BMW F30 - paint correction and G-Techniq c1/exo coated

[zckid]

Hi guys!

This beauty came in for a paint correction that would ultimately end up in an extreme makeover prior to coating installation.

Actually the owner had to wait for 1+ year due to construction work at my place. In the meantime, we became friends and exchanged ideas about what could be done to enhance and protect his car, especially when he has no garage for her. And this was my first full piece of detailing after a very, very long time.

Letting the pics speak!

Upon arrival



Ready for a bath



Wheel Cleaning & decon


starting to react



Full action



Cleaned and decontaminated



The petrol cap



All the crevices cleaned



Paintwork decontamination





Ready to clay




Same for all panels…. Tells how much polluted our roads have become



Washed and Decontaminated







Ready for inspection



In the sun



swirls



more swirls





swirls…. And more



other defects too



Hiding under the swirls




patches of haziness, not easily captured



etching



look closely, etchings creating another texture







OMG!




the Famous RIDS



Rather regular




with flash, uneven texture more apparent



haziness and tracers




Heavily pronounced



close-up of what to correct in terms of defects




with the LED lenser






RIDS, not islolated, rather concentrated, along with the unique texture




More





close-up with flash



The rear bumper





Near the rear lights




Around the registration plate



With flash, the texture becoming more obvious



More and more

[zckid]

underway.

The swirls that are visible usually hide other defects, Once the swirls were removed, I proceeded with a thorough inspection to settle on ways to remove those and enhance the paint without compromising the clear, especially as this baby sleeps under the stars. The aim was to remove as little as possible while bringing a drastic improvement to the look of this baby. This was the most painstaking part of this detailing job and took an awful lot of time: 70+ hours

Tools & Products:

Machine: Makita rotary, flex 3401. These were used interchangeably depending on how the paint would react and tight spots were taken care of with the Makita
polish:Menzerna FG400, 203s, SF4500
Pads: LC HD orbital pads (all 3 colors) and 3M blue and yellow spot pads


Initial compounding stage



Close-up



After: the eyes would say it's good but careful inspection reveals otherwise



RIDS. These were a common theme on this car



[img] http://www.zerotohundred.com/newforu...s/banghead.gif [/img] Defects classified under others



Paint texture



Causes of haziness in paint


More and more


Etched stains OMG!



Onto spot correction, using my trademark “white board marker” tip





Underneath the door handle with LC applicator



Hello


Correction with my old trusty pal, the Makita



A lot of passion involved



The bumper almost done



Defects like these hiding under the swirls



Another view of haziness, not easily captured



Corrected and refined



Full view. The whitish tone comes from the ceiling and the walls



Extreme close-up



Dipping wet, no coating yet



The side



The floor reflecting on the door



















The sun from the window



Do you remember the swirls, the RIDS and the haziness?



Hello!



Hello friends 



The tail lights before







After







Almost ok! Very late at night


Prior to be coated

[zckid]

The next morning









GTech C1 crystal lacquer was applied with supplied applicators and left to cure according to recommendations. Then it was topped with EVO and left to cure. I had no time to take the car outside for pics.


Coating done





























Mirror or glass?








A couple of months later. the ride came in. It was glowing in the setting sun and clouds.





Thanking Almighty for making this detail possible after a very, very long wait.

Thanks for watching, It was a long post

Your thoughts are most welcome.


from Mauritius

Zaid

[asap2stacks]

Nice work and thanks for taking a lot of pictures as well. A year wait is a long time for a detail lol, I'm happy you got your chance to do the job after the long wait looks like things turned out beautifully.

Keep up the nice work

[Jowillie]

Great job. Thanks for documenting and sharing. Learned a few tricks.

[LaFawnduh]

Beautiful! Was this two-day job? Seems like it should ban taken longer...

[Sizzle Chest]

Excellent write up!!!! Fantastic work! I really appreciate (and know first hand) how much time and effort it takes to post a thread like this. Outstanding! Thank you.

[Mike@DedicatedPerfection]

Nice work!

You should have removed the M3 badge free of chage.

Thanks for sharing.

[zckid]

Great job. Thanks for documenting and sharing. Learned a few tricks.

Thank you Jowillie. Glad it may have helped you.

Beautiful! Was this two-day job? Seems like it should ban taken longer...

Thanks buddy. Much more than that, 7 days including "overtime" . actually more than 70 hours.

[ViperGuy21]

Wow! Awesome work, and superb documentation!!!