Washed the car, loving this new combination of products, first is Optimum No Rinse Wash & Wax, followed by Optimum Opti-seal sprayed on a microfiber then wiped onto all surfaces including all windows and outside mirrors, followed by Meguiars X-Press Spray Wax D156 sprayed onto another microfiber towel and lightly wiped over everything except windows/mirrors, followed by a quick pass over everything with another clean microfiber to remove any streaks.

Takes about 30 minutes if I'm hauling ***, it's ULTRA slick when washing (after the first week), the Opti-Seal is so cheap I don't mind using it every wash and it seems to get even better and slicker each week.

 

I'm going to try this. I've been equally impressed with Optimum. Curious why the Meguire's spray wax instead of Optimum's. Seems like the chemical bonding they talk about among/across their product line would be a positive.

 

Mostly because I still have a gallon of it on-hand lol. I like it because it works in literally ANY kind of condition, even 110 degree direct sunlight. Also doesn't spot on black plastic which a LOT of products have issues with, it's a synthetic wax. It's also super cheap, a gallon costs almost as much as the little 16oz Optimum wax. I started using it last year when it was recommended by a detailer in town who does some superb work.

Doesn't make my skin feel wierd either, and it smells great.

I'm definitely not opposed to trying out other products but this just works so damned good I don't think I'll be giving it up anytime soon, just don't get it on your glass or it takes a little extra work to get rid of the haze.

EDIT: I think a lot of that cross-bonding is overhyped tbh, I think they all pretty much bond with each other as long as they're synthetic products. When you start mixing real carnauba into things it doesn't mix at all so I usually stick to synthetic wax products. They don't appear to last as long but my car rarely goes more than 2 weeks without a full cleaning so it's a non-issue for me.

 

Decide to go with a few buddies from VQ inc to donate school supply for kids in need on a sunday...... it happens that i am the only G showup lol

 

Also a big Optimum fan here. I've used the No Rinse wash for years and slowly added more and more of their products in that time to my arsenal. Last year I got adventurous and prepped, buffed, and polished the GTO with all Optimum stuff, finishing with Gloss Coat. It's their consumer ceramic coat sealant and the consumer version of Opti Coat which is only available to licensed detailers. The shine was amazing with water sheeting off instead of beading up. Last week I did the same in about 8 hours to the MKS and the results were the same no surprise. A couple of pics to show you all the results are attached. Pictures are straight from my phone and untouched.

The coating on the GTO looked and functioned just like it did when it was applied and that's almost a year worth of 24 hour outside living in a beach town, we're less than a half a mile from water on both sides of our house. I expect a couple of years or more on the MKS's treatment for it to work/look freshly applied.

 

Since I'm replacing my exhaust; I had the great idea to take the rear muffler section of my Borla off to see what it sounded like.

I then though to myself, I wonder how it will sound during a 2-step launch and a 1-4 pull; see if I noticed any difference.

It was of course loud, it gurgled and popped and the two step and RAL sounded awesome.

After my brief run, I noticed my diffuser was seperating from the oem bumper at the top where the panel tape was. (No worries, I wanted to redo it anyway without the tape and use construction adhessive)

So I remove the diffuser, tape, and removed the residue.

While trying to re-install the diffuser, something was definitly not right. I get one corner flush, the other was way out, It was like a seesaw. So, I stepped back and starting looking at the "big picture"...

Come to find out, I destroyed my rear bumper cover.

The cover itself has slight waves and it was discoloerd in cerrtain areas.

I melted the foam behind the crash bar as well as the cover itself under the passenger tailight.

Hell, I even melted the plastic license plate frame to the license plate!

So, I now have a OG CS rear on the way...

 

Replaced the three PCV hoses, PCV valve, and booth brake booster hoses with Z1 silicon parts. The PCV hose under the throttle body was a bitch to get the clamp back on, you only have maybe 3-4 inches of clearance in any direction, and it is directly below the throttle body. Taking the check valve from the OEM passenger side brake booster hose and putting it into the Z1 hose is a lot easier than their website makes it seem. I chose to insert it into the firewall side of the booster hose, it took some spit (I guess you could use whatever lube you want) whatever the standard equivalent socket is to 7mm is and a rubber mallet. Hit the socket with the mallet and it slide right into place effortlessly as long as it's properly lubricated.

I only found one hose with a tear in it, the one coming off the PCV valve going to the lower plenum, and the hissing sound I was hearing so far isn't there but I haven't gotten the car warmed up yet so too early to tell on that one. The brake pedal feels stiffer as well, a lot of the dead space I had at the very top is gone which is nice, but we'll see how it feels once I drive it around.

It took maybe an hour and a half to do, and can likely be done in under 30 mins if you choose to ignore the hose underneath the throttle body and just go for the two on the passenger side + booster hoses.

 

Took my wife for a late night drive, snapped a picture of the bridge even though it was about midnight'ish and the picture was super dark. Google photo's sometimes suggests you "stylized photos" which are done completely at random and they do a bunch of color tweaks, brightness, contrast, etc. They usually look pretty interesting, here's what it did to a photo I took last night.

 

^^^

I like that pic.

 

Did this a year ago. Just checked it and the bushing still feels solid. No give when pressing on the silicone chambers. Motorvate DIY 👍.

 

Thanks for the update great to hear.

 

Performed a dash crack repair. If results are good, DIY will be posted soon. We will see tomorrow when its dried.

 

Repair came out looking like crap. Now I have a new project on my hands lol.

 

It is really tough to keep it looking OE!

 

Amen!

Mine is ugly beyond repair at this point. Im thinking bout doing some kinda vinyl or suede wrap over it. Ive been searching for the past hour but cant find any DIY on how to remove the whole dash. Ive heard its a pain in the asś but I kinda have no choice. It bothers me when I look at it now.