BMW 530i Black - Gee, Where Did I Stop?

[Totoland Mach]

Just kidding! This black Bimmer is the usual type for the shop...tons of swirls and a few major scratches.

Used my combo of 3M Extra Cut and Meguiar's #83 (still one of the most versatile products in the market).

The dealer said I should take a pic of where I stopped on a door panel...pretty dramatic!

Here's what I am starting with

Finished compounding the driver's side last night. I'll power wash the dust and flip the car on the lift so the passenger side is in the working area. I wish we could center that lift in the shop, but it would interfere with other cars.

Hood compounded.

Toto

 

[Tonya]

Very Nice Pics love the door panel shot!:awesome:
As always great work!:applause:

 

[Gary Sword]

Great job as always Toto. It's seems like about 75% of the bimmers you do are black.

 

[alban61]

Great job Toto! That hood shot is unreal! Mirror, mirror!

 

[robzie]

(kneels before Toto) "WE'RE NOT WORTHY!!!

great job as always

:applause:

 

[Nica]

Very nice Toto, man that looks good for just a compound. I'm assuming you used wool pads right? Question for you Toto, what kind of tape are you using? Reason I ask is becuase it's not the regular blue tape? Is it that 3M tape? If so how good is it?

 

[07ImpalaSS]

Very nice.

 

[pirex]

Nice job Toto, the car had some great swirls!

 

[Totoland Mach]

Thanks Folks!

Nica: I used a 3M compound pad on this car. I tried wool after wetsanding the trunk lid and the pad works better/faster. The tape is some body shop tape the dealer bought. It's not as good as the blue IMO, but apparently popular with the body shop people.

Well, I discovered acid rain etching after doing the hood and pulling the car in the sun this morning, so I'm going to wet sand and re-compound the hood tomorrow. I wet sanded the trunk lid, then compounded it out to get rid of the acid rain etchings (boy, that stuff must have been strong acid!)

Pic of sanded trunk lid. Used 3M Trizact 3000 grit with the air orbital sander.

After compounding but before glazing

I had some "experiment" time today and tried the Menzerna Professional Glaze. Unlike 3M, which works as a polish, the Menzerna is pure glaze and leaves a residue, but the depth is incredible.

I'm going to use it on the hood after I remove the acid rain etching tomorrow, but here is a side shot. The "scratch" reflections you see in the lower door are the floor scratches in the epoxy paint...not the 530i.

Toto

 

[Nica]

Thanks for sharing Toto, I've seen that same color tape at my friends body shop that's all he orders I think it's 3M, don't know...that's just what I'm assuming. The Menzerna Glaze is wicked stuff, glad to hear you enjoyed it. You always have good stuff to share Master Toto. Thank you for taking the time to share.

 

[FMINUS]

Is this a used BMW lot? Whats the dealer's incentive on having you remove the swirls?

Amazing job BTW!

 

[sparkie]

Toto as always:applause: You the Master....
Have you tried Menz power gloss yet? I know your boss is a 3m fan. If you have just wondering how the two compared....

 

[Totoland Mach]

Is this a used BMW lot? Whats the dealer's incentive on having you remove the swirls?

Amazing job BTW!

Yep...it is. BavarianAG

The dealer (who also jumps right in with detailing) and his wife sell approx. 100 cars per year. The bulk of them are purchased at the BMW Lease auction and still have remaining warranty. He is an absolute "fanatic" about detailing a car 100% better than the franchised dealer. If the bumper is too pitted, it gets a total re-paint. Wheels look krappy?...get them refinished with new tires as well.

One thing he has is a loyal following and a referral business. And, he always introduces me to potential customers who always have good questions about keeping the finish pristine. And finally, the shop is well equipped and he will try any product I recommend.

Sparkie: I have not tried the Power Gloss yet. That's probably going to be the next purchase of liquid. I'd like to try a Menzerna Start-To-Finish and see the results.

Toto

 

[FMINUS]

The site only shows 15 cars, is that all thats available?

 

[sparkie]

Sparkie: I have not tried the Power Gloss yet. That's probably going to be the next purchase of liquid. I'd like to try a Menzerna Start-To-Finish and see the results.

Toto

I think you will be pleased with it.

 

[Totoland Mach]

The site only shows 15 cars, is that all thats available?

Probably.

I don't think he even has that many available since he sold a few in the last couple of days. The dealer is very comfortable with selling 2-3 cars per week (after all, it's just him and his wife + me for detailing). The cars still have factory warranty so they go to the franchised dealer for that work. He also does searching for customers who are looking for a particular vehicle and he finds that car for them.

The photos on his web site are taken by his son. That young man is very talented! I'm a klutz when it comes to photography, but his son has a talent for taking super nice shots...he gets a lot of comments on his car photos.

Toto

 

[devst8]

Toto, AWESOME work once again! you do correction like no other imho

also, if you would like, I could send you a sample of PGC, I wouldn't mind a sample of #83

 

[P1et]

Sooooooooooooo nice! The BMW King never fails to deliver...

 

[Truls]

Loks great toto.

Your a Bimmer king

 

[Totoland Mach]

Boy oh Boy! Today's work was a nitemare! The dealer ended up using 2000 grit on the hood to remove the acid rain etch marks. But, the hard part is compounding out the sanding marks.....well over 2 hours with each of us working half a hood.

Plus, we'd power wash the compound dust to check our progress. I'm not experienced like body shop people are with 2000 grit, so it was compound, wash (water blade it off), find sanding marks, repeat...unreal!

Well, I think it looks great in the partially sunny afternoon, so I pull the car in the shop to begin glazing. Fire up the halogens, and start a panel on the hood and....wtf! Sanding marks! The doggone glaze really shows imperfections and the marks were in several areas.

Man, I am frustrated to the max! And the dealer had to run to errands, so I tried Meg's #83 (no budging those sanding marks), the 3M Trizact Spot Finishing (no budging and that product is for 3000 grit marks)... Well, I have this bottle of OPTIMUM HYPER COMPOUND....hmmmmmm...maybe that will work. I put some on the 3M glazing pad and started working it. IT WORKED! The OHC will work a long time on a pad...it's almost oily for a compound. And that's what I used for that @#$*%$& Hood.

Here's another shot of the hood. Now, it's time for the final glazing and Meg's #26.

This car has definitely turned into a time killer....way tougher than the 90,000 mile 740i I recently did.

But, the hood and trunk lid are totally done.

Toto