# E36 M3 detail



## HeavenlyDetail (Sep 22, 2006)

A work associate asked me if i would have a look at his M3 for him...The car hasnt really moved for ages and it is basically just sitting on the drive and needed a little tlc.....

The car when Ken came round










Now upon my first inspection he wasnt joking....



















MOULD!!!



















ITSY WITSY!!!










Now i very rarely get the citrus degreaser out for a quick spray round but i felt this bmw deserved it....










The wheels were fairly clean outside but bad inside



















So i used megs wheel brightener on them inside










and swissvax and drumsticks inside and out



















Im getting very ocd about wheel weights now...










Then using a mixture of 1cm super snow foam and 1 cm z**** i snowed the car




























The car was left for about 10 minutes today due to the condition and then sprayed off and then washed using two bucket method.










Next using z**** autowash as a claylube i started to clay the car with a sonus green.










but realised instantly after just one panel the sonus was not going to withstand the bodywork contamination...










so i changed to 3m










and after one section of the bonnet again the bar was bad










I eventually clayed the car twice and must have turned the clay bar twenty times during the course of the claying.....

Using Z**** sponge i washed the whole car again..










The car was then washed off










Using 25 litres of zero ppm filtered water the car was rinsed off....(need a leaf blower i hear you cry!!)



















and dryed using aquatouch drying towel...










Now that the car was nicely prepared for machine polishing i realised how bad the contamination was.....There was a splatter right across the bonnet which had caused clearcoat failure and crazing across the width at an even angle....










Ken said he knew about it but i explained this was no bird dropping etc this was an accident or something whereby something had splashed across the car and left...What i have no idea as its not deep enough to have been acidic or brake fluid etc???




























This was actually a bit of a test for me because i had no idea how deep these clearcoat fractures were so decided to err on the side of caution and just said i would do the best i could...He said that anything was better than it was....The car had bad swirling aswell but being 13 years old you,d expect that...










So today using a Makita i prepped up and did a test panel ....Now i have always found Bmw quite tough to work on but this was rock hard to me...

I found the best combo for me was menz ip with sonus fx1 pad for the bonnet and the rest i used fx2 and fx2 with final finish on for the bumpers etc...




























The bonnet after three quarters were done.....










The car when i had finished correcting










I decided to go round again with 3m pad and final finish just because i had time although i think the finish was already lsp ready...










I enjoyed the Makita and have sold the Festool now but jeezz is it heavy.....










The car was then hd cleansed and wiped off










before z**** z3 was used.










I applied using pad not hand today










and the car was buffed off once it had bonded......

I think the result from the wax was pleasing and easy to work with and great on black...Its the first time ive actually tried z3 on a bmw and it looked fantastic....

THE RESULTS


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## dominic84 (Jan 27, 2007)

I got excited when I saw the thread title, E36 M3's are my favourite - superb job


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## Skodaw (Mar 19, 2006)

Wow that was some kind of state Marc - looks fab after though :thumb:


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## Detail My Ride (Apr 19, 2006)

Superb Work Mate, Looks Superb.

Never heard of Z y m o l Z3?


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## mattbeef (Feb 7, 2007)

top work as always mate


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## tdekany (Jul 22, 2006)

Very nice!


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## beardboy (Feb 12, 2006)

Great work as usual there Mark.

Always like the detail you pay to wheels :thumb:


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## Mr Singh (Apr 4, 2006)

Ewwww on the mould! 

Fantastic turnaround


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## HeavenlyDetail (Sep 22, 2006)

Hooray....

Like who wants to be a millionaire......

and gaz,s finger wasnt first:lol: 

I BET YOUR GUTTED!!!!!!:wall:


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## dirk (Jun 2, 2007)

fantastic mate as usual ,awesome


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## kk1966 (Aug 8, 2007)

13yearoldetailer said:


> Superb Work Mate, Looks Superb.
> 
> Never heard of Z y m o l Z3?


Me neither, more info please?????

PS Great result, looks stunning


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## Epoch (Jul 30, 2006)

Oh dear them spots aint comming out!!

How was the Makita (other than weight!) Marc, are you liking the swift progress of the rotary?

Nice work BTW


Z Z3 was specifically designed to work with the Z3's paint type and process, like their Jag, japon and ital type ranges i think they also did a Mini one


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## wfenix (May 13, 2007)

nice work fella, how are you finding the makita over the festool duck to water or whole new learning curve?, nice work on the bm mate.


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## dodger (May 20, 2006)

stunning work Marc


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## HeavenlyDetail (Sep 22, 2006)

Epoch said:


> Oh dear them spots aint comming out!!
> 
> How was the Makita (other than weight!) Marc, are you liking the swift progress of the rotary?
> 
> ...


Yes correct but i think it suited this car nicely....

I have obvioulsy been playing with the rotary quite a bit with Miracle and he has given me alot of his time to show me the ropes with it so its been ok but a leap from the festool which in comparison seems so easy to use compared...I never got on with the rotex of the Festool and felt i was holding back staying with the pc / Festool and at least thought if the rotary didnt suit me i could always drop back but it is fine... It is a whole new learning curve though with pads and polishes to me being more aggressive and i feel it needs respect whereas i could let rip with the Festool and not worry....All in all aprt from the weight which did make me ache by 5pm i loved it and now it is in my armoury.....I just have a whole new mountain of problems waiting though i expect...


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## Epoch (Jul 30, 2006)

vxrmarc said:


> Yes correct but i think it suited this car nicely....


Sorry i was only informing those who questioned not critising it's use on this detail Marc

Sharing my love of Z if you like


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## Deanoecosse (Mar 15, 2007)

Marc, I'm speechless........I think that's the first detail you've posted where Gaz hasn't got in with the first response!
By the way, you must be spending an absolute fortune on filtered water. If you don't mind me asking, what does a 25l rinse work out at price wise?


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## HeavenlyDetail (Sep 22, 2006)

Deanoecosse said:


> Marc, I'm speechless........I think that's the first detail you've posted where Gaz hasn't got in with the first response!
> By the way, you must be spending an absolute fortune on filtered water. If you don't mind me asking, what does a 25l rinse work out at price wise?


Jon i think i typed it wrongly....i didnt think that for one minute...

The filtered water works out at erm.......FREE because i pay standard water bill...but then the waste gets used in the garden and butted anyway..


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## famoussas (Jul 29, 2007)

Great turn around.


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## 182_Blue (Oct 25, 2005)

looks brilliant that


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## mattchubb1 (Jun 29, 2007)

good turn around! was thinking it was going to be a coupe (like mine) dont see many 4 dr M3's


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## RJones (Sep 11, 2007)

Wow, amazing transformation!!!


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## Thomas-182 (Mar 5, 2006)

Wow, excellent job there!!! You're putting up amazing details Marc.

I really enjoy reading and viewing them, thanks :thumb:


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## Mark J (May 10, 2007)

another crackin' turnaround, Marc! :thumb:


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## bud man (Mar 30, 2007)

stunning finish there again marc :thumb:


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## jedi-knight83 (Aug 11, 2006)

nice work.

i checked your pics though.

foam applied at 8:36 and removed at 8:42. Didnt think the foam would last that thick for 10 mins.

I use a megs hyperwash foam mix and its about as thick and foamy as i have ever seen but even in damp conditions it runs off the car in a few mins. I normally spray a second layer just before rinsing off.


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## Phil H (May 14, 2006)

excellent work as usual! the makits is the best! as i'm sure Paul has told you lol tbh its quite easy to get to grips with. agree somtimes its a strain when doing roofs lol


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## John-R- (Feb 4, 2007)

Awesome turnaround :thumb: probably added a nice hike to any selling price 

Bin the CHAV lights and it's be a nice example of a 4dr M3

John


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## Mark M (Nov 29, 2006)

Nice work as usual Marc, and I bet you are glad of the Makita for that job!



jedi-knight83 said:


> foam applied at 8:36 and removed at 8:42. Didnt think the foam would last that thick for 10 mins.
> 
> I use a megs hyperwash foam mix and its about as thick and foamy as i have ever seen but even in damp conditions it runs off the car in a few mins. I normally spray a second layer just before rinsing off.


I also use Hyperwash, I find that a heavily contaminated car holds the foam on for a lot longer, but on a reasonable condition car, not nearly as long.

I use one "scoosh" of Hyperwash in my 1ltr bottle on my Ab Lance and fill 3/4 with water.

I went back to 1cm of SSF with the same water on a car the other day and the foam was unreal.


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## uberbmw (Jan 31, 2006)

Top detail as usual chap!


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## Dave KG (Feb 23, 2006)

Good looking correction work with the rotary, detailed write up as always. :thumb:


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## Nica (Jul 4, 2007)

As usual, a very nice detail and a nice write up. With regards to the clear coat failure got any pictures as to the finished results? 

Thank you for sharing.


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## Maxym (Apr 27, 2007)

When I saw the first pics I thought just how tired and uninteresting those E36s are - even M3s. But you transformed this one into a very attractive motor.

Top work! :thumb:


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## GlynRS2 (Jan 21, 2006)

A great detail with superb correction work and a blinding finish :thumb:


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## Breezy (Jun 24, 2006)

awesome E36 M3's rule


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## Ronnie (Nov 15, 2006)

What a minger.. That definatly was a test well done and excellent finish as usual!!!


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## 190Evoluzione (Jun 27, 2007)

Top work dude.
Icing on t'cake would be new OE rear clusters.
Headlamp protectors can stay though, they're autobahn-cool.


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## N47HAN (Aug 7, 2006)

Looks like an excellent finish, funny how looking at that makes me wish my Audi was black! Shame its filthy by the next day!

Just an excuse 2 wash it more!

Lovely gloss finish, will have to invest in some MENZ's!


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## ianFRST (Sep 19, 2006)

where on the scale of aggressiveness is that 3m clay? seen yo uuse it before but forgot to ask then

i cant get on with sonus green, so normally use sonus grey most of the time


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## Kazuya Mishima (Aug 30, 2007)

Wow. Amazing job again marc. I would have run for the hills if I'd been presented with that paintwork to sort... well done.


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## John-R- (Feb 4, 2007)

190Evoluzione said:


> Icing on t'cake would be new OE rear clusters.
> Headlamp protectors can stay though, they're autobahn-cool.


My thoughts exactly :thumb: the Maxy P rear lights kill that car 

John


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## N8KOW (Aug 24, 2007)

You really can work magic marc! I'm your biggest fan!!


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## scooby73 (Mar 20, 2007)

Top job on a nice car!


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## richjohnhughes (Sep 24, 2007)

great turn a round.......but......

........not sure that is an M3? lookalike? side skirts dont look right for some reason.


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## bullit (May 11, 2007)

edit. wrong thread lol


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## rockape (Feb 18, 2007)

great work as always:thumb:


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## Fat Audi 80 (Nov 8, 2006)

Great great turnaround, but to be expected!


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## Trist (Jun 23, 2006)

Fantastic turnaround. Well glossy :thumb:


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## wilko (Apr 24, 2006)

Kerchhiiinnggg!! VERY VERY good job there.

Heck of lot of correction work and as usual, done to perfection, top man :thumb:


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## vpricey (May 8, 2006)

Nicely done Marc!! Looks superb now!!


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