# Bonnet stripes on a Cooper



## nbray67 (Mar 22, 2012)

Hi all.

2 quick questions.

Just bought the wife a mint Pepper White Cooper with Black bonnet stripes.
1) I'll be claying the car tomorrow but am I ok to clay the stripes?!?!
They just look like they need a good polish in truth but I was going to clay them before polishing the whole car with AG SRP if it's ok to do so.

2) Pepper White, any preference for wax, DJ Diamond White or PB White Diamond glaze.

Cheers!


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## Goodylax (Apr 21, 2013)

I clayed the stripes on a Mini that i recently detailed. I found the stripes(white ones :doublesho) really tough to clean and wasn't sure what the  to use on them. Good luck

For the Finish, I would do both - good combo IMO. Poorboy's glaze then the Dodo. If you had to only do one, go Dodo DW :thumb:


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## Steampunk (Aug 11, 2011)

Yes, you can clay the vinyl bonnet stripes on a MINI with a fine grade clay, and you can even lightly polish them in order to remove any marring or discoloration. I have never tried using the PB's White Diamond glaze or SRP you have in your collection on MINI stripes, but in the past I have found Klasse AIO/Car-Lack68NSC/Werkstat Prime, Dodo-Juice SN Micro-Prime, and even Meguiar's #205 Ultra-Finish Polish to be all quite effective at restoring them.

The key thing to remember about working with vinyl decals like this is that they are _very_ soft, and if you are working by machine, also _very_ heat sensitive. Otherwise they can be cared for just like the surrounding paint, and benefit greatly from the protection of a good wax or sealant. I've been using GTechniq C2 V3 and CarPro Reload on ours, recently, but the Dodo-Juice Diamond White you have would also do the job admirably.

As for what wax to choose on Pepper White, the Dodo-Juice Diamond White you list is a great choice :thumb:! A hybrid wax would also work very well if you want a bit more durability and reflectivity, and I can highly recommend either Dodo-Juice Basics of Bling Protection Wax or Dodo-Juice Supernatural Hybrid should you wish to try something else in the future. The latter in particular brings a lovely gloss to white...


IMGP6905 by Mole Hill Motors, on Flickr​
Hopefully this helps, and if you have any more questions please do not hesitate to ask... 

Steampunk


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## nbray67 (Mar 22, 2012)

Cheers to the comments above.
Clayed the whole car incl the stripes with a Megs clay bar. Polished with AG SRP, sealed with AG EGP and finished with Megs Ultimate Wax. Trim treated with AG Trim.
Came up very nice for a 4 yr old car although I must say, with only 10.2k on the clock and 1 very careful owner who cherished it,the whole car is pretty mint in and out.


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## atbalfour (Aug 11, 2019)

Thread resurrection.. I have a 2016 Mini in this weekend with Vinyl stripes.

They need some work, would you attempt something like Black Hole on them and leave it at that, or can they be machined on a low speed with a finishing pad?

There's a car on the line so please only reply if you have experience in this area :thumb:


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## Steampunk (Aug 11, 2011)

atbalfour said:


> Thread resurrection.. I have a 2016 Mini in this weekend with Vinyl stripes.
> 
> They need some work, would you attempt something like Black Hole on them and leave it at that, or can they be machined on a low speed with a finishing pad?
> 
> There's a car on the line so please only reply if you have experience in this area :thumb:


'08 R56 MINI owner with stripes; I feel your pain.

Firstly, they'll never be perfect. Just embrace that now. They pick up swirls just like paint, but you can't correct them like paint. They can only be improved, and only for a time. At some stage, they'll need replacing. They're expensive, but not as expensive as most things on a BMW MINI. However, getting someone to do this with good attention to detail to get them properly aligned is really hard. Don't always trust the dealership garage, unless you've seen their work. Just a heads up, one owner to another.

Okay, here's how to improve them... Best solution is an AIO to just remove the yellowing, and clean them up a bit. The swirls and nicks are mostly there to stay. Do it by hand, unless you're really confident, and have a free-rotating DA. Carlack NSC works well for this. You could also try SRP, which fills better, but doesn't clean as well, and can leave some residue built up around the stripe edges unless you carefully mask these. Other paint cleaners like Lime Prime/SN MP, etc, can work, but you do have to worry about marring.

The stripes can be machine polished very lightly if you're equipped to do so. You need to mask just the edges of the stripes off, so that the tape overlaps maybe a mm or two over the edge of the stripes to help protect the edges (Which are very sensitive.), and then I'd just use a finishing polish (I'd suggest Meg's #205. Best results so far for me of various polish lines on vinyl stripes.) on a finishing or polishing pad, without pressure and fairly low speeds. You need to use a free rotating DA, short or long throw; don't use rotary or forced rotation. This way, you will be able to achieve maybe 50% correction of the swirling, safely, and achieve the best results. However, black stripes in particular will always look terribly after a time, and there's no way to safely get them looking as good as the rest of the paint. Don't try and abrasively polish them by hand; the material just doesn't respond like paint.

Hopefully this helps...

- Steampunk


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## nbray67 (Mar 22, 2012)

Oooooh, my thread from yonks ago!!

I did eventually replace these stripes BTW although I see yours have a white edge to them atbalfour.

Easy job in truth if you can source replacement stripes. I marked mine out before removal to help with the new ones being applied in the same place.


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## Christian6984 (Dec 20, 2007)

Mine was a F56 with white stripes and the smallest of black edges, did notice it took away part of the black stripe when correcting the paint work. Worth masking if your doing paint and go easy/gentle with the stripes to preserve them. If it was my choice I'd have preferred black roof and mirrors and could take or leave the stripes. Or even all red no stripes.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## atbalfour (Aug 11, 2019)

Thanks guys appreciate the replies.

Not sure how brave I am feeling - will spot test an area with SRP or AF Tripple.


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## NickA (Jun 15, 2008)

I've done a number of Mini's and polished the stripes on every single one without a problem. If they lose their gloss they can be brought back to life. Obviously, don't use a heavy cut pad or compound.










Oh and this is a Corsa that my mate had as a trade in. The left stripe has been buffed and the right one was how it arrived with me.


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## Blue Al (Sep 13, 2015)

Also get your own stripes cut, 

For my minis I go about 80mm over length as it allows additional material under the hood, and so no chance of pressure wash lifting the leading edges


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## Pembroke_Boy (Aug 24, 2017)

Blue Al said:


> Also get your own stripes cut,
> 
> For my minis I go about 80mm over length as it allows additional material under the hood, and so no chance of pressure wash lifting the leading edges


Interesting. Do you have any recommendations for somewhere to get the stripes? Is it a relatively easy DIY job (getting them flat and with no air bubbles is a challenge I bet?!).

Been promising the wife I'd replace hers for a few years now....


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## Bristle Hound (May 31, 2009)

We've had a few R56 MINI's with the bonnet stripes fitted

Best product for cleaning either the black or the white stripes was AF Tripple by hand

Worked every time for me :thumb:


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## Blue Al (Sep 13, 2015)

Pembroke_Boy said:


> Interesting. Do you have any recommendations for somewhere to get the stripes? Is it a relatively easy DIY job (getting them flat and with no air bubbles is a challenge I bet?!).
> 
> Been promising the wife I'd replace hers for a few years now....


I'm lucky as graphics have been part of my day job in the past
Clean/clay prior to application, hot air gun will assist removal if required

Mark up with wide masking tape, apply wet, fridge or fish tank magnets help as a send pair of hands, if the film keeps moving around

I cannot recommend a supply as mine recently have been via trade contacts, But Get some spares cut as single colour film is cheap :thumb:


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## atbalfour (Aug 11, 2019)

I did have some Tripple lying around and applied by hand, seemed to work fine lots of black came off (whether this was grime or some of the colour I have no idea) but I ploughed on regardless then was feeling brave and used the machine at low speed.

Came up a treat but not without some nervousness, a wrecked cloth and pad 

To be sealed with moonlight tomorrow


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## Pembroke_Boy (Aug 24, 2017)

Blue Al said:


> I'm lucky as graphics have been part of my day job in the past
> Clean/clay prior to application, hot air gun will assist removal if required
> 
> Mark up with wide masking tape, apply wet, fridge or fish tank magnets help as a send pair of hands, if the film keeps moving around
> ...


Ok, cheers buddy :thumb:


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## macmark (Jan 11, 2018)

Another resurrection for this thread.

I'm (finally) picking up my new car this week which is a BRG Mini Countryman with black bonnet stripes. The car has been sat at the dealership since July waiting for the harmon/kardon amplifier thanks to the semiconductor shortage. I've been told it still has all of the shipping protection on but have reluctantly agreed to let them 'valet' the car before I collect it. I was originally due to pick the car up in May and was planning on giving the car a few days TLC during the summer but delay after delay with the car has meant this wasn't possible. The weather here isn't looking good for the end of the week and beyond so I have no idea when I'll be able to give the car a proper decon, wash, polish and add some protection.

I was wondering about machine polishing the bonnet and stripes which lead me to this post which has been very helpful but I'm wondering if I do find time and a gap in the weather to give the car a polish should I do the stripes and bonnet separately and mask them off or will it be ok to do it as a whole? I'm wondering if the polisher could potentially lift the edges of the stripes?

Thanks


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