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BMW 3-Series (E90 E92) Forum > E90 / E92 / E93 3-series Technical Forums > Wash, Wax, Detailing and Cosmetic protection/repairs > Ask a Professional Detailer...



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      07-31-2013, 12:06 PM   #1761
jbnery6465
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bonifaxio View Post
Recommendations?
Kit, products, brands etc?
Meguiars and/or Mothers brand has kits that you can purchase OTC. I'm not sure which one of the kits includes sandpaper, but that's something you can easily purchase at Home Depot or Lowes's, etc.

Basically:
1. Wash and Dry headlights and tape of the surrounding area
2. Wetsand with 2000 grit sandpaper and a sander-block, rinse
3. Wetsand with 3000 grit sandpaper and a sander-block, rinse
4. When completely dry, machine polish with a compound followed by a finishing polish
5. Clean with IPA
6. Protect with Opti-Lens, 2-3 coats of sealant (let each coat cure before applying the next one), or place some clear protective film

Protecting the lens after correcting them is important in preventing further oxidation or yellowing since the sanding will sand off the factory protectant.

I would do a test spot first, it'll depend on how deep those cracks are and if they're on the outside surface or the inside.
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      08-14-2013, 12:43 PM   #1762
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jbnery6465 View Post
Meguiars and/or Mothers brand has kits that you can purchase OTC. I'm not sure which one of the kits includes sandpaper, but that's something you can easily purchase at Home Depot or Lowes's, etc.

Basically:
1. Wash and Dry headlights and tape of the surrounding area
2. Wetsand with 2000 grit sandpaper and a sander-block, rinse
3. Wetsand with 3000 grit sandpaper and a sander-block, rinse
4. When completely dry, machine polish with a compound followed by a finishing polish
5. Clean with IPA
6. Protect with Opti-Lens, 2-3 coats of sealant (let each coat cure before applying the next one), or place some clear protective film

Protecting the lens after correcting them is important in preventing further oxidation or yellowing since the sanding will sand off the factory protectant.

I would do a test spot first, it'll depend on how deep those cracks are and if they're on the outside surface or the inside.
Thanks a lot!
I actually had to do 1200, 2500 and 3500 grit followed by a 3-step polishing followed by sealant.
Got everything from Chemicalguys(dot)com
Spent Saturday afternoon on it.

Here are some After Pics...

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Last edited by Bonifaxio; 08-14-2013 at 12:43 PM.. Reason: typo
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      08-14-2013, 01:33 PM   #1763
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Hey George,

Do you know if Sonax Perfect Finish utilizes diminishing or non diminishing abrasives?

Best,

Will
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      08-14-2013, 02:00 PM   #1764
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The Nomad pressure washer ? I need a way to wash my car without having a place to hook a water hose up to. Does anyone have any experiences with the portable pressure washers? Supposedly they are designed for my exact issue (Apartments).
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      08-30-2013, 04:13 AM   #1765
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Removing overspray from wheels

Hi
I recently bought an E90. There is a bit of blue overspray on the silver wheels (visible from close inspection). Do you have any tips which would help remove this?
Thanks
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      08-30-2013, 06:37 AM   #1766
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Hey fellow E93'ers.

Any tips on best brand for Chamois? my leather one has had it. I've been recommended microfibre waffle pattern.
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      09-04-2013, 02:47 PM   #1767
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Hey Greg,

Got an odd one for you. I'm sure others experience this as well, after removing wax with MF towels, a static charge builds on the car and if it rains soon after, can deposit specs of dust in raindrop shape all over.

Well, I was watching How it's Made: Dream Cars, the Maserati Quattroporte episode, and they use dusters of emu feathers in their paint process to remove static from the car.

Ever heard of such a thing? Did a few google searches but couldn't find. Would be a cool solution if it really worked. New DI product? If so, I volunteer for testing

The E91 and E46 are still shining, thanks for all your help and advice!
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      09-04-2013, 05:49 PM   #1768
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Is there any product (aside from what the finance manager tries to pawn off you) that's used to treat /protect NEW leather on a new car?
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      10-11-2013, 11:34 AM   #1769
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2006 BMW  [9.50]
Hi, I currently use Meguiars Quik Wheel Detailer and I cant find it anymore. Could you tell me what is similar to this to use for my wheels?
Thanks
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      10-21-2013, 02:32 AM   #1770
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Detailed Image:

Looking for recommendations as how to best routinely clean Alacantara wheel & keep that nice fluffy as new condition.

Specifically a recommended cleaner(s) you carry for weekly cleaning with soft toothbrush & cotton towel. I have been told to try SONAX Xtreme Foam Upholstery/Alcantara Cleaner, but don't know if that is correct + I don't see it available on your site...

I always order all my interior/exterior products from you, & have always had great results

Sorry, if this is a repost - but the search function is lacking & I don't want to go thru 81 pages to see if this has been previously answered
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      10-23-2013, 02:15 PM   #1771
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What's the recommended product to keep wheels clean and easy to clean from brake dust?
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      12-16-2013, 06:02 PM   #1772
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Henrik View Post
What's the recommended product to keep wheels clean and easy to clean from brake dust?
I think the best way is to go to the source. The stock pads are extremely dusty. I put on some stoptech pads and they are way less dusty. I've also heard that Akebonos were very low on dust as well. Since it isn't really economical to just go change your pads out, for the time being you can apply a sealant to your rims which will aid in preventing dust from sticking. It will still get dirty, but much easier to clean off. Any sealant you normally use for paint is fine.
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      12-26-2013, 03:09 AM   #1773
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Where do you suggest learning how to detail a car properly?
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      01-21-2014, 11:38 AM   #1774
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what's the best stuff to use clean and treat leather seats for the e93 convertible? I know it has some special UV treatment and I don't want to ruin it.
Thanks

Lz
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      01-21-2014, 06:39 PM   #1775
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Quick intro...

Hello all,

My name is Ivan and I will do my best to help out on the forums for the foreseeable future. Greg the owner has been extremely busy keeping up with the growth of Detailed Image (in large thanks to this forum), but didn't want to keep the forums unattended. I'll try to revisit as many threads and messages as possible, but if I miss something I encourage anyone to either post again or send a private message with any inquiries. I am a professional detailer in the Chicagoland area and I have been working with Detailed Image on a variety of projects for well over 5 years now. You can read more about myself as well as some articles I have written over the years on my profile page of the DI Ask-a-Pro Blog. I'm very happy to be getting back into the forum world and hope to assist many of you with any questions on car detailing products or techniques.

Oh and for what it's worth, I am a big BMW nut myself, with my favorite being an E36 M3. Over the past 8 years I've had the joy of driving a 98 328i, 99 M3, 87 325e (winter beater during my M3 ownership), 93 325i and a 95 525i. Currently I only enjoy my Yamaha R6 and a Mazda work wagon, but I did talk my wife into a 95 325iC (which she quickly learned to love) and hope to pick up another E36 M3 within the next 1-2 years.

Well anyway, enough about me, let's get back on the topic of car detailing!

Ivan @ DI
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      01-28-2014, 07:13 PM   #1776
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Quote:
Originally Posted by E92FanaticKY View Post
Where do you suggest learning how to detail a car properly?
We have a fairly comprehensive Detailing Guide on the website, so that's definitely a great place to check out and go from there. We also have the Ask-a-Pro blog on which a lot of knowledgeable professionals post articles from something as simple as How To Use a Microfiber Towel (some customers asked, so I took care of it) to complex articles such as Wet Sanding an old Corvette.

Quote:
Originally Posted by cialz View Post
what's the best stuff to use clean and treat leather seats for the e93 convertible? I know it has some special UV treatment and I don't want to ruin it.
Thanks

Lz
The best thing you can do to leather is keep it clean on a regular basis with something as simple as a damp microfiber towel. You can use either just water or a diluted solution of Optimum No-Rinse. This ensures there's no dust and dirt particles that will abrade away the finish. Also, you'll regularly remove oils so they don't deteriorate the leather surface.

Keep in mind most of the leather in cars is coated anyway, so you're not really treating the leather, rather the top coat. So you simply want to keep this clean and protected. My favorite leather treatment is Leatherique Rejuvenator Oil and Prestine Clean. I find it thoroughly cleans leather and protects it well without leaving any oily residue that normally just ends up on your clothes.

You don't want to clean or condition leather too much either, but this will highly depend on how much use the car gets. Also keep in mind that the driver seat will normally need 2-3 more times cleaning/conditioning than the back or even the passenger seats as most of the time we drive by ourselves. I like to wipe down the leather every 2-4 weeks (driver seats every 2 weeks, sometimes 1 if I drive it a lot, and back + passenger seats every 4-6 weeks) then I do a yearly Leatherique treatment.

Ivan @ DI
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      01-29-2014, 05:28 PM   #1777
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I have a buch of tiny dots the size of a needle's tip on my car from what I think is tree sap. What do you recommend I do to safely remove it? About a month and a half ago I clayed and put three layers of Klasse SG on it if that's relevant.
I'd rather use a product that doesn't remove the sealant but would be more than happy to spend the weekend re-applying it if I can use a high quality product to remove the dots.

Thanks
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      01-29-2014, 09:45 PM   #1778
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Originally Posted by sxyblue View Post
I have a buch of tiny dots the size of a needle's tip on my car from what I think is tree sap. What do you recommend I do to safely remove it? About a month and a half ago I clayed and put three layers of Klasse SG on it if that's relevant.
I'd rather use a product that doesn't remove the sealant but would be more than happy to spend the weekend re-applying it if I can use a high quality product to remove the dots.

Thanks
Sorry to hear about your issue. While I haven't had to deal with a lot of tree sap on personal or clients' vehicles, I absolutely hated every time I did have to remove it!

I suggest you have a quick look at the article How to Remove Tree Sap From my Car? by Chad on the DI Ask-a-Pro blog as he explains it pretty well.

Basically, you'll want to try to remove it chemically as much as possible (meaning as little wiping/scrubbing/etc as possible) in order to minimize marring in the paint. If you have a darker/sensitive paint, you'll probably end up with some marring regardless, but the less the better. If you can't break it down thoroughly using something like isopropyl alcohol, clay bar should get it off, but again, I would try to take your time and remove it without clay bar, scrubbing, etc.

Since it's everywhere, you might want to try both methods and if the clay bar is quickly removing everything, it may be a better choice to simply go with the clay then plan on polishing. This way, you'll save a lot of time and headache and you'll probably have to polish after both methods anyway.

Hope that helps, definitely let us know how it goes.

Ivan @ DI
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      02-01-2014, 10:00 AM   #1779
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Thoughts on wool pad vs. let's say a Lake County orange foam pad for water spots and etching? I know wool is preferred by professionals and I have some experience with it.
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      02-01-2014, 11:19 AM   #1780
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Greg, I have a question about how to address an area of paint damage that I just noticed. I am such an obsessed owner that I notice every scratch and imperfection of my bmw. Whatever this is just happened and not sure what to do about it. I haven't bought any products yet for scratches or chips and am open to anything. Also open to having it done by a pro. This new spot looks like raised paint on the hood. It is small - about half an inch for the big part but I have no idea how it happened. Do you or anyone else? Thanks for all the advice in this thread - I am new to the forum and still reading it.
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      02-15-2014, 04:22 PM   #1781
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mbanks21 View Post
Thoughts on wool pad vs. let's say a Lake County orange foam pad for water spots and etching? I know wool is preferred by professionals and I have some experience with it.
This is really a tough question to answer. Both wool and foam pads have a big place in any professional detailer's arsenal. I like to work with foam pads more, but there are many newer technology wool pads that can be used very safely and effectively with dual action or random orbital polishers, not just the rotary as before.

To answer your question more directly, as with anything you'll want to try the least invasive method of removing the spots and etching. Depending on the type of paint, sometimes even a finishing polish with a foam pad can remove water spots. Other times you need a good compound with a wool pad, maybe even a few passes. Start with something lighter and move to the aggressive side of the scale as you see necessary. On important thing to keep in mind though... some water spots and especially bird poop etchings will not be safely removed. If you're using a compound with a wool pad, even on the hardest of paints I wouldn't do more than a couple passes unless you have a paint thickness gauge to check your work. Those spots can easily turn into clear coat completely removed and a much uglier and expensive to fix spot on the paint.

Hope that makes sense.

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      02-15-2014, 04:26 PM   #1782
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Quote:
Originally Posted by luckeycharms View Post
Greg, I have a question about how to address an area of paint damage that I just noticed. I am such an obsessed owner that I notice every scratch and imperfection of my bmw. Whatever this is just happened and not sure what to do about it. I haven't bought any products yet for scratches or chips and am open to anything. Also open to having it done by a pro. This new spot looks like raised paint on the hood. It is small - about half an inch for the big part but I have no idea how it happened. Do you or anyone else? Thanks for all the advice in this thread - I am new to the forum and still reading it.
Ouch! I wish I could answer your question in a helpful manner but that looks rather odd. It looks like odd creases in the paint and I really can't tell how they got there. Was the car repainted ever, or that panel? Is the paint missing or is it just creased (tough to tell from the photo)?

I'd probably recommend going to a local body shop (a good one) and asking for their advice. You might have to pay someone to sand the area and hopefully just blend in with some paint instead of repainting the whole panel.

Let us know if you find a fix as I'm really curious to know what it was and how it can be fixed.

Thanks,
Ivan @ DI
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