# Spitfire - My E92 330i new car detail



## spitfire (Feb 10, 2007)

It's always nice getting a new car and in February of this year I managed to purchase a BMW e92 330i. I knew that no matter what I bought, it would need a good detail to get it looking its best. The car on arrival looked average for its years but due to the weather it wasn't possible to get started on it but things were about to take a turn for the worse. After only two weeks a young lad in Daddies car ploughed into the side of it damaging the N/S/R quarter and sill. I was gutted.









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A further two weeks passed before it was finally taken in for repair. In preparation for this I decided to clay it so that no spray painting would be done over dirty panels. 

Contaminants were fairly light over the entire car. Bonnet







That might have been a mistake as I'll explain later. Another two weeks passed before the car was returned but still, due to the weather and because I do most of my work outside, detailing progress was slow. Finally as the weather started to break I got into it.
The first problem that quickly became apparent was that the car was covered in overspray. (Clearcoat) Obviously sitting around the body shop it will pick up contaminants but this was mad. Not really visible to the eye but every horizontal panel and to a lesser extent even the vertical panels were rough to the touch. I tried to capture this on my phone camcorder. Don't concentrate so much on the quality of picture but turn on your speakers and listen. 






This is on a car that had already been clayed only weeks before. Notice the change between clayed and non clayed area. I asked the DW collective for recommendations on an aggressive clay and finally I ordered up some Bilt Hammer regular.(it's a good sized bar) The advantage of needing only water as lube would save me from using gallons of Megs LT and it did the job well. With a machine polish to follow I wasn't too bothered about marring so with firm pressure I set about the task. Some panels took two or three goings over before I was finally happy. I knew it was clearcoat overspray BTW because the clay was showing no signs of any colour coming off. This in itself was a time consuming job making sure I had covered every inch of paint but worth every minute of effort if I was to achieve those great reflections. I'm not sure if the original claying helped here because basically I had left a perfectly clean surface on which the overspray found it easy to bond. Anyway, first job done.
One job I had managed to get done before it went in for repair was the tail pipes. For some unknown reason someone had sprayed them with silver paint. That being bad enough, they had been sprayed over all the dirt and small stones which had gathered in the crevice. Knowing not what lay beneath, even so, I couldn't possible live with that so set about them with some brush cleanser and wire wool. I think they came up ok. I finished them off with the Britemax twins.

Before








​After​






They are a satin finish BTW, not chrome​
Dealer prep had obviously hidden one or two little gems. Two areas of scratches and a smart repair were to become my main focus of attention so correction started on the boot lid where a scratch which I thought would be straight forward ended up being wet sanded.

Before







2000 unigrit and 3000 grit removing approx 10um removed the scratch to a point where it's no longer noticeable but it's still there. 

After. I just couldn't get the camera to pick it up







Removing further clear to remove it completely would be silly IMO. Risking strike though and leaving no scope for further polishing isn't a good idea. I've found this a few times on Bimmer paint, that what looks like a minor scratch can be very deep indeed and take some work to get out. 
Similarly, there were a few deep scratches on the O/S C post. Again I tried wet sanding, but first with 3000 grit. I was amazed that after working lightly for around 30 seconds, and cleaning off, I had barely taken the shine off the paint.  I followed with 2000 and then back to 3000 with a new piece of wet & dry paper. Rechecking each time with a light polish, I continued with the wet and dry till I was satisfied with the scratches removal.
Next up was the rear bumper. When buying the car I pointed out a large chip through to the plastic where the horizontal met vertical area. They had taken care of this with a smart repair which I later found left a lot to be desired. The damage had been repaired well but subsequent painting extended to around 1' either side of the repair with in essence orange peel and dull finish evident on close inspection. 

Notice the dull areas on the refections?















Flating begins







Slowly removing the orange peel.







Looking much better.














Not being a very familiar with smart painting techniques this did worry me. Not overly confident in my abilities with wet sanding I continued with due care. I grew more confident as the results were bearing fruit. The orange peel disappeared gradually and the dull finish at either side of the repair blended nicely with the original finish. I didn't remove the orange peel completely because I wanted it to match the original paint and not look out of place. That concludes the main areas of concern. On to machine polishing! 
PTG reading round the car were very healthy if not totally consistent but strangely the lowest readings taken were on the newly fitted panel on the N/S/R quarter. These readings bottomed out at 90 um. Luckily though this panel would only need light correction to remove slight holograms and swirls left by the bodyshop. 

Some examples of defects














Slight hologramming on the new panel.







One area had some pig tails in evidence and again luckily these were in an area where paint thickness was much healthier. Pig tails can be quite deep so I was happy to see the baulk of them remove easily and without issue.
Working round the rest of the car I used a combination of polishes. The bonnet for instance showed the worst of the swirling but still quite light and for this I used one hit of Fast Cut Plus. Other panels such as front wings and doors had no real defects at all and were given a going over with Menzerna PO85RD 3.02. Once completed, a final polish with 106 FA increased gloss.
I must apologise for lack of 50/50s and correction shots at this point. I found it extremely difficult to pick them out even with Halogens, Brinkman ect .
So I'll give you one of my ugly mug and subsequent finish on the bonnet.








Notice the improvement in colour and clarity of the brickwork.​






Not bad for silver grey (Space grey) in poor light.














One area that I'm not entirely happy with are the wheels, and this is a job I will look to rectifying in the future with a refurb. All wheels were removed and the hub areas painted with Hammerite silver to tidy them up. 















Arches cleaned with G101 and Tardis, dressed with AS Highstyle.​













The wheels were washed with Megs wheel brightener, treated with Taris, then clayed. Tyres were dressed with AS Highstyle. It's not many people's choice of dressing but you use very little, it leaves a satin finish, and it's so easy to apply it can be done in about 3 minutes for all four tyres. I also feel it lasts as long as anything else I've tried with no fling. Also used for dressing arches it becomes very cost effective IMHO.





























A couple of coats of Collinite 476s to finish







Engine bay was washed down and protected by 303 aerospace








I forgot an after pic. I'll take one later:lol:The interior was already clean so just given a quick hoover and had a wipe over with 303. Door shuts with G101.
Windows were cleaned with AutoGlym glass polish.​
LSP 
A hand application of Zaino AIO followed by Z2 pro left the usual unmistakable Zaino finish. Following after with Z8 left it clear, crisp and incredibly reflective. I have though used some Dodo SN on the boot as a comparison and I will evaluate this over time. I do like my Zaino though









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Well that about sums it up for this one. Oh but wait, (in my best Jimmy Cricket voice) C'mere, there's more.:lol:​
No car detail is complete without these.:thumb: A nice subtle mod.​














And what do you do when your cars all clean? You give it a blast on a country road and get it dirty of course. I'll share a few pics with you.​





















I call this one *mmmm, Power  *lol​














Products used were..​
AS Highstyle
AS Tardis
AS G101
3M fastcut+
Menzerna PO85RD 3.02
Menzerna 106FA
Meguiars Unigrit 2000 & 3000
Meguiars last touch
Meguiars wheel brightener
Valet Pro snowfoam
Simoniz Shampoo
303 Aerospace
Zaino AIO
Zaino Z2
Zaino Z8
3M and Meguiars pads
Bilthammer autoclay regular
AutoGlym glass polish
Britemax twins
Dodo Supernatural wax​
and finally, I'm looking to paint the calipers so I'm looking for a recommendation for a colour. What do you think would look best? They're not the best looking calipers are they?​
Thanks for looking:thumb::wave:​
Spitfire​


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## scottgm (Dec 27, 2009)

Nice job!

Good after pics :thumb:


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## -Kev- (Oct 30, 2007)

cracking work / write up, looks great in the afters :thumb:

btw, missed some of the front arch when dressing them 








edit: im with Gaz on calipers, silver would look best to match the hubs


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## Detail My Ride (Apr 19, 2006)

I love these cars, looks a stunning example. Personally I would paint the calipers the same colour as the hubs, will look clean and simple.


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## MadOnVaux! (Jun 2, 2008)

Looks great, superb work 

You could do the Calipers Black...it would take the shape away from them, to a certain extent.


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## Mr Face (Jan 22, 2009)

Wicked work, beautiful finish indeed :thumb:


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## kenny wilson (Oct 28, 2008)

Excellent work Dougie! Good to see you've got it up to the standard you wanted after the bump. Cracking shot up at Whitelee:thumb:


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## Nanolex (Jun 8, 2008)

Amazing job! the car looks stunning!


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## ALANSHR (Jun 29, 2007)

Lovely, a great turnaround after the visist to the bodyshop, well done.

Its worth a lot of folk noting that when the car has been in the bodyshop that they alomost always need a good claying and polish as even the best bodyshops dont finsih down to the same levels most of us on here would regard as 'finished'.

I have in the past, clayed the panel requiring work to ensure that they start from the best finish and hope that this means that the colour match and finish will be good enough.


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## FrazzleTC (Jul 4, 2009)

That's looking lovely now. Can't believe how stupid someone must have been to paint the tailpipes, excellent job on those. Nice finished pictures too.


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## deano_uk (Apr 29, 2007)

Fantastic work on a very nice car.


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## ads2k (Jul 12, 2006)

Looks like a very good in depth detail to start 'proper' ownership with :thumb:

I would paint the callipers black if it was me, does give a nice contrast to the hubs and as has been said would disguise the look of the callipers.


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## Spoony (May 28, 2007)

oooftt what a finish, 3rd pic from the bottom is incredible


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## Alan W (May 11, 2006)

Tremendous detail Dougie and a great turnaround! :thumb:

You had your work cut out for you with all those 'issues' (the quarter panel repair, lacquer overspray, smart repair and RDS's etc) and came through with flying colours, all dealt with superbly! 

It's now in a condition you can be proud of so enjoy that BIG 6! 

Alan W

P.S. Keep us updated on the durability of the Supernatural Vs the Zaino.


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## eddiel34 (Mar 22, 2008)

I'm suitably impressed. Love the job you did on the wheels, and the afters are stunning.


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## Auto Detox (Dec 22, 2007)

Very nice job Dougie & a lovely motor, calipers I would go with silver

Baz


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## Kano (Nov 28, 2009)

good results mate, looking good, and a well explained thread too .. good work !


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## carrera2s (Jun 28, 2009)

Fantastic work and write up!:thumb:


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## jonnyw59 (Jan 31, 2009)

Stunning work sir!!!


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## gb270 (Aug 22, 2008)

Nice work mate looks great now


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## Matt. (Aug 26, 2007)

Great work, as for the calipers, i would go black or the same colour as car. :thumb:


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## Brazo (Oct 27, 2005)

Looking superb

Beautiful car and am pleased you have it all sorted and up to speed after your initial bad luck!


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## -tom- (Jan 27, 2009)

looks fantastic work :argie:


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## DUBLIN HITMAN (Feb 13, 2009)

going over to the uk shortly picking one of these cars up 
so bookmarked this 
space grey really come out well
excellent work and great write up


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## spitfire (Feb 10, 2007)

ALANSHR said:


> Lovely, a great turnaround after the visist to the bodyshop, well done.
> 
> Its worth a lot of folk noting that when the car has been in the bodyshop that they alomost always need a good claying and polish as even the best bodyshops dont finsih down to the same levels most of us on here would regard as 'finished'.
> 
> I have in the past, clayed the panel requiring work to ensure that they start from the best finish and hope that this means that the colour match and finish will be good enough.


On the whole I'd agree. Sure as hell most bodyshops won't care if they're painting over dirty paint



Alan W said:


> Tremendous detail Dougie and a great turnaround! :thumb:
> 
> You had your work cut out for you with all those 'issues' (the quarter panel repair, lacquer overspray, smart repair and RDS's etc) and came through with flying colours, all dealt with superbly!
> 
> ...


Yeh that big six sure does screem at, ahem, 70, in third (or was it second):lol:Intake noise is superb as well. Keep you posted on the SN:thumb:



Spoony said:


> oooftt what a finish, 3rd pic from the bottom is incredible


You mean you don't like my M Power? lol. I'm glad you like the other one:thumb: 


DUBLIN HITMAN said:


> going over to the uk shortly picking one of these cars up
> so bookmarked this
> space grey really come out well
> excellent work and great write up


Yeh, space grey is nice as is white. You won't regret the purchase. Bimmer forums rate the 330i as one of the best for giving you that big 

*Thanks for all the comments guys. Mucho Gracias*


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## AJA (Dec 22, 2005)

Stunning work matey.


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## Perfezione (Nov 23, 2006)

That looks brillant mate. 

Really nice in the final pics. 

The e92 is the only 3 series that i think the SE looks just as nice as the M sport.


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## Hondahead (Apr 10, 2010)

fantastic car lad,great work done!
those e92 330i's are well able to move aswell!:car:


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## Buck (Jan 16, 2008)

Dougie

Great write up - good to see you managed to get it looking fantastic - especially the orange peel smart repair - good work getting that sorted!
I do like the after shots too - nice captures and show the car off very well!

Not sure about the calipers - most likely silver although black might look good too?


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## firebod (Mar 25, 2009)

great work there, I am waiting for some decent weather to machine my Carbon black E91. Doing the brakes at the moment, it has to be silver for that OEM look.

nice work:thumb:


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## BavarianMW (Apr 12, 2010)

What a beaut! Those pics look great....could see them used on the e92 dealer brochures! lol

Well done!


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## Mark M (Nov 29, 2006)

Nice work Dougie, lovely motor. Will be taken care of in your hands


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## S-X-I (Sep 6, 2006)

Stunning work Dougie and a great write-up.

The location after shots are superb.


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## Marxus (Apr 20, 2010)

Nice work!

Paint the calipers silver like the hubs or black.


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## GT Guy (Mar 20, 2010)

Absolutely gorgeous!!! It looks stunning, and is obviously in very good hands now. :argie:


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## n80krr (Mar 31, 2009)

Beautiful Motor. Love the tailpipes too. Just bought myself one of those rotaries wondered how you're finding using it?


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## spitfire (Feb 10, 2007)

n80krr said:


> Beautiful Motor. Love the tailpipes too. Just bought myself one of those rotaries wondered how you're finding using it?


Thanks.
The Hitachi is fine. Very similar to the Makita is spec albeit it went though a set of brushes fairly quickly. I've learned to give it a blow through with a high speed if it gets to hot so maybe that will help.


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## Caped Crusader (Sep 27, 2009)

Superb work with excellent attention to detail. Car looks stunning.


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## AJA_528i (Mar 25, 2008)

OUTSTANDING work mate :thumb:


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## spitfire (Feb 10, 2007)

*Normal service will resume as soon as possible:lol:*


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## spitfire (Feb 10, 2007)

Photobucket upgraded :thumb:


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## Rowan83 (Aug 21, 2007)

Stunning mate, very jealous! :thumb:


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## swoniboy (Jun 22, 2009)

*wow!!*

Fantastic work mate

My 325 is a total mess - can't afford what probably needs done to it though!!!

will look you up when I accquire some cash!!

would love to get it looking half that good - scratch and swirl city!!!


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