We get a wide and wacky variety of cars in the Meguiar’s Detailing Bay every month, and even though we’re just two weeks in September has been no exception! Mark’s 99-spec Mazda RX7 is no stranger to the Bay – in fact, it first visited here nearly three years ago having been freshly painted by bodywork guru Greg Howell.

Over the past three years Mark’s FD3S RX7 has racked up plenty of miles including two overseas jaunts to Worthersee and back, and while it’s been meticulously cared for throughout his ownership he’ll be the first to admit things have slipped up in the past few months. ‘I’d just had the engine rebuilt which means no boost and no power for 1500-miles’ Mark explains. ‘1500-miles in an RX7 is wearing at the best of times… let alone without any power! So it’s been pushed to the side for the past few months while i’ve slowly racked up the miles without so much as a microfibre in sight.’

Luckily, it’s never too late to transform your paintwork!

Truth be told, the actual paintwork on the RX7 is still as crisp as ever. It’s just lacking that refinement and protection it once had, meaning it’s not as deep or glossy as it can be. Pollen, dust and dreaded bird poo has littered the bodywork for months, but enough with the excuses – it was time to get it back to its former glory!

There were a few key products we wanted to use on the RX7, starting with our new Heavy Duty Bug & Tar Remover. The front of any car gets caked in bug splat over time and, if left unwashed, those bugs feel almost welded to the paintwork. Heavy Duty Bug & Tar Remover actually re-hydrates those contaminants which sounds wacky, but in reality makes perfect sense. Re-hydrating contaminants means they can easily be removed with a pressure washer or wash mitt rather than hard scrubbing which could damage the paintwork.

Now anyone with a bit of detailing know-how will be aware how bad bird poo can be for a car’s paint. The problem is, birds eat berries. Berries are often incredibly acidic and as such can stain your car’s paintwork, not to mention any more ‘solid’ contaminants in each splat which could mark the paint upon removal.

The solution? A high-pressure jet wash to remove the majority, followed by a shampoo such as our Ultimate Wash And Wax. This is one of our favourite shampoos because it not only cleans your car, it gives it a layer of protection in the process too. For those more stubborn marks which have sat longer, we recommend a clay bar and (if need be) Ultimate Compound. We’ll go into more detail on this in Part 2.

Wheels can be especially tricky over time thanks to brake dust and contaminants, but it’s absolutely no match for our Ultimate Wheel Cleaner – undoubtedly one of our most-popular products right now.

PH neutral and safe to use on ALL wheel finishes, Ultimate Wheel Cleaner is applied before water and simply rinsed off afterwards. You won’t believe the results… we’re still blown away every single time!

With the bulk of the grime and dirt removed from the exterior, the next step for the RX7 is to have the bodywork colour corrected and those stubborn contaminants removed with clay & Ultimate Compound. Stay tuned for Part 2 where we’ll show you the step-by-step process involved.