# Laguna Seca Blue E46 M3



## Twenny Benson (Mar 22, 2011)

Been a while since I posted anything here, after the demise of the E36:-

http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=288806

It was a natural progression to the much revered E46 M3 :devil:. I've had it 6 weeks or so and only just got round to start detailing the beast  I forgot to take pictures of every stage but here's what I've got!

Started with the genuine CSL wheels, they do need a refurb & new centre badges to bring back there former glory but still benefitted from a good clean.





So set too with the bilberry, tardis and Iron X



Once Nice and clean



They got the Carpro DLUX treatment and Meg's endurance on the tyres and left to cure in the sunshine.





Wheels done it was time to clean the arches out, it was tar city in there! I used AF citrus power and AS Tardis to sort the mess out and CG VRP to bring some life back to the plastics.

Before:-







After:-





I know the brake calipers need some love but that is on the cards for another weekend.

Happy with the wheels and arches I turned my attention to the interior. First thing to go was the window tint film, armed with my steam cleaner I slowly heated and peeled them off, have to admit I was a little twitchy doing the rear screen as I had no idea how long the film had been on and feared it would remove the aerials & defroster lines! Slowly slowly catchy monkey is the name of the game here. The small amounts of adhesive that was left behind was quickly removed with some tardis and 0000 wire wool, done!

Before:-



After:-



Much happier now.

So whilst I was inside I thought I might as well carry on, so leather was cleaner with gliptones gentle cleaner and conditioner, I know people say you shouldn't use it on modern leather interiors but I swear it makes a difference, Im happy with it anyway 







I also wet extracted the mats and gave them all a spritz of CG fabric guard, no pictures though 

Dash and door cards next, they got an APC wipe down followed by two coats of GTechniq C6 applied 24 hours apart, first time using this stuff and I'm impressed with it so far especially as it's so much cheaper than some and maintains that matt dash look which I like 





Also whilst on the inside I needed to repair the auto dimming rear view mirror, it's a common fault on the E46 M3 & E39 M5, the seal gives way and lets air in and the magic fluid out! The fluid inside the mirror is hugely corrosive and can make a horrible mess of your interior plastics as its positioned over the centre console obviously its poised to really ruin your day! As mine had the 'bubble' it was high time to sort it out. The problem is BMW want circa £450 for a new mirror assembly and even that would fail eventually, luckily someone on a well-known M3 forum had sourced a more reliable mirror so I procured one and set too repairing my existing mirror!

Stripped her down



The dreaded bubble.



Soldered the new mirror in and jobs done, works too!



So with the interior done for now I moved on to the bodywork, lots of missed photo opportunities here but it got the usual decon regime AF Citrus power and brush in the nooks & crannies, snow foamed, TBW with Sonax shampoo which is a new favourite, tardis, iron x and clayed with Bilt Hamber medium and AF Clay lube. I removed all the badges and grills to make the polishing step easier!

Swirls:-



Not too bad really.

Snow foamed



Post decon so after clay and yet another wash, dried with a dodo juice soft touch premium drying towel which is awesome.



Already looking much better!

Polished with a mix of Menz PO85RD 3.02 & FG500 where needed along with Sonus SFX pads which I don't really rate but they got the job done in the end, all driven round by my trusty DAS6 pro. I wasn't aiming for ultimate correction here just trying to add a bit more gloss to the finish and flatten the light swirling, RDS remain.

Bonnet came up great.





Once I'd been round with the Menz PO85RD 3.02 I did contemplate refining further with SF4000 but my back begged me not too so I enough was enough time to seal in the hard work! It could have been better but I was happy enough with the finish. LSP this time will be Carpro's Cquartz UK edition, my first go with a glass style coating was a lot tricky than waxing or sealing especially making sure its buffed off correctly! Firstly I wiped down yet again with IPA as I do after every polishing section and finally to be extra sure the surface is clean I panel wiped down before applying the coating to each section, the results were worthwhile and yet again another stonking product from Carpro, bonnet grill was DLUX'd with a Meg's detailing swab to get into every hole! Took a while 















So to tidy up the last details, the shadowline trim (think that's what they call it?) was treated again with DLUX over the Cquartz.

Before any coating, looking a bit dull & lifeless.



After



Much better me thinks.

Door shuts where cleaned during the wash stage, wiped down with IPA and treated to FK1000P, buffed off and wiped down with FK425 which is also a great product. Sill plastics where treated to DLUX as were the interior sill trims, kick plates and seat side mouldings and switch gear.







All indicator bulbs changed from orange to silver (actually before any cleaning was carried out hence the hazy headlamp which has now been improved with some polishing).

Befores





Afters





Subtle but noticeable.

Then to finish off, engine was cleaned using AF citrus power various brushes and protected with 303 protectant.



I know that's a bit pic heavy but I hope it was worth the read, as always comments & criticisms welcome, thanks for looking :thumb:


----------



## luke w (Dec 11, 2012)

Awesome work on a really nice car!


----------



## loftylad (Apr 22, 2012)

My favourite car in its best colour! (and with no gawdy coloured leather lol)

Looks stunning. Great job.


----------



## Benn (Aug 22, 2007)

Looks stunning. Lights look so much better.


----------



## robf73 (Sep 17, 2012)

dude, is that it? after a week off work? take it you spent most of your days lazing in bed then?:lol: :lol: :lol:

seriously though, nice work again. the m3 is looking great. looks so much better now minus the tints. just need some rain now to see how the CQUK beads and sheets


----------



## bonelorry (Nov 11, 2009)

Excellent turnaround, I used to own an E36 328I Sport in Santorin Blue which was a stunning colour.

Laguna Seca Blue just looks so right on these E46 M3's, I would love to own a GOOD one of these one day!

Thanks Simon


----------



## neilb62 (Jul 30, 2007)

Oh my word I just did a sex-wee........ That is stunning... we have a large policy maturing next year that means we'll have some money to spend on a toy.. wifey (who doesn't drive) wants us to have a Z4, I want one of these... let battle commence.... :wave:


----------



## JBirchy (Oct 9, 2010)

Fantastic matey, what a stunning car too! Can't beat the organic 'stance' of an M car and the E46 is one of the best in the business. The last of the naturally aspirated 6 cylinder cars and in a great colour.

I've only driven an SMG version which I thought was a bit slow and dim witted at low speeds, but was great when the engine was on song. I always really enjoyed driving it!

Nice work too, wheels came up great!


----------



## danwel (Feb 18, 2007)

Very nice, have a big soft spot for these especially in this colour too


----------



## AaronGTi (Nov 2, 2010)

Awesome car in the best colour.

Nice work


----------



## thedooker (Sep 7, 2009)

I detailed one of these last year. I thought I had done a good job until now!!

They are stunning cars and the colour just comes alaive when treated correctly


----------



## Twenny Benson (Mar 22, 2011)

luke w said:


> Awesome work on a really nice car!


Thanks mate :thumb:



loftylad said:


> My favourite car in its best colour! (and with no gawdy coloured leather lol)
> 
> Looks stunning. Great job.


It is an awesome machine and indeed the best colour, couldn't believe my luck when it came up for sale and it didn't have a blue interior, which as you say is bloody awful. Thanks for compliments



Benn said:


> Looks stunning. Lights look so much better.


Cheers dude, it is amazing the impact it makes just changing the bulbs, much better isn't it :thumb:



robf73 said:


> dude, is that it? after a week off work? take it you spent most of your days lazing in bed then?:lol: :lol: :lol:
> 
> seriously though, nice work again. the m3 is looking great. looks so much better now minus the tints. just need some rain now to see how the CQUK beads and sheets


Yes lazing in bed, drinking beer, watching TV etc. etc. whilst you were at work though 

Im glad the tints are gone and I didn't ruin the back window! Can only imagine what it would cost to replace! Bring on the rain lets see it sheeting 



bonelorry said:


> Excellent turnaround, I used to own an E36 328I Sport in Santorin Blue which was a stunning colour.
> 
> Laguna Seca Blue just looks so right on these E46 M3's, I would love to own a GOOD one of these one day!
> 
> Thanks Simon


I too had an E36 328i sport before this, loved that car, I still have it and need to repair it, the vanos unit has sadly died. The E36 was such a pure driving experience very different to the E46 which is way more refined. Always loved the Santorin E36's there is a lovely one in the projects section on here, would love to have a one next to my Laguna Seca on the drive. Finding a good E46 M3 is getting harder and harder without spending over the odd's, loads of dross out there unfortunately.



neilb62 said:


> Oh my word I just did a sex-wee........ That is stunning... we have a large policy maturing next year that means we'll have some money to spend on a toy.. wifey (who doesn't drive) wants us to have a Z4, I want one of these... let battle commence.... :wave:


Haha, yes you have to get the M3 over the Zed, it has so much more to offer and lets face it, it is a bit more manly! Get that woman told :lol:



JBirchy said:


> Fantastic matey, what a stunning car too! Can't beat the organic 'stance' of an M car and the E46 is one of the best in the business. The last of the naturally aspirated 6 cylinder cars and in a great colour.
> 
> I've only driven an SMG version which I thought was a bit slow and dim witted at low speeds, but was great when the engine was on song. I always really enjoyed driving it!
> 
> Nice work too, wheels came up great!


I have had some high powered awesome machinery over the years, this however does everything amazingly well, the sound, the handling, the presence it has is a very hard package to rival in an daily driver. It is utterly fantastic and I wish I had found the money and bought one years ago. I never bothered with the SMG version, knew I had to have a manual and with the sports button firmly pressed its a complete lunatic :devil:

Thanks for the compliments, the wheels did come up a treat didn't they, I like to think I've got my technique nailed when it comes to wheels now. I've cleaned sooooo many sets in the last 12 months it frightening!



danwel said:


> Very nice, have a big soft spot for these especially in this colour too


Thanks mate :wave:



AaronGTi said:


> Awesome car in the best colour.
> 
> Nice work


:thumb:



thedooker said:


> I detailed one of these last year. I thought I had done a good job until now!!
> 
> They are stunning cars and the colour just comes alaive when treated correctly


Thanks for the kind words, makes all the effort worth while :thumb:

I've already had someone ask me if its been resprayed! The car does get a lot of positive comments everywhere it goes.


----------



## veb (Mar 13, 2006)

Lovely example, the arches came up like new really impressive work and equally impressive car:thumb:


----------



## JwilliamsM (Dec 20, 2011)

looking awesome mate! i think pheonix yellow and laguna seca blue are the best 2 colours for the e46 m3 
i cleaned my arches yesterday too, also painted the wheel hubs in hammerite smooth silver, and already had done my calipers in satin black, yours would come up a treat and tidy up your arches further :thumb:

i also had the same problem with my mirror, i bought a replacement glass from texas from a company called radar-mirror, took about 5 mins to fit

love the m3 as you may have guessed lol :driver:


----------



## tonyy (Jul 26, 2008)

Very nice:thumb:


----------



## diesel x (Jul 27, 2013)

Great work!


----------



## Twenny Benson (Mar 22, 2011)

veb said:


> Lovely example, the arches came up like new really impressive work and equally impressive car:thumb:


I was very happy that the arches are in good condition, I guess I'm use to the dreaded arches on the E36 which are a nightmare for rot so happy days. Thanks for the kind words



jayz_son said:


> looking awesome mate! i think pheonix yellow and laguna seca blue are the best 2 colours for the e46 m3
> i cleaned my arches yesterday too, also painted the wheel hubs in hammerite smooth silver, and already had done my calipers in satin black, yours would come up a treat and tidy up your arches further :thumb:
> 
> i also had the same problem with my mirror, i bought a replacement glass from texas from a company called radar-mirror, took about 5 mins to fit
> ...


I'm planning to replace the discs & pads with performance friction items all round and at that time I'm going to overhaul the calipers with new seals possibly new pistons if needed. At that point I will tidy them up properly with some bilt hamber rust treatment products and paint and obviously some new braided hoses. Bit of preventative maintenance I suppose, it's quite common for our calipers to start binding with age I believe.

I think all these M3 & M5 rear view mirrors are destined to fail, easy fix though hey just not a cheap one! :wall:

:thumb:



tonyy said:


> Very nice:thumb:


:thumb:



diesel x said:


> Great work!


:thumb:

Thanks for all the comments chaps


----------



## Wout_RS (Jun 13, 2012)

Nice detail! The car looks fabulous in Laguna Seca Blue!

Congratz on the car! I think they are the best M3 to date!


----------



## JwilliamsM (Dec 20, 2011)

Twenny Benson said:


> I'm planning to replace the discs & pads with performance friction items all round and at that time I'm going to overhaul the calipers with new seals possibly new pistons if needed. At that point I will tidy them up properly with some bilt hamber rust treatment products and paint and obviously some new braided hoses. Bit of preventative maintenance I suppose, it's quite common for our calipers to start binding with age I believe.
> 
> I think all these M3 & M5 rear view mirrors are destined to fail, easy fix though hey just not a cheap one! :wall:


fair enough  i'd love some big brakes though! yeah all the e46/e39 mirros do fail, i honestly couldnt believe the prices for new ones even second hand they go for £200! the glass cost me £120 approx, import tax was £26!
put the word ///M on something and it quadruples in price haha

p.s. good work on the alloys too, they came up a treat. may do the same to my dads Volvo tomorrow


----------



## GarveyVW (Jun 28, 2013)

Great colour, great gloss and great job :thumb:


----------



## Luke M (Jul 1, 2013)

Very nice motor mate, and great work too.
Very jealous


----------



## President Swirl (Oct 23, 2011)

I'll have my car back now you $$$$$$$ %%%%%%%!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


----------



## Megs Lad (Nov 27, 2012)

wow car is beautiful mate very nice


----------



## Lourensz (Jul 15, 2013)

love that colour mate!


----------



## Twenny Benson (Mar 22, 2011)

Wout_RS said:


> Nice detail! The car looks fabulous in Laguna Seca Blue!
> 
> Congratz on the car! I think they are the best M3 to date!


I agree, best real world M3 yet and in the best colour . I know the E30 is the iconic M3 but for everday I know which one I would rather have, that said i do have soft spot for the E9X M3.



jayz_son said:


> fair enough  i'd love some big brakes though! yeah all the e46/e39 mirros do fail, i honestly couldnt believe the prices for new ones even second hand they go for £200! the glass cost me £120 approx, import tax was £26!
> put the word ///M on something and it quadruples in price haha
> 
> p.s. good work on the alloys too, they came up a treat. may do the same to my dads Volvo tomorrow


I think the stopping power from the OEM brakes is great, the problem is they start to fade very quickly when your on it! I guess there is no hiding all that mass the E46 carries and it shows in the brakes! I got my mirror for £100 all in  which i thought was alot for a small mirror but a small price to pay to get everything working :thumb:



GarveyVW said:


> Great colour, great gloss and great job :thumb:


Thank you :thumb:



Luke M said:


> Very nice motor mate, and great work too.
> Very jealous


Thanks :thumb:



President Swirl said:


> I'll have my car back now you $$$$$$$ %%%%%%%!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


No you cannot! 



Megs Lad said:


> wow car is beautiful mate very nice


Thanks pal :thumb:



Lourensz said:


> love that colour mate!


It is different isn't it, the other half calls it the smurf!

I managed to tidy up the Harmon Kardon speaker grills last night, since removing the tint from the rear screen they were obviously as clear as day on the parcel shelf and they looked tatty.



So off to do a some kitchen detailing with a bit of wet and dry and some crafty work with some paint, sponge and thinners and of course some Cquartz to finish and I think they look a lot better. New ones are £30ish from the stealers im told so saved me some beer tokens there 



Next port of call :-

http://www.mprovesolutions.com/


----------



## fotismt (Nov 13, 2012)

Best color ever on E46! Really love it! 

Great work also!


----------



## Twenny Benson (Mar 22, 2011)

fotismt said:


> Best color ever on E46! Really love it!
> 
> Great work also!


 Thanks mate. It is the best colour and the only colour I wanted.


----------



## Guru (Aug 28, 2013)

Superb results! Love those leather seats.

I may have missed it in your write-up, but did you follow up the CQ with a spray of reload within an hour as they prescribe?


----------



## Twenny Benson (Mar 22, 2011)

Guru said:


> Superb results! Love those leather seats.
> 
> I may have missed it in your write-up, but did you follow up the CQ with a spray of reload within an hour as they prescribe?


Leather is in suprisingly good nick considering its age, cracking seats too with everything adjustable and heated :thumb:

Your right, think I missed that point out! I did get two coats of reload an hour apart, this was after the CQ had cured for an afternoon in the sunshine. Thankfully the whether was kind to me that day . Also forgot to mention that I polished the Miltek exhaust tips and visible part of the backbox and forgot to take pictures :wall: Dirty again now


----------



## MEH4N (Mar 15, 2012)

OH MY :argie:

What a cracking car. Lovely colour that.


----------



## The Sheriff (Jul 15, 2008)

Lovely mate, and you know the best thing about it......you haven't lowered it!

I've just recently (2 months ago) bought a carbon black convertible, it's pretty standard and will stay that way (although I don't know what to do about the OEM wheels...)


----------



## Twenny Benson (Mar 22, 2011)

MEH4N said:


> OH MY :argie:
> 
> What a cracking car. Lovely colour that.


Cheers dude, im in love with it :argie:



The Sheriff said:


> Lovely mate, and you know the best thing about it......you haven't lowered it!
> 
> I've just recently (2 months ago) bought a carbon black convertible, it's pretty standard and will stay that way (although I don't know what to do about the OEM wheels...)


Well I intend to keep it as OEM as possible really, I've already removed a carbon fibre rear bumper panel a replaced it with the original one, thankfully the previous owner gladly let me have the orginal bits with the car. I'm contemplating removing the Miltek and fitting the OEM exhaust again which I have, I would already have put the chrome grills back in but the kidney grill tabs are all broken so I've left the carbon front & side grills in for now until I can find some geniune ones to replace them with.

As for lowering the car, its on OEM struts & springs and I like it, it would look better slammed but isn't going to happen! My E36 was on its **** and it was a nightmare day to day. Most people treat there M3's like track weapons where as I view mine as a GT cruiser and I drive mine daily. The only mods needed really are a better brake solution, I have already found the limits of the OEM brake set up and lets be honest there a bit crap! Don't get me wrong there great but they fade to easily 

I personally think OEM wheels look right, anything aftermarket looks tacky. I personally think the CSL's look the ******** even though its done to death, there is a reason everyone wants them, they look so right :thumb:

Look forward to seeing your detailed vert.


----------



## JayEmm (Aug 18, 2013)

I appreciate this is a thread revival but I recently put money down on an E46 M3 in LSB and while I wait for the car to be delivered have been looking at pictures of them everywhere.

I found this thread and lo and behold, this is the car I am buying! Twenty's care did a lot for the car as it now has 131k on the clock and still looks stunning!

I hope I can do her proud.


----------



## SBM (Jul 4, 2013)

JayEmm said:


> I appreciate this is a thread revival but I recently put money down on an E46 M3 in LSB and while I wait for the car to be delivered have been looking at pictures of them everywhere.
> 
> I found this thread and lo and behold, this is the car I am buying! Twenty's care did a lot for the car as it now has 131k on the clock and still looks stunning!
> 
> I hope I can do her proud.


Wow - Good luck to you buddy! I love LSB - such a stunning colour :argie:


----------

