A Black BMW X5 in receipt of 'The Zaino Treatment'

S

stilez

New member
Good Evening,



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Yesterday, I was blessed with this beauty, a 2006 BMW X5 3.0i. The vehicle had just over 10,000 clicks on the clock and the New England winter proved it's wrath upon the jet black finish coupled with the ebony interior. I had the pleasure of driving this fine machine to my place last night and all I can say is "WOW". BMW hit this SUV (SAV) on the head. It's a car in every way but how it looks. It cornered, braked, accelerated, and handled just like a 3 series. The AWD and lofty ride height just added to the aura.



Onto the interior; I had mentioned it suffered a Massachussetts winter. Well, the overall condition was summed up by "medium soil content". Nothing was that dirty, nor clean. Unfortunately I battled with a bunch of dog hair from the rear seats on back, and with BMW's velcro carpeting, it took about 25 minutes just to vacuum. I was able to get all of the stains and defects out minus a small paint transfer on the driver's inner door near the lower part (white shoes?). My finals for the interior were:



-Vacuum heavily

-Steam clean entire interior via KleenJet Pro Plus 200S (http://69.94.66.95/comfiles/pages/19.shtml)

-CG VRT cut 2.5:1 on mats

-Zaino Z10 on entire interior x 2 (1 at night, 1 in morn)

-Zaino Z14 Plastic Polish on wood grain and clear plastic

-Zaino Z8 on glass

-Zaino Z6 in jams





Before

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After

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Before

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After

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The exterior followed the same "medium soil content" level. There was a lot of bonded contaminants on the lower parts of the doors, a decent amount of swirling on the horizontals, light scratches on the verticals, and generally just dirty. I tried a few different polish combos before coming to my final consensus. BMW paint is one of those that *I* find a bit finicky in that it's hard to remove swirls, but also hard to finish without micro-marring. Adding that the X5 has a curve or edge everywhere led to a long process, but likewise results. My finals for the exterior were:



-Zaino Z7 Wash

-Zaino Z18 Clay with Z7 lube

-TOL Tire Cleaner cut 50/50 on tires/wells

-Meguiar's Wheel Brightener cut 3:1 on wheels



-Hi-Temp Heavy Cut via rotary and LC Polishing Pad @ 1500 rpm

-Menzerna PO85RD via rotary and LC Finishing Pad @ 1500 rpm

-Zaino Z14 Plastic Polish on all lighting

-Zaino Z6 Wipedown



-Zaino Z5 on paint and wheels

-Zaino Z8 on everything



-Meguiar's All Season Dressing on tires/trim

-CG VRT cut 2.5:1 in wells

-CD-2 Engine Detailer in grilles



Before

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After

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Before

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After

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Turned out really well, Sean. I hear ya on the carpet, it can be a real PITA to vacuum. At least you had one with a black interior, the light tan can be a real bear because it just looks dirty real quick. Exterior looks flawless as usual. :)
 
Awesome work Sean. :bow I see the shirt matches your detail. You are so fashion/detail coordinated :bigups
 
Excellent work as usually Sean. :bow



You actually used Zaino on a black vehicle and it looks wet, apparently deep and of course reflective??? ;)



Shows what an artist can do. :xyxthumbs
 
z5 to z8 ?



why not some z2 pro then z8 ?



were the swirls that bad to warrant Mez PG at 1500 as from that hood shot, opt 50/50 look like it would've sufficed ?



where can I get me a shirt like that in toronto canada .. heh heh
 
Awesome work Sean!!



I'll be trying out Zaino for the first time on Monday with two details per customer's request. I'm very interested given all the attention Zaino products get. :D
 
Thanks for the kind words everyone.





Scott: The Meguiar's rubber hair brush helped a bit.



Bioman: Sarcasm?



Corey: It's a pretty trick little dressing. A little goes a long way and I'm getting more than a week durability on it for tires/trim without browning.



Pat: :lol Thanks!



blk: Who knew?!



tumbler: I prefer Z5 on dark colors as I find its a bit deeper looking. The Z8 was just for touch-ups, but I did do the whole vehicle before taking pictures.



I tried Optimum with no luck :(. Like I said, BMW paint is finicky.



Picus:



"Hi Sean,







You’re welcome. You did an amazing job. My sister and parents were amazed at the transformation. The Autopia pictures/forum are really neat.







Thanks again for everything."





AJ: Please keep us posted.
 
Hey nice detail as usual...! I always look forward to your posts.



How do u use the steam cleaner in the interior? I have one but never learned how to use it properly (usually use it in the interior of the house to sanitize the washroom, etc.



Thanks.
 
99ITR: I have an attachment thats shaped like a triangle. You secure an MF towel in there and just go over the surface. The steam shoots through the MF and the towel holds the dirt in.
 
gmblack: I like Z5 better on all darks just because it looks a bit deeper. If you prefer more gloss, Z2 Pro is your product.





Thanks.
 
My good !!

Maybe one day I'll check Zaino in Spain, or maybe I'll find a USA friend who send me Zaino products...

Regards !!
 
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