imported_d00t
New member
Alright! This car is a 2002 M3. The M3 legacy has been going on now for over 20 years, and this was the first model of M3 based on the E46 chassis. This car, with it's screaming ITB'd I6 mated with the 6 speed transmission, and LSD equipped rear end makes it a blast to drive. With plenty of grunt below, all the way through the 8000rpm red line as the raspy I6 takes you through the gears.
This particular car was quite a nice example, of course with it's own issues. This particular Titanium Silver M3 convertible only had 40,000 miles on it. Under initial inspection, I figure it would be relatively easy to correct out. I constantly fought against lighting conditions, only being able to catch the true defects under sun light. The color masked every single defect in halogen, LED, and fluorescent lighting. So during my testing process, it was very tedious to pull the car in and out of the garage in order to see what was working. :banghead:
With that said, I picked up the car and got it to my house at around 4pm on Wednesday afternoon, and after having time management issues on the E55 (I had no deadline.. so I dragged my feet a lot), I decided to get right to work: I started with the wheels, of course.
Upon initial inspection:
These wheels were not HEAVILY dusted, but dusted none the less. Unfortunately for the more sought after 19" wheels, they were in need of a good refinishing: They were oxidized, and and heavily curbed. I would have taken care of the oxidation, had I had a good wheel polish. Raceglaze wheel polishes from the UK are now order though!
With only an hour of light, I was in a hurry to get this first part done.. so no "during" pictures. They were soaked with P21S wheel gel, and let sit for 5 minutes. The tires and wheel wells were soaked with P21S TAW.
Wheels after:
The second day was my first full day of the detail. I started bright and early at 9am with a balmy 31*F sunny morning. The paint was quite dirty, and I knew I would be spending a good amount of time degreasing and prepping for the correction work.
As you can see, there is also a lack of gloss in the paint due to the surface contaminants.
So the decontamination process began. I found it important to hook my CR Spotless up to my pressure washer during the initial washing due to the fact that I was in the sun, and I didn't want any spotting at all. Also, I feel de-ionized water is a good practice to always have while washing the car, no matter the circumstances.
Up first was the initial foaming. I wanted to be sure to get as much surface contaminants off as possible, because the less physical contact I am in with the paint, the less chance I have in further marring the paint. The most soiled areas were presoaked with P21S TAW, and then the entire car was pressure rinsed before the initial foaming:
You can see in this photo two things: There is beading on the paint, so wax/protection needs to be stripped. And the steam coming off the soft top.. Like I said, it was cold
:
Then I set off with my foam lance, 1500 psi pressure washer, CR Spotless, and a strong mix of 1:1 optimum power clean. It was then foamed on:
While the powerclean was dwelling, I felt it important to take a Swissvax Wheel Brush and agitate those heavily soiled areas:
After the OPC was finished dwelling, I pressure rinsed it off. I was still getting some beading, as well as some surface dirt I thought would be more easily lifted with a second foam bath. This time I opted to use Chemical Guys' Citrus Wash and Gloss diluted to a paint cleaner strength, and then foamed on:
After that was completely dwelled, it was rinsed. Then using the 2BM with grit guards, a Uber Sheepskin Mitt, and CWG, I washed the car thoroughly. Once that was complete, I rinsed the car down on more time. Then I had an epiphany and realized I forgot to do the engine bay: Usually you do not want to do the engine bay AFTER cleaning the car, because the "dirt" will/could leak on the clean surface. BUT, it needed to be done, so I sighed, and continued with the wash.
When I first popped the hood:
It was clearly dirty, and in need of a thorough clean. I'm assuming it's never been thoroughly detailed in there, and the dust/caked on dirt shows. So I went at it with a thorough dowsing of P21S TAW:
Once the P21S TAW was let dwell for a few minutes, I began agitating it with a dedicated Swissvax Wheel Brush.
Once the engine bay was done; I figured I'd best go around to all the other cracks and crevices I forgot.. such as the under the trunk lid, and the doors:
This particular car was quite a nice example, of course with it's own issues. This particular Titanium Silver M3 convertible only had 40,000 miles on it. Under initial inspection, I figure it would be relatively easy to correct out. I constantly fought against lighting conditions, only being able to catch the true defects under sun light. The color masked every single defect in halogen, LED, and fluorescent lighting. So during my testing process, it was very tedious to pull the car in and out of the garage in order to see what was working. :banghead:
With that said, I picked up the car and got it to my house at around 4pm on Wednesday afternoon, and after having time management issues on the E55 (I had no deadline.. so I dragged my feet a lot), I decided to get right to work: I started with the wheels, of course.
Upon initial inspection:
These wheels were not HEAVILY dusted, but dusted none the less. Unfortunately for the more sought after 19" wheels, they were in need of a good refinishing: They were oxidized, and and heavily curbed. I would have taken care of the oxidation, had I had a good wheel polish. Raceglaze wheel polishes from the UK are now order though!
With only an hour of light, I was in a hurry to get this first part done.. so no "during" pictures. They were soaked with P21S wheel gel, and let sit for 5 minutes. The tires and wheel wells were soaked with P21S TAW.
Wheels after:
The second day was my first full day of the detail. I started bright and early at 9am with a balmy 31*F sunny morning. The paint was quite dirty, and I knew I would be spending a good amount of time degreasing and prepping for the correction work.
As you can see, there is also a lack of gloss in the paint due to the surface contaminants.
So the decontamination process began. I found it important to hook my CR Spotless up to my pressure washer during the initial washing due to the fact that I was in the sun, and I didn't want any spotting at all. Also, I feel de-ionized water is a good practice to always have while washing the car, no matter the circumstances.
Up first was the initial foaming. I wanted to be sure to get as much surface contaminants off as possible, because the less physical contact I am in with the paint, the less chance I have in further marring the paint. The most soiled areas were presoaked with P21S TAW, and then the entire car was pressure rinsed before the initial foaming:
You can see in this photo two things: There is beading on the paint, so wax/protection needs to be stripped. And the steam coming off the soft top.. Like I said, it was cold
:
Then I set off with my foam lance, 1500 psi pressure washer, CR Spotless, and a strong mix of 1:1 optimum power clean. It was then foamed on:
While the powerclean was dwelling, I felt it important to take a Swissvax Wheel Brush and agitate those heavily soiled areas:
After the OPC was finished dwelling, I pressure rinsed it off. I was still getting some beading, as well as some surface dirt I thought would be more easily lifted with a second foam bath. This time I opted to use Chemical Guys' Citrus Wash and Gloss diluted to a paint cleaner strength, and then foamed on:
After that was completely dwelled, it was rinsed. Then using the 2BM with grit guards, a Uber Sheepskin Mitt, and CWG, I washed the car thoroughly. Once that was complete, I rinsed the car down on more time. Then I had an epiphany and realized I forgot to do the engine bay: Usually you do not want to do the engine bay AFTER cleaning the car, because the "dirt" will/could leak on the clean surface. BUT, it needed to be done, so I sighed, and continued with the wash.
When I first popped the hood:
It was clearly dirty, and in need of a thorough clean. I'm assuming it's never been thoroughly detailed in there, and the dust/caked on dirt shows. So I went at it with a thorough dowsing of P21S TAW:
Once the P21S TAW was let dwell for a few minutes, I began agitating it with a dedicated Swissvax Wheel Brush.
Once the engine bay was done; I figured I'd best go around to all the other cracks and crevices I forgot.. such as the under the trunk lid, and the doors:
:
.
