BMW Paint Super Soft?

uhohitsstevo

uhohitsstevo

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So I washed my car today. Two bucket method and all... And when I got done drying. Halograms... EVERYWHERE. I just got the car and polished it last weekend and it was looking fantastic. Now it looks absolutely horrific. What can I do to not only fix this but to make sure this does not happen again?!
 
uhohitsstevo said:
Is it common to have super soft paint?
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The only color I'd consider on the soft side would be Jet Black, Saphire Black,Mineral Gray, Imperial Blue,Glacier Silver can be very hard. BMW's seems to be the brand I work on most and 90% of the time it's on the hard side. Now saying that Saphire Black is hard and mars pretty easily compared to Carbon Black.
 
Holograms... from washing?

Do you perhaps mean swirl marks?

If you are truly seeing holograms, they are a result of your polishing process/technique and not your washing process/technique.
 
Yep^. I suspect you added these holograms from your polishing techniques and didn't see any flaws until you washed it. (If in fact they are holograms). Let's see some pics.
 
Maybe you used some glaze that hid it at first and now you see swirls?
 
It's not holograms it's actually scratches from washing. The paint was washed after I detailed it once before.
 
Then you have several things to consider.

First, your technique/process...

Are you working in a shaded area on a vehicle that is completely cool so you are not forced to rush through the process?
Are you washing from top to bottom, saving the dirtiest areas for last?
Are you doing the 3 bucket method (1 for wheels, 2 for paint)? (or an appropriate alternative method if using a foam lance, rinseless, or waterless process)
Are you rinsing your mitt/washing media often enough?
Are you sheeting the water off of the car for your final rinse to minimize the amount of work you need to do while drying?
Are you towel drying? If so, are you using very light pressure and/or blotting the water?
Are you using a drying aid to add some lubrication while towel drying?


Second, your products...
Are you using a clean wash mitt?
Are you using a clean towel?
Are you using high quality towels and mitts?
(and by clean, I mean newer and properly clean... not an old towel or mitt that has been washed before)
Are you using an appropriate amount of shampoo to provide enough cleaning power and lubrication while washing?


... I mean the list goes on and on... but I can promise you that when you are doing everything right, you will not see scratches after a single car wash. Something, or several things, are likely the culprit of the scratches that you now see, so you will have to identify which part of the process or product is at fault and fix it.
 
I'm gonna go with your drying media and/or method. It's easy to forget that mf drying towels need washed sometimes. You probably picked up some grit somewhere


Sent from my iPhone using AGOnline
 
jcat9 said:
...It's easy to forget that mf drying towels need washed sometimes....
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Towels should be washed after every single use, regardless of if they are drying towels, plush quick detailing towels, glass towels, etc. It is way easier to buy 50 towels and do a load of laundry as needed than try to get by with 8 towels and hope you don't scratch your car by using the same towel 5 times before you wash it.
 
Audi here not BMW but I don't see them as having soft clear coats. On pure black like mine and I suspect most, you'll definitely "see" imperfections more easiliy.

As already noted, I would suspect what you're seeing was either caused by product removal when you completed the detail and perhaps had some oils masking them. Or more likely you marred it up when drying.

I always blow dry - especially nice on a coated car, then NEVER touch the car with a dry microfiber. I don't even use detail spray and a dry MF rag. Anything that touches my car will be dampened with some Uber Rinseless wash and wrung out completely. I will spritz on some of my "blue juice" frankendetailer made up of ECH20 / Reload and Distilled Water, but even there, I will wipe it off with a damp cloth. No buffing needed.

I find the above keeps my car in perfection mode.
 
pdqgp said:
then NEVER touch the car with a dry microfiber. I don't even use detail spray and a dry MF rag. Anything that touches my car will be dampened with some Uber Rinseless wash and wrung out completely. I will spritz on some of my "blue juice" frankendetailer made up of ECH20 / Reload and Distilled Water, but even there, I will wipe it off with a damp cloth. No buffing needed.

I find the above keeps my car in perfection mode.
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Smart.
 
The brilliant black Audi A4 I had years ago had extremely soft paint. I wouldn't even lean on the car for fear of scratching it. I suspect black German paints are generally much softer than other colors. The silver S4 that replaced the A4 had rock hard paint. And the Blue BMW I just acquired has equally hard paint. I need foamed wool pads to get any sort of decent correction.
 
pdqgp said:
Audi here not BMW but I don't see them as having soft clear coats. On pure black like mine and I suspect most, you'll definitely "see" imperfections more easiliy.

As already noted, I would suspect what you're seeing was either caused by product removal when you completed the detail and perhaps had some oils masking them. Or more likely you marred it up when drying.

I always blow dry - especially nice on a coated car, then NEVER touch the car with a dry microfiber. I don't even use detail spray and a dry MF rag. Anything that touches my car will be dampened with some Uber Rinseless wash and wrung out completely. I will spritz on some of my "blue juice" frankendetailer made up of ECH20 / Reload and Distilled Water, but even there, I will wipe it off with a damp cloth. No buffing needed.

I find the above keeps my car in perfection mode.
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His isn't pure black though, or at least not what I call pure black. His is a metallic paint which usually has a different clear in my experience. different doesn't always mean softer either. I know with Suburu there is a huge difference in hardness between metallic and non metallic paint. I want to say it's the metallic cc that is super soft, it may be the other way around??

I just did a couple pure black, or non metallic black BMWs. They were a little older, but the paint on those was rock hard.
 
2 Major ways to avoid swirl marks from washing:

1. Pressure wash the car first to remove as much dirt as possible.
2. When drying the car, use a lubricatant to prevent scratching. This can be a spray wax, a quick wax, a quick detailer.
 
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