Three Letter Coupe to her pristine again - another car detailing guide by KC's

[kc's]

Bimmer is backed by a history that is not only long, but full of a passion for perfection. You will see just how elite these cars are esp when you own one. You definitely won't regret it.

Every time my buddy see these cars, he melt. Finally he got himself a beautiful gift a E46 coupe.

He asked to help him to detail her. with one condition I agreed, that he will have to stick around to see what I am doing & taking part of it

Sharing with you a simple guide & how you can get her youthful looks restores yourself:-

Great looking Coupe

some residues from the previous detail

kinda dull looking leathers

worn out door panels

dirt collected...

the most contaminated part of the car

handle with care by all means -


this ride boosted a powerful straight-6, further helped by aluminum body panels and aggressive spoilers, lighter body earned an unmatched status in BMW’s history!

before

sprayed on Aliens juices & agitating

Brush off with soft bristle brushes - inexpensive and safe brushes for the ultimate wheels

I choose to do a safe way to wash - Cleaning with ONR

Put your older clay to work,
moving on to clays, the outer coat contamination - lube with alien's juices

pls use a separate clay for wheels & body, as it is highly contaminated - with brake dust, asbestos & metal flakes from the rotor

ta da - the finish results

how an ugly ducking...

turning into a beautiful swan

from this

ta da

good looking ride

under the sea - hood

more dirt

opc -

opc at work

cleaning the 3 power words

ta da

before the ugly

after 30 minutes with 1 brushes & OPC
ta da

before

ta da

now

simple & effortless - no power spray jet or acidic - super degreaser or chemicals - I just won with 1 brushes & OPC (1:5 ratio)

 

[kc's]

__________moving to interior________

the most unrewarding area

continue cleanning - the side steps

now here comes the hardest to detail
the sticky part - back arm rest console - velco glue peels off

so much so the heats of the day - melts even the Araldite Adhesive

so much so it was transferred to the arm rest console mmmmmmmnn :-(

and i took another hour - to clean up this mass -
I took some thinner to further soften the residue & all mighty power clean to clean up

ta da

from this

to beautiful swan again

no more sticky thing - from this experience I found that OPC is the best antidote against it

this really get me coup me up....fighting with the time loss - quickly move on to interior

tada - after opc - wipe down - Leather protectant applied (to protect against heat & UV)

Moving on to the most dangerous part of the ride
the steering - before

OPC agitate & brush off

where it should be

moving to the leathers (a 50/50% area set )

the bucket water collected just from this tiny little area - after OPC (1:5 ratio) and rinse off with MF

look at the dirt & oil remove

moving to the rear seats

close up -

before leathers conditioned

a 50/50 comparrision

________________________________________________ Decontaminations & Disinfection__

rear foot area - steam to kill the or dour & disinfecting too - a great way to clean without chemicals

front driver foot area

rear seats - a great way to clean & by opening up the leathers pores with steamer

the most unrewarding area of detailing

to be hidden + magic is perform behind this holy smokes

steam it up

ta da - simply effective

 

[kc's]

more top steaming

more
below

more

ta da - now is decontaminated & ready to serve his rightful owner

after cleaning - most oily residues is remove & cleaned by the steamer

conditioning & protection applied

spread with applicator - all you need to apply is 3-4 times a year & keep yr leather plushy all the way - protect against premature wears & UV rays


after cured

looks & feel satins -
look at the 50/50 comparrision

quick test

not the oily greasy & easily trapped dust - type dressing

look at the side panel door - judging form this whitish stains - the previous owner is a lady

"we need bricks to build wall" - sherlock Holmes

the lotion residue stains - where she always uses her arms to push open this heavy coupe door ....... remove with OPC

how she is suppose to be

now protected with Leather protectant

before

ta da 50/50%

remember before oily & dry leather

ta da

the console restored

no more sticky stuff

___________________________________________________________ paint corrections_____

clay - before work

after - worked

contaminants picked up from the glass

paint - with water spots

closer look - as it camouflage itself well just like the camelion

swirls is almost impossible to view

but closer look - lots of scratches

more paint defects

a 50/50% area mark

ta da

effortlessly - level by optimum Hyper spray compound with wool & finish off of optimum hyper spray polish

 

[kc's]

another 50/50%

how to choose the correct pad n size

strongly recommended - it takes a cobbler to Knows his tool

choose the correct pad size for correct size

before

ta da

more defects - rear boot

hard to view at but certain angle - tada - pls pay attention to the paint chip

tada

after

before

ta da

always work with proper lighting & ONR clean after every compound & polish & look out for holograms or trails of buffing swirls on the paint

a final inspection before the rubber hit the road again

closer to the universe - flakes of paint

now the owner put his hand to work

nothing sweeps - under the carpet

gloss & reflection restored

\

I only finish it off with Makita - probably a rotary that you ever need in life

 

[kc's]

a ride fit the king

well detail

silky feeling console

remember this

dawn of the new hope
ta da

bigger picture

now her youthful is restored

once before

now

clearer

remember before

paint redefine again

beautifully yours

detail & protected by OPT leather protectant

against UV

leaving behind u the 3 powerful words

tools i need to turn this around
Optimum No rinse wash (ONR)
optimum power clean
optimum leather protectant
optimum opti seal
Optimum Car wax

Paint correction
Optimum Hyper spray Compound + Double sided wool + Cutting pad + Makita M9227
Optimum Hyper spray Polish + Polishing pad with Makita M9227 (speed 1 to spread + 2 to polish & back down to speed 1 to finish off)


thanks again for viewing another detailing adventure


hopefully you will find pleasure to work on yr own detailing as much as i post

Have a great time out!!!!

 

[Ted S.]

Show 'em how it's done, kc. Great job.:dblthumb2::dblthumb2:

 

[kc's]

Show 'em how it's done, kc. Great job.:dblthumb2::dblthumb2:

Thank you sir - for your kind words :xyxthumbs:

 

[sohail99]

Great work Kc!! :xyxthumbs:

Love the finish!!

 

[kc's]

Great work Kc!! :xyxthumbs:

Love the finish!!

thank you sir for your kind words again

Cheerios SOhail99 :xyxthumbs:

 

[03IS300GGP]

You did a great job bro!!! Nice work!!! Take your time and do it right.. no rushes.

 

[CrownKote]

I love the E46's They are beautiful powerful machines... Although IDK about the automatic in that one... lol... I have an E36/8 (Z3) and love her to death!

You did some amazing work to bring the beauty back into the beast! Good job man!

 

[mbkite]

KC your wasting your time on cars you should be restoring ancient artifacts..or Picasso paintings..

 

[mdb917]

TA-DA:buffing:


Excellent work and the write-up is fun and informative! :xyxthumbs:


The E46 is indeed one of BMW's best looking machines and they can flat out fly. Although the one you detailed has the steering wheel on the wrong side. :laughing:

 

[panthercz]

Fantastic job! I like the steamer shots!

 

[dad07]

Once again Kc you have amazed me! Superb Job as always,love the steamer shots!

Glad to see the TaDa's back....

 

[thewraith1971]

very beautiful car...the work put into it is simply astounding the attention to detail

 

[Chris Thomas]

Great job KC and I'm flattered that you quoted me in your signature.

 

[kc's]

I love the E46's They are beautiful powerful machines... Although IDK about the automatic in that one... lol... I have an E36/8 (Z3) and love her to death!

You did some amazing work to bring the beauty back into the beast! Good job man!

congrats buddy u must surely knew the BMW thing other UDMs owners talking about!!!!! 3 most powerful letters

Thanks buddy for your kind words rops:

KC your wasting your time on cars you should be restoring ancient artifacts..or Picasso paintings..

LOL - when i showed it to my wife - she nearly fainted :iagree: says thats a great one - Any clue how can i get into CSI like restorer ?

thanks for your wonderful words of encouragement - u really know how to lift up others - Thank You sir :dblthumb2:

TA-DA:buffing:



Excellent work and the write-up is fun and informative! :xyxthumbs:




The E46 is indeed one of BMW's best looking machines and they can flat out fly. Although the one you detailed has the steering wheel on the wrong side. :laughing:

Hahahahaha - aka LOL thanks Mdb917 for your ta da :xyxthumbs:

yupp u got it - too hot to handle in our narrow & rigid roads
Always looking forward to feel how is it to break the Land speed record in Salt lake city

thanks again for yr encouragement

Once again Kc you have amazed me! Superb Job as always,love the steamer shots!

Glad to see the TaDa's back....

Thank you sir :iagree: - Happy advance daddy day ya

Thank God - for His healing - slowly but sure will be back for more- thanks for your thoughtfulness ya

Be bless

very beautiful car...the work put into it is simply astounding the attention to detail

Great job KC and I'm flattered that you quoted me in your signature.

 

[kc's]

Great job KC and I'm flattered that you quoted me in your signature.

thanks buddy for not asking me to pay the royalties - u r very inspirational

very beautiful car...the work put into it is simply astounding the attention to detail

thanks buddy for your kind words:xyxthumbs:

 

[kc's]

You did a great job bro!!! Nice work!!! Take your time and do it right.. no rushes.

yupp :iagree:

but the owner always rushes - i learn the secret of a good detailing is satisfaction (taking all the time u need to get it done)