A couple weeks ago I had the 2011 GS350 Svended again - last year my detailer (Meticulously Detailed in NC) completed a two stage paint correction and two-year ceramic coat. Since then, I added the 2009 Miata to the stable, which kicked the GS out into the elements. This year, the GS was due to receive a maintenance detail and I asked my detailer to also remove the pinstripes on the car, as they hadn’t held up particularly well over the car’s nine years. I’m honestly amazed at how well the ceramic held up:
It also looks so much cleaner without the pinstripes. He warned there would be a little ghosting as they tend to eat into the clear, but it’s only visible in certain lights when you’re really looking for it. I’m pleased as punch.
Someone at work clipped the drivers side corner of the front bumper cover, but between my initial effort and his, it’s hardly noticeable anymore. It’s another one of those things that you really only see if you’re looking for it and given the car’s age, it’s something I’m not worrying about correcting.
That said, I also wanted to share an update (for anyone who cares) about how the car has treated me in its first year+ of ownership. I picked it up last February with 112,000 miles on it for the princely sum of $12,000. I decided that I didn’t want to live with car payments any longer, so I sold my Audi S3 and picked this thing up.
It’s not what you’d consider a fun car to drive, but it’s not terrible either - the 3.5L V6 is super smooth and has the right amount of horsepower. It’s porky, but I’ve never wanted for power in how I drive it, since it’s just a daily.
I’m probably setting myself up for failure here, but in the past year and addition of 8000 miles, nothing has broken - power tilt/telescope, navigation, climate control, heated/cooled seats, power sunshade, power folding mirrors, and all the other electric doo-dads still work as expected. The only maintenance I’ve performed is a couple of oil changes and swapping out the fluid in the rear diff.
I’ve always been a big fan on this generation’s styling and, while it’s definitely dated, it still looks good to my eye. The plan is to keep it indefinitely, until it becomes unreliable and necessitates a replacement. That’ll allow me more latitude to make some bad decisions with my 2009 Miata :).
