Owain's R32 Skyline

To kick off a new blog series, we had Owain come in with his stunning Nissan R32 Skyline. His car ticks all the boxes as a true Jap-spec Skyline. Owain's car was set to be on our stand at this year's Japfest show, so prior to the show we invited him to the Detailing Academy to prep his car, with a little twist... As his car will be used to demo the academy training and services, we pulled out all the stops giving his car a true 50/50 detail. He brought us the car in the perfect dirty state. It had been stored in a garage on a farm for a year, meaning it had acquired a lot of dirt and grime.

We started off by taping a centre line down the entire car, followed by covering one side in plastic dust covers to stop any water or products touching it. The plastic dust covers we use are specially made to be 100% waterproof but light and thin enough not to contact the dirt so there's no potential of scratching or damaging the paint.

Once taped, we started by snow foaming with Avalanche, then washing with Lather, using the two bucket method and detailing brushes to really agitate any areas of built-up dirt. To finish the wash, we fully dried the car using the ultimate drying towel, Aqua Deluxe.

After the wash stage, we moved the car into our full correction white bay and set about polishing and waxing half of the car to really achieve a full 50/50 detail.

Sufficed to say that the outcome after we took the centre line tape off was incredible; a truly distinguishable 50/50 comparison.

After the detailing was over, we sat down with Owain and had a quick Build Talk chat about his car, its history and any future plans.

Owain, What Got You Into Cars?

"I'm not really sure specifically. I'm the only one in the family that's into cars. Everyone else is into bikes. When I was a kid I collected a lot of hot wheels; something I still do. I have countless R32s around my house to this day. I've also grown up watching the Fast and Furious franchise, aspiring to own cars like in the films, as well as playing computer games like Need for Speed Underground, Gran Turismo and other quintessential racing games."

So Tell Us About The History Of The Car?

"Imported in 2015 from Japan. I bought it in 2017. I do have a couple of pictures from the car with the original Japanese owners back in the '80s which is pretty cool. To me, it's just a nice cruiser, I take it to a couple of shows such as Japfest, Trax, Fitted, RollHard, Gravity and Players classic. Plus I go to Le Mans in it quite a lot, which is always a good time."

What Have You Done To The Car?

"Since I bought it I've upgraded ECU to a Link g4+, a number of new suspension component upgrades, polybushed the rear, new clutch and brand new wheels. Plus loads of little tiny things to tidy the car up."

What Are Your Future Plans For The Car?

"Power-wise I want to upgrade to about 700bhp which will be a fully-forged stroker kit to make it a 2.8. Maybe a bigger turbo, probably a Borg Warner too, just in case it makes more power as mine is only rated to 700bhp to the crank. "Visually, probably a wide-arch Pandum kit, air ride and then re-trim the interior to go along with matching seats and generally tidy everything up. All of this happening over the next 10 years - I don't think I'm ever going to get rid of it now."

What Is Your Dream Car?

"Probably a 1968 Dodge Charger. It's completely different from the Skyline. Although it's not completely unattainable, even though they go for about £72,000ish... I love my Skyline, but I think American muscle is where my heart is set."

Finally, What Are Your Top 5 AF Products?

• "Citrus Power is amazing in the winter time! You just know that it can take caked-on grime off with ease.
• "Iron out, as its great with my wheels.
• "Avalanche; easy to use and you know it will get the job done.
• "Ultra Glaze, as it always brings the best out of my paintwork and it's a must-have essential for me.
• "And finally, Aqua Coat, mainly because after you've applied it, the beading you get is so satisfying."

Many thanks to Owain for coming down to the Academy and for being on our stand at Japfest Silverstone!