# My BMW 118d M Sport



## 9868 (Oct 3, 2007)

After picking up my new 118d a couple of weeks ago and doing nothing but drive since, it was time to give it the db detailing touch.

Here's how it stood before I got started:


























































































Day 1 (9 hours)
First job was to get the wheels off and get them properly cleaned and sealed.
Before:




































Cleaned with Meguiars Wheel Brightener at 4:1.









Leaving the following:


















De-tarred with Autosmart Tardis.


















Leaving the following:









Washed again then clayed with CleanYourCar Poly Clay
Next was several applications of Wolf's Deironiser. This really made a difference and you can see the wheel 'bleeding' as it disolves all the baked on brake dust.


















Washed again and dried before giving an IPA wipe down.

They were then given a coat of GTechniq C5 inside and out. I am really impressed with this product - so easy to use and the protection it gives is outstanding.
And the finished article:



























While the wheels were off, I took the opportunity to deep clean the arches, using Megs APC, Super Degreaser and sprayed with Tardis. They were then protected with Megs All Season Dressing.
Before:









After:









Next on to the bodywork with a snow foam mix of Meguiars APC and Valet Pro PH Neutral Snow Foam.



























…… and that's when the camera battery died! Great! Any way here's what I did next:

As the snow foam mix was dwelling I went around the car with APC and various small brushes and cleaned the panel gaps, fuel cap, rubber seals, boot and door shuts etc etc.

The car was then washed using the 2BM and Zaino Z-7 Show Car Wash.

De-tarred using Tardis.

Washed again.

Clayed using Zaino Z-18 clay and Meguiars Last Touch as Lubricant.

Washed again.

Wolf's Deironiser sprayed on the lower side panels and entire rear end. The paint wasn't as bad as I thought after seeing how bad the wheels were, so it was washed again.

Stone chips were then touched up with genuine BMW A52 Space Grey paint.

Then I called it a day.

Day 2 (11 hours)

No during pics as I was a bit pushed for time… here's the process and products used anyway:

First job today was to start correcting the paintwork, and the combo for the day was Menzerna 203S on a Sonus SFX-1 Swirl and Scratch Remover pad.

Fortunately it only took one pass to get around 98% correction and the polish was breaking down and finishing very well as the temperature in the shade was pretty warm.

The car was washed again to remove polishing dust and given an IPA wipe down to remove any polishing oils.

The paintwork was then protected using Zaino Z-2 Pro Sealant with ZFX accelerator, then given a second coat around an hour later. It was then finished off with Zaino Z-8 Grand Finale.

Exterior glass was cleaned and sealed using the Carlack Twins with the windscreen being treated to two coats.

Plastics restored and protected with GTechniq C4 - again awesome product!

Tyres dressed with FinishKare 108A S Top Kote Tyre Dressing.

Exhaust tip polished with Autoglym Metal Polish.

And here's the finished article:




















































































































































































Then something that was bugging me…
Before









After









Leaving a much cleaner front end.









And to finish… a well deserved beer (or two)!

Overall the entire detail took 20 hours.
Thanks for looking.


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## cleslie (Feb 19, 2006)

Nice car and cracking results. I have a similar coloured E46 and you've managed to get a great shine there:thumb: You take a good photo too.


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## ryand (Jul 18, 2008)

Nice work, write up and photos, must be from an SLR?!


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## -Stuart W- (Dec 28, 2007)

Top work and finish there mate. Bet you enjoyed those beers!


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## 9868 (Oct 3, 2007)

ryand said:


> Nice work, write up and photos, must be from an SLR?!


Cheers, pics taken on an entry level Nikon D5000 but with a Nikkor 18-200mm lens... still learning!


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## ryand (Jul 18, 2008)

Nice lens that!


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## cotter (Aug 31, 2008)

Cracking finish, looks great :thumb: You've gotta love Zaino


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## DMH-01 (Mar 29, 2011)

Great job there mate, looks nice and tidy.


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## badman1972 (Jun 24, 2010)

Nice motor you got there mate, cracking job and a lovely looking finish, nice one :thumb:


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## SimonW (Jun 3, 2007)

Really nice finish and some great photo's, top work :thumb:

Regards, Simon
*Exotic Detail*
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## Dizzle77 (Mar 27, 2010)

Looks great mate and you did a very good job on cleaning those alloys :thumb:


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## alfajim (May 4, 2011)

i'm not a beemer man but you sure did a cracking job on it.
i hope that beer was chilled, you'd earned it.


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## edthedrummer (May 30, 2007)

beautiful job mate


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## 9868 (Oct 3, 2007)

Dizzle77 said:


> Looks great mate and you did a very good job on cleaning those alloys :thumb:


Cheers fella!

The wheels were a nightmare! I don't think they'd ever been cleaned properly since new!


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## 9868 (Oct 3, 2007)

alfajim said:


> i'm not a beemer man but you sure did a cracking job on it.
> i hope that beer was chilled, you'd earned it.


Oh yes!! :thumb:


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## Scrim-1- (Oct 8, 2008)

Fantastic work buddy, got one of these to do myself in a couple of weeks.


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## s8gynwa (Aug 11, 2011)

Great job


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## throwa62start (Aug 1, 2011)

Thats some hard ar$ed work in that car, great job... agree about the wheels, must never have been cleaned properly since new!


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## Emporio (Jun 8, 2011)

Great job, and the bulbs make all the difference


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## awallacee30 (May 4, 2011)

Great work there mate. Love the motor too :thumb:


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## Demetrios72 (Jun 27, 2011)

Great work there matey!!! :thumb:
I see you got rid of the fried egg look


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## empsburna (Apr 5, 2006)

The 1'ers are really growing on me, especially in that colour. :thumb:


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## 9868 (Oct 3, 2007)

Midlands Detailing said:


> The 1'ers are really growing on me, especially in that colour. :thumb:


Cheers chap! I was the same, I love the lines!
And I never even thought about a grey car until I saw this in the flesh. Love it!


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## North east Car Care (Jan 14, 2008)

Lovely finish matey


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## orakolo17 (Feb 5, 2011)

Great work:thumb::thumb:


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## Rowan83 (Aug 21, 2007)

Awesome detail, love it!! :argie:


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## declanswan (Feb 27, 2008)

Good effort, looks showroom fresh.


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## uzi-blue (Mar 16, 2011)

Very nice job buddy, car looks stunning. :argie:


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## si hoc (Feb 27, 2011)

top work mate bet you enjoyed that beer


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## 9868 (Oct 3, 2007)

Cheers guys!! Appreciate all the comments!

It's a pity it doesn't stay looking clean... bloody English weather!!


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## tonyy (Jul 26, 2008)

Nice shine...


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## tek_architect (Jan 3, 2010)

Great finish. Nice and shiny!


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## 9868 (Oct 3, 2007)

Thanks guys


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## TrueTriumph (May 3, 2011)

Is there a special reason for doing the claying stage first and applying Iron-X afterwards?

Markus


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## David Proctor (Mar 6, 2011)

Looks fab.... great work..


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## masammut (Jul 13, 2011)

Great job you did there! :thumb: Lovely example of a 1 series u have there too.

I have an E60 M Sport in the same colour and I have a few stone chips on the bonnet. I bought the A52 touch up and also an alloy wheel touch up kit as I have a few kerb marks on some alloys, but I have been afraid of applying them for fear of messing everything up.
I have now given the car a good detail (snow foam, decon, clay, machine polished, sealed and waxed ) and these chips are starting to get under my skin as they are the only imperfections left in the car. I do not wish to have the bonnet resprayed as the car still has all factory paint and they are really very few chips to justify a respray.

Will you kindly explain in some detail how you applied the touch up paint please?

Thanks alot.


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## meraredgti (Mar 13, 2011)

stunning work and magic pictures - thank you for sharing


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## 9868 (Oct 3, 2007)

masammut said:


> Great job you did there! :thumb: Lovely example of a 1 series u have there too.
> 
> I have an E60 M Sport in the same colour and I have a few stone chips on the bonnet. I bought the A52 touch up and also an alloy wheel touch up kit as I have a few kerb marks on some alloys, but I have been afraid of applying them for fear of messing everything up.
> I have now given the car a good detail (snow foam, decon, clay, machine polished, sealed and waxed ) and these chips are starting to get under my skin as they are the only imperfections left in the car. I do not wish to have the bonnet resprayed as the car still has all factory paint and they are really very few chips to justify a respray.
> ...


Just very slowly and carefully with a toothpick... little by little.


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