Now this is going to be a tough post. Because the photographs won't do justice to the work done.
As most know by now, I tend to keep my car clean. Very clean. But I've never taken my car to a professional for any cleaning work - until now.
The primary reason I did this time, was because I had recently driven to a place where, I suspect enough pollen accumulated in my car so that, even with the recently installed A/C filter (and yes on recirculate), my hay fever was still triggered. I was sneezing so much, and my nose running so much, I had tissues stuffed up my nostrils...
So I had to figure out a way to clean the interior without suffering, and clean it such that there was a significant reduction in pollen.
Enter Kabe-san at RAPT. I've gone to him before in the past for some minor body work and for tinting my windows, but his true profession is auto detailing. So I was curious to see what methods he used as well, perhaps there would be some techniques I could use.
As you can see, pretty busy times for RAPT, right during the Golden Week holidays.
What bothered me most, was the amount of dust in the air ducts, like this, that I just couldn't seem to remove:
See all that pollen, dust, etc. on the bottom of the vent?
Anyway, Kabe-san had told me that he would remove the seats, and use steam. So I was curious to see what kind of difference awaited me.
He was also nice enough, to post on the RAPT blog, the steps he took to clean my car. I've taken the following photos, and summarized the steps from the RAPT blog at: http://rapt.livedoor.biz/archives/1980827.html
First step, before he took the photos, was to clean the dashboard. Then...
Remove front seats
Oh my, look at that dirt under the front seat. Yes, it's been a while since I vacuumed the interior thoroughly...
Adding Steam to loosen up the embedded dirt in the carpet
Using a "rinser" he then vacuumed up all the dirt and grime
Wow looks cleaner already!
Here is the driver's seat before any work
The Japanese description talks about how I was concerned with "sebumsebaceous matter" - in other words, 17 years of human sweat and oils...
Steam to break up the oils
The "rinser" again to vacuum it up...
I am assuming that this brownish matter is... organic??
The dirt just from the floor
Thank the lord this was dirt from the carpet, not stuff embedded in the seats!
Nice and clean after the steam cleaning... letting the seats and floor dry.
I'm not sure why that (seat) bolt is on the floor there, lol.
This looks clean
He didn't mention in his blog, but it's clear he steam cleaned the cloth inserts as well (after this photo was shot).
But using a special cleaning solution and sponge he rubbed this off...
After the above, he finished off other sections of the car, including the trunk!
He also told me he used a special tool to clean the vents:
You can see there is much less dust here!
What the photos don't show, is how the cloth materials now feel cleaner - like brand new - and the car smells different. Before it had a slight industrial smell, but somewhat "manly." (a combination of smoke and engine blow-by... or so I thought)?? But now the car smells like new car...
Interestingly, Kabe-san told me that the previous (and first) owner of my car was a smoker (I'm not)! To me, everything looked very clean, but apparently when he steam cleaned the ashtray, there was some tell tale brownish runoff - Kabe-san surmises the previous owner must have smoked with the driver's side window open, arm resting on the armrest... And actually, this explains why my armrest shows some wear there (the cushioning is gone).
He was also kind enough to put an "after" photo up on his blog.
Unfortunately the photo is a bit blurred, but it would be hard to tell from any photo the difference, especially as I keep my cars relatively clean. But as I stated above, the difference is readily apparent from a tactile and olfactory perspective!! And yes, no more pollen!
Anyway, given the pricing, which is very reasonable, this may be something I do once a year, as I do love the new car feel and smell.
PS - One thing we discussed afterwards - does anyone know of any makers of high quality automobile carpet? Would love to do such an upgrade...
Actually, all I had initially wanted to do was for the front lip spoiler, which had gotten scraped in a pay parking lot, to be resprayed. But then, I decided to stretch my budget and get the front bumper resprayed as well, getting all those rock chips and scratches taken care of.
Here is how the car looked when I picked her up on Sunday evening from my neighborhood shop, RAPT:
How I wish I had my DSLR with me that night...
And it turns out that, Kabe-san at RAPT has special spotlights that light up when the main overhead lamps are extinguished. To the naked eye, the silver seemed to glow, like it was alive. Obviously this iPhone photo doesn't do it justice, but I think you know what I mean.
Hmm. This might be a decent place for a night shoot.
We also discussed future "clean up" type work going forward....
So why am I here today? The truth is, I needed an excuse to take my car out, get the engine warmed up as I am going to do an oil change in my garage later today. At the same time, made some inquiries about some interior detailing I may have done... Stay tuned for why!
Ok, ok... actually the real reason is so I can test out the Blogger App for the iPhone. Works well I think!
.jpg)
