Ford Mondeo ST200 barn find in desperate need of a makeover
We all love a barn find… Several months ago we got our hands on a Ford Mondeo ST200 in desperate need of a makeover. Covered with a stubborn layer of dust & dirt with seals growing their own ecosystem, this was going to be no easy challenge – it is believed to have sat stationary for around 17 years! Luckily for us, we have products designed for this kind of battle.
Starting with Citrus Pre Wash, our powerful yet safe all purpose cleaner, this will break down all the grime caked on the vehicle prior to further stages. With a stronger dilution than normal to really break into the grime, we liberally sprayed the entire surface of the Mondeo, then giving it ampel time to dwell. Meanwhile we prepared our foam lance with our strongest Snow Foam in the range: Snow Foam Combo 2. This is an alkaline, so typically used as a pre-polishing foam since it will help strip coatings on cars but also back up the Citrus Pre Wash by dealing with any larger clumps of grit & dirt.
With the Snow Foam on, our Large Sash Brush did a little agitation around those seals and intricate areas. You could visually see dirt uplifting as the Snow Foam turned green; this made the rinsing stage a breeze by removing the bulk of dirt, moss and algae!
Next up, the wheels. Typically we would tackle this area first but we decided a rinse with the Snow Foam would be more beneficial to get any loose clumps off whilst revealing the true grime underneath. Sticking with the theme of strong products, our choice was Bilberry Wheel Cleaner; this too is an alkaline cleaner and is very effective at removing baked on brake dust as well as other forms of grime. One coat proved to be perfect for what we were dealing with, but of course assisted with some agitation. This also worked wonders on the tyres!
As we are planning on having this beauty polished up, Concentrated Car Wash was our choice of shampoo. This product has no added gloss enhancers or silicones, therefore nothing to get in the way of a good cut from a polish!
A final rinse and then dry, we had all 17 years of grime removed from the surface of the ST200, effectively making it ready for inspection under the light of our detailing bay. Interested in this journey? Follow it live through our Instagram Stories! https://www.instagram.com/valetpro_ltd/ We’ll be back with a write-up as we tackle the next steps on this Ford Mondeo ST200, hoping to get it as close as possible to its former glory from the production line…