Exterior Detail: Carbon Black BMW X5

[alpha]

Let me first preface this writeup with the fact that I am not a pro; I am just a detailing enthusiast that likes to keep his personal vehicles clean.

I purchased this 2015 X5 a few months ago, and just had the opportunity to give the exterior a proper detail earlier this month. I took some pics during the process, but I could have taken more. I was trying to get it done since it was quite hot (ambient temperature of mid 90s to low 100s Fahrenheit) and I do not have a temperature controlled garage.

A summary of the products used:

Car Wash
Meguiar’s Rinse Free Express Wash (D114) diluted 128:1

Paint Decontamination
CarPro Iron-X
Nanoskin Fine Grade Clay Towel
Meguiar’s Clay Bar
Meguiar’s D114 diluted 256:1 as clay lube

Compounds/Polishes/Paint Cleansers
Wolfgang Total Swirl Remover 3.0 (TSR)
Wolfgang Finishing Glaze 3.0 (FG)
BLACKFIRE Gloss Enhancing Polish (GEP)

Polishers and Pads
Flex 3401 with 6.5” LC Hybrid Pads and 5” LC Flat Pads
Porter Cable 7424XP with 4” LC CCS Pads

Panel Wipe
15% IPA with 0.5oz of D114 added

Sealant(s)
Menzerna Powerlock (PL)
BLACKFIRE Wet Diamond All Finish Paint Protection (BFWD)

Wax
BLACKFIRE BlackICE

Wheel Brushes
Wheel Woolies
Swissvax Wheel Brush

Tire Shine
BLACKFIRE Total Eclipse Tire Gel

Rubber Protectant
Wolfgang Vinyl and Rubber Protectant

All Purpose Cleaner
Meguiar’s D103 diluted 10:1

Let’s start with the before pics:

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And some holograms :( :

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I first gave the car a rinseless wash using Meg’s D114 diluted at 128:1. After I washed the car, I drove over to the local coin-op to use Iron-X. I don’t have any pics since I forgot to bring my camera with me, but I didn’t find this step to be particularly exciting given the dark color of the vehicle.

Next up: the claying step. I used the following: a Nanoskin Fine Grade clay towel for the glass and paint, a Megs clay bar for the shadowline trim, and Megs D114 diluted 256:1 as clay lube.

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After the decon stage, I inspected the car in the sun and made note of any paint imperfections. Luckily, and surprisingly, the only issues I saw were holograms on the driver side front fender and the hood. I brought the car back inside the garage and taped it up.

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Now for the 50/50 pictures of the hologram correction:

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The winning combo ended up being:

a couple section passes using TSR on a LC hybrid orange pad with the Flex 3401 at speed 4.5
a couple section passes using FG on a LC hybrid white pad with the Flex 3401 at speed 4

Note: The following pics are after TSR and before FG.

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After doing the whole fender:

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An IPA wipedown was performed after using TSR to check my work, and again after FG.

The same combo was used to correct the holograms on the hood. Unfortunately, I do not have any pics of the hood. I proceeded to do the rest of the car with FG using LC hybrid white pads and the Flex 3401 at speed 4.5 as a one-step. For the tighter areas, I used the Flex 3401 with 5” LC flat pads or the PC with 4” LC CCS white pads with the FG. I then followed this with an IPA wipedown.

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The next step is one that is debated, and probably a waste of time, but I chose to do it anyway. I applied GEP. I chose to do this to make sure all the polishing oils were removed (for anything that I missed with the IPA wipe), and to promote LSP adhesion since I was planning to use BFWD on the paint. After this, I removed all the tape.

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And the LSP stage:
I applied Menzerna Powerlock to the glass. I also applied BFWD to the paint and the shadowline trim. After letting the BFWD cure, I applied a second layer to ensure even coverage. After letting that layer cure for a few hours, I applied BlackICE.

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While the BFWD was curing, I cleaned the wheels and wheel wells. Then, I clayed and sealed the wheels with Powerlock. I also cleaned up the engine bay with Megs D103 diluted 10:1, since it was just a little dusty and wasn’t really that dirty.

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After all that was done, I applied tire shine and trim protection.

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Now for the after pics:

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Thanks for looking!

[Hokie335i]

Looks incredible. I love Carbon Black. I detailed a X3 28d in Carbon Black last year and it's a really cool color.

[Busy mind]

Very clean. Really like how the color changes in and out of the sun.

[davey g-force]

Nice work!

[Mike@DedicatedPerfection]

Wow, jaw dropping results. Your M-Sport Carbon black X5 looks incredible! That is one beautiful Ultimate Driving Machine. I'm in love.

What are your thoughts on your paint LSP combo?

[haris300]

Awesome work! Those after shots speak for themselves.

[jwhy]

Hi, just a quick question about the diluted products: Does diluting the solution 128:1 or 256:1 make any difference? If i recall from other posts about dilution ratios thats like a miniscule %. Please correct me if I'm wrong!

And great post!

[pheerix]

Very nice! Fellow San Diegan?

[Bryan@AzDPC.com]

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Very nice! :xyxthumbs:

I do wish you wouldn't have posted the above picture, though. :)

Four years ago I painted my 69 Camaro with Valencia Orange; a BASF color BMW had just offered on 2011 M series cars. It's an awesome color but is also a 3-stage paint. Very difficult and expensive to use and achieve a top quality custom paint job. Mine ended up nice but with micro "cottage cheese". So, I'm going to repaint the Camaro in a couple of weeks. I thought I'd go with a quality 2-stage like Prowler Orange. That is until you posted the picture. :laughing:

I'm betting the Carbon black is a 3-stage. Gonna go check now.

Very nice!

[emmjay]

Man that is beautiful! :dblthumb2:

[Sicoupe]

WOW! Outstanding work my friend:)

[alpha]

Thank you all for the kind words! I am honored to receive such glowing compliments from the folks here at AG! :thankyousign:


Looks incredible. I love Carbon Black. I detailed a X3 28d in Carbon Black last year and it's a really cool color. Thanks! I actually wasn't looking to purchase this color until I saw it in person. I instantly fell in love with it. Now I feel an obligation to properly maintain it for its personality to truly shine.


Very clean. Really like how the color changes in and out of the sun.Thanks! The color shift with different lighting is one of the reasons I instantly fell in love with the color.


Nice work!Thank you very much! :)


Wow, jaw dropping results. Your M-Sport Carbon black X5 looks incredible! That is one beautiful Ultimate Driving Machine. I'm in love.

What are your thoughts on your paint LSP combo?Thanks Mike!

It's my first time using BlackICE actually. I know some folks say that it does very well by itself, but I already had BFWD on the shelf, so I figured I would try the combo.

When I first applied it to my test spot, I realized that I had to make sure I applied it extremely thin. Since I prefer to apply wax by hand, I really had to pay attention to exactly how thin I apply it. Other than that, I thought it was easy to work with.

Immediately after applying it, I noticed how much slickness was lost. I know you lose some slickness after applying wax over sealant, but I honestly was kindof disappointed. If I recall correctly, it almost felt slightly tacky. Not the feeling of no protection on the paint, but not the same freshly waxed feeling from other products that I've tried. The following morning, I noticed that a good amount of the slickness came back. I don't think it was quite as slick as BFWD by itself, but I was really happy.

It looks great and the depth and glow are fantastic, in my opinion. I suspect most of the durability and protection characteristics will mostly be from BlackICE.


Awesome work! Those after shots speak for themselves.Thanks! :xyxthumbs:


Hi, just a quick question about the diluted products: Does diluting the solution 128:1 or 256:1 make any difference? If i recall from other posts about dilution ratios thats like a miniscule %. Please correct me if I'm wrong!

And great post!I diluted it based on recommendations in posts by Michael Stoops. Both dilutions felt slick and did the job well. I haven't tried a rinseless wash at 256:1 to compare it against using it at 128:1 for rinseless. I personally feel more comfortable using it at 128:1 when either rinseless washing or waterless washing, but I'm perfectly comfortable using it at 256:1 for claying. It stays slick, the clay towel nor the clay bar felt grabby, and I thought it did a pretty good job.


Very nice! Fellow San Diegan?Thank you! And, yes, fellow San Diegan. :dblthumb2:


Very nice! :xyxthumbs:

I do wish you wouldn't have posted the above picture, though. :)

I thought I'd go with a quality 2-stage like Prowler Orange. That is until you posted the picture. :laughing:

I'm betting the Carbon black is a 3-stage. Gonna go check now.

Very nice!Thank you! And wow, that is a very flattering compliment! Im the MAN

I'm curious to hear what you find out. I have found conflicting information about whether Carbon Black is 2-stage or 3-stage. I haven't found anything official from BMW regarding the topic.


Man that is beautiful! :dblthumb2:Thanks! :D


WOW! Outstanding work my friend:)Thank you very much! :)

[jwhy]

Thanks for the response alpha, looking forward to more of these