# E46 M3 Modified-Gleammachine.



## Gleammachine (Sep 8, 2007)

*Best BMW in show at Alexandra Palace.*
Had a bit of a run lately on carbon black M3's, this modified one was booked in to refine the finish after a recent full re-spray and prepare ready for a performance car show this weekend.
Upon inspection the paintwork was pretty reasonable with a fairly decent finish, some light swirls, rds visible and the gloss was slightly muted, unfortunately in areas there were some sanding prep marks under the clear which are going to be dealt with again at a later date.
All in all 24 working hours were spent bringing it up to an acceptable standard.

*Day 1.*

Upon arrival.





































First job to start was the fabric hood,










Vacuumed,










Scrubbed with a soft nail-type brush and G101,










Alloys, tyres & arches then cleaned with various brushes and AS smartwheels & G101 respectively,










Shuts, panel gaps, engine bay and trim cleaned using G101 and a soft detailing brush,




























Pressure rinsed of, followed by a warm citrus pre-wash applied to entire vehicle and rinsed, 1st application of warm Megs Hyperwash applied via the foam lance and left to dwell,










Rinsed and another another application of foam applied in a weaker solution, followed by washing with Megs shampoo+ using the TBM in the usual manner,
Rinsed and dried using Uber plush towels, tardis applied to tar areas, clayed using Megs mild and last touch,



















Re-washed, rinsed and dried,










At this point my good mate Bryan Drive 'n' shine turned up to lend a hand correcting the lion share of the defects and to give me a bit of a head start on the rest of the car, after a chat and a few cups of coffee we made a start, both started of with 106Fa on a megs pad but we soon realised this needed to be upped, so we decided upon Megs 83 which knocked back about 80%, after about 5 hrs and a good laugh, Bryan made his journey back to Surrey before the traffic built up.
As I had been keen to crack on I forgot to go round taking defect pics but managed this 50/50,










After Bryan's departure I went round with a Megs polishing pad & 100mm ccs pad with Fast cut+ to the remaining defects,










Packed away for the night and still plenty to do,










Day 2.

Bright and early, haven't had heating since Monday so it was probably warmer in the garage than indoors,

Continued polishing the difficult to reach areas with the 100mm pad, whilst I was under the rear valance the exhausts were polished using a mixture of britemax metal duo, Autosol and wire wool,










Lights polished before and after,



















Paintwork now refined using a 3M polishing pad and Menz po85rd,










With all the machining complete the alloys were clayed followed by polishing and sealing using Britemax metal, arches and engine bay dressed using AS Finish,










Vehicle was now pulled outside to get a better look,










[email protected] Hd cleanse was then applied, found this works really well on carbon black, all removed, 1st coat of Blackfire gel to the tyres and typically it started to rain,:wall:










Starting to take shape now, interior was given the once over with the vac, trim wiped down and leather fed with Zaino Z10,
Put back in the garage and a second application of tyre gel applied, alloys sealed once again with Zaino C-Seal,



















1st layer of SV Best of show applied and left to cure whilst the glass was cleaned throughout and the exterior trim dressed,










Wax removed,










Night shot before putting away for the evening,










Day 3.

Another early start and not a paricularly nice day weather wise, I was keen to grab the first break in the weather for some finished shots, so dusted down with the Z fluffy, and the 2nd layer of Bos applied and removed, rain stopped briefly so pulled outside and pics taken, then quickly put back in.
The fabric hood given a quick vac again followed by some G-techniq upholstery guard,



















A final wipedown with some Zaino Z8 spray sealant/gloss enhancer and all ready for the client to pick up on the trailer and go straight to the show,




























Results.

Sorry about the poor light,



































































































































































Trailer arrives and after many attempts getting the rear wheels clear of the sides (3-4 mm each side) it's finally on and covered, absolutely gutted about the weather.










After a brief guide to the client about wiping down etc.. when getting to the venue, it was covered over with light bodyshop sheeting, fingers crossed it doesn't take too much abuse from the roads.

Thanks for looking.:thumb:


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## Gandi (Dec 18, 2007)

Stunning looking car, great finished results to Rob, those alloys look great on the car to


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## IdealShine (Aug 11, 2008)

Great job mate  Love you write ups


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## Epoch (Jul 30, 2006)

Beautiful work Rob

Really like that, there's still a place for #83 in the detailers tool bag despinte all the new fangled stuff 

Must have been heart breaking to see it go under the cover with water spots on.

Still it's a great write up, pictures and post

Cheers Jon


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## bidderman1969 (Oct 20, 2006)

looks superb there fella, factory fresh even.

how old was it, and what was the limeage, out of curiousity?


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## Jim W (Feb 3, 2007)

Nice report there.

It would be good to see some pics of the car at the show if at all poss?!


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## s3 rav (Apr 30, 2008)

very nice ther mate.


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## Auto Detox (Dec 22, 2007)

Great to see this finally posted up mate, very nice work & quite like the mods to it aswell 

Quick Q, what do you think of the Gtech' fabric guard, do you rate it over 303 ?

Cheers
Baz


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## tdm (Feb 2, 2007)

very nice, the hard work put into that really shows in the finish !


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## drive 'n' shine (Apr 22, 2006)

Glad you got there in the end mate :thumb:


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## Clark @ PB (Mar 1, 2006)

Fantastic work mate. The car looks stunning in the afters :thumb:


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## Consultant (Sep 19, 2008)

superb job mate.


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## caledonia (Sep 13, 2008)

Yet another fantastic job there Rob.
Great reflection, finish and attention to detail.
Top class as always. :thumb:


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## Detail My Ride (Apr 19, 2006)

Superb work there Rob. :thumb:


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## Gleammachine (Sep 8, 2007)

bidderman1969 said:


> looks superb there fella, factory fresh even.
> 
> how old was it, and what was the limeage, out of curiousity?


Thanks mate, I've no idea how old, not sure what limeage is either?? not a lot of use am I.:lol:



Auto Detox said:


> Great to see this finally posted up mate, very nice work & quite like the mods to it aswell
> 
> Quick Q, what do you think of the Gtech' fabric guard, do you rate it over 303 ?
> Cheers
> Baz


Cheers Baz, not used the 303 but can say the GT is very good, supposedly meant to give very long levels of protection, not talking a few months either.
Hard to say without having seen a car thats been treated come back in for maintenance yet.



drive 'n' shine said:


> Glad you got there in the end mate :thumb:


Thanks again for the help mate, as always much appreciated.:thumb:


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## hotwaxxx (Jul 12, 2007)

The carbon black is probably one of the best paintjobs out there at the moment on a production car. I carried out a maintenance deal on a M3 in carbon black and it came up really nice. I opted for HD-Cleanse followed by Z Concours and it looked brilliant.

Great reflections and great detail all round - good job, Rob.
:thumb:


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## Sveneng (Apr 20, 2008)

Beautiful! An absolutely fantastic job!


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## pav-g (Jan 25, 2007)

Fantastic report and great picture story - awesome car also. By the way anyone know the difference between carbon black and saphire black (my X5's saphire black)


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## Bigpikle (May 21, 2007)

that deep black gloss in the final shots is superb 

very impressive final finish - hope it looked as good by the time it got to the show!


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## Deanvtec (Mar 3, 2008)

Brilliant results Rob, That looks so slick. Bet you tempted to go to the show and give it a Wash and wipe down yourself before its displayed aren't you. What a nice advert that will be for your work aswell.:thumb:


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## stuart2588 (Oct 15, 2008)

absolutely amazing work mate!


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## ahaydock (Jan 4, 2007)

Very nice there Rob - like the night shot :thumb:


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## Gleammachine (Sep 8, 2007)

Deanvtec said:


> Brilliant results Rob, That looks so slick. Bet you tempted to go to the show and give it a Wash and wipe down yourself before its displayed aren't you. What a nice advert that will be for your work aswell.:thumb:


Cheers Dean, gave the owner some plush towels, QD and some info, when I spoke with him he'd got there OK and had wiped it down and said it was still looking good, so fingers crossed.:thumb:


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## drive 'n' shine (Apr 22, 2006)

pav-g said:


> Fantastic report and great picture story - awesome car also. By the way anyone know the difference between carbon black and saphire black (my X5's saphire black)


Carbon is an Individual colour, has a blue/purple flip in it, Sapphire is the standard metallic option - not to mention Carbon is normally uber hard


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## Epoch (Jul 30, 2006)

drive 'n' shine said:


> Carbon is an Individual colour, has a blue/purple flip in it, Sapphire is the standard metallic option - not to mention Carbon is normally uber hard


Geek mode on

Sapphire has the blue/purple/silver flake Brian

Carbon is the subtle silver flake (but yes the Uber hard one)

Carbon was the black option on the M3 or individual option on any others.

Sorry not picking just love both colours


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## drive 'n' shine (Apr 22, 2006)

Epoch said:


> Geek mode on
> 
> Sapphire has the blue/purple/silver flake Brian
> 
> ...


Carbon also has a flip in it as well though which is why in certain lights it looks blue


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## ads2k (Jul 12, 2006)

Cracking job there Rob :thumb:

Like the finish on the wheels, are they not lacquered at all, is that why you used the Britemax metal polish rather than a normal AIO for the wheels before finishing with Z-CS.

The gloss looks amazing, bet it looked even better in the flesh


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## Gleammachine (Sep 8, 2007)

ads2k said:


> Cracking job there Rob :thumb:
> 
> Like the finish on the wheels, are they not lacquered at all, is that why you used the Britemax metal polish rather than a normal AIO for the wheels before finishing with Z-CS.
> 
> The gloss looks amazing, bet it looked even better in the flesh


Would imagine they are laquered, got me thinking now?  the britemax metal polish/sealant is the mild one out of the 2 polishes and stops the blueing effect on chrome.


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## TeZ (Oct 28, 2007)

Great work pal, the CSL parts make those cars so much more special.


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## Petrol-head (May 26, 2008)

Great finish, hope it travels well :thumb:


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## Perfection Detailing (Nov 3, 2007)

Excellent work Rob it looks stunning mate:thumb:


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## kenmac (Feb 19, 2008)

It just amazes me the work you guys can do,brilliant job


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## rfmatt (Aug 9, 2008)

Great finish, looks awesome, superb work as always!


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## hus55 (Apr 23, 2008)

awesome,awesome,awesome!!


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## vauxhall (Aug 26, 2008)

Awesome job mate, looks stunning as usual:thumb::thumb:


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## Mark M (Nov 29, 2006)

Superb as ever Rob


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## colarado red (Jun 5, 2008)

top detail awesome m3:argie::argie::thumb::thumb::thumb:


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## Envy Car Care (Aug 17, 2006)

That looks really good Rob, didnt like it in the before pics but after.....I'm in love!
Nice to work with Bryan, good to have a chat and a bit of a laugh together and jod done quicker


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## wrx man (Apr 18, 2008)

Great work there mate :thumb:


Stunning car too


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## nala (Oct 19, 2008)

Mmmm, very nice.


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## Affection to Detail (Jul 6, 2006)

Awesome, very nice indeed!


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## Phil1984 (Oct 15, 2008)

What a Beautiful Car!

Thats on my wish list now.....absolute minter!

Good work mate, alot of hard graft and effort went on there! Results prove to have paid off.....!!!

:thumb:


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## paddy328 (Mar 4, 2007)

Looks mint mate. I wonder if the guy will have the same streaking problems with the gtechnic fabric stuff that damon did.


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## Jesse74 (Jul 19, 2008)

Cracking job as always, Rob! How is the nano fabric stuff working for you? I may have to get some of that...


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## Tone Loc (Aug 22, 2007)

Excellent results on a very nice M3 (not sure about the alloys tho).


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## Big Ells (May 12, 2007)

Is that Aarons new BMW? Is so looks tops and a great job fella!


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## Curtiz (Aug 11, 2006)

That is one stunning looking M3. Very serious looking and them brakes look beefy 

Nice work, love the 'wax removed' shot


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## N8KOW (Aug 24, 2007)

Absolutley FLAWLESS Robert! Paintwork looks SOOOO GLOSSY! Love it!


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## Gleammachine (Sep 8, 2007)

paddy328 said:


> Looks mint mate. I wonder if the guy will have the same streaking problems with the gtechnic fabric stuff that damon did.





Clever Nickname said:


> Cracking job as always, Rob! How is the nano fabric stuff working for you? I may have to get some of that...


Thanks guys, I find the nano fabric a lot easier to apply as it's not so sticky like similar products, I've never had anyone say to me it had streaked either, it's difficult to assess how it performs as I have yet to see one of the cars back yet for maintenance, but if the claims are correct then 12 months should be no issue.


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## Gleammachine (Sep 8, 2007)

Just had the owner of the M3 contact me to let me know it won *best BMW in the show* at Alexandra palace, so all the hardwork paid of, I'm well chuffed and full credit to the client on his cracking looking M3. 

Will post up some pics when he sends them over.:thumb:


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## paddy328 (Mar 4, 2007)

Nice one.


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## flyfs6 (Nov 13, 2006)

Rob excellent work, saw the car in flesh and your hard work really shows.

The only needs to perfect their looking after it technique though because there appeared to be some marring from dry wiping the car at the show etc.


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## Deanvtec (Mar 3, 2008)

Gleammachine said:


> Just had the owner of the M3 contact me to let me know it won *best BMW in the show* at Alexandra palace, so all the hardwork paid of, I'm well chuffed and full credit to the client on his cracking looking M3.
> 
> Will post up some pics when he sends them over.:thumb:


Pat yourself on the back Rob, thats brilliant news, The owner has done a great job by the looks of it on that M3 but I bet its the final Gleammachine touch that really made that stand out from all the others. Nice one all that hard work definately paid off.:thumb:


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## drive 'n' shine (Apr 22, 2006)

Gleammachine said:


> Just had the owner of the M3 contact me to let me know it won *best BMW in the show* at Alexandra palace, so all the hardwork paid of, I'm well chuffed and full credit to the client on his cracking looking M3.
> 
> Will post up some pics when he sends them over.:thumb:


Just seen the results over on ET, well done mate chuffed for you :thumb: Bet you wished you had gone now!


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## WHIZZER (Oct 25, 2005)

Rob Well done mate - Show winning detailer


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## Dream Machines (Mar 13, 2006)

interesting to see someone use a Meg's yellow pad with 85RD
Was that a rotary or an orbital that you were using?

RPM's or OPM speeds you applied it at?
thanks Mr Gleam Machine

Matt - Dream Machines


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## Gleammachine (Sep 8, 2007)

Dream Machines said:


> interesting to see someone use a Meg's yellow pad with 85RD
> Was that a rotary or an orbital that you were using?
> 
> RPM's or OPM speeds you applied it at?
> ...


Sorry Matt, just edited for accuracy "3m polishing pad" I find these really soft and more of a finishing pad.
All machining done with the Metabo rotary, spread at 900rpm, worked up to 1800rpm, then brought down to 1200rpm for final passes.


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## wd40 (Jun 20, 2007)

Great work mate :thumb::thumb:
Nice to see another M3 vert getting the treatment


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## Gleammachine (Sep 8, 2007)

Some pics the owner took,

Best BMW in show - won by Me (thanks Rob - Gleammachine for the hard work)

Here are some pics from the show :

E9* Alpina Diesel










E39 M5










E39 530i










E46 330i










E46 M3 on 20" iForged



















and the winning "Best BMW in show"




























Some others of the stand


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## djcromie (Mar 22, 2007)

great work mate, lovely car, those rims are brilliant


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## Dream Machines (Mar 13, 2006)

thank you gleamy

Interesting - you have a different technique to me
Since 85RD is a final polish, I only work it to 1300 and then back down

What is the benefit of running it at 1800 instead of a 1500 or less?
Is that 3M perfect it black pad or or some new one


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## Gleammachine (Sep 8, 2007)

Dream Machines said:


> thank you gleamy
> 
> Interesting - you have a different technique to me
> Since 85RD is a final polish, I only work it to 1300 and then back down
> ...


It would be boring if we were all the same.

In the warmer months I probably wouldn't go as high on the rpm's, but as it was only about 5-6 degrees in the garage I wanted to get the polish breaking down quicker and a uniformed spreadability through the heat (if that makes sense) once this has happened then it's dropped down to 1300rpm and burnished.

They class it as a 3m polishing pad/yellow, I think it's quite a new line of pads and colour coded to the polishes, ie extra fine compound-yellow top.
Personally would class it more as a finishing pad.:thumb:


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## MAXI-MILAN (Oct 26, 2008)

Great work ,nice reflection:thumb:


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## Exclusive Car Care (Jan 14, 2007)

cracking job Rob, very nice finish:thumb::thumb:


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