Ultimate new car exterior detail

JAMES VTI S

I carried out an ultimate new car exterior detail on this volcanic orange Mini Cooper (f56). My friend Fergal drove from Cork city dropping the car off on Sunday and collecting again afternoon on Wednesday so that was plenty of time to give the car our full attention.


After a thorough inspection i noticed five problem areas.

1. Stone chips on the bonnet
2. Wheels highly contaminated with brake dust
3. The paint was slightly weathered and swirled
4. The glass would need polishing to remove chemical etching/ghosting
5. The exhaust tip needed protection from the corrosive exhaust soot

First step was to thoroughly wash and clean all exterior surfaces and I started this with a citrus pre-wash to remove heavy dirt.



After pressure washing away the heavy dirt a second application was applied to the front where the bugs were dried on solid, this was allowed to dwell and would be removed in the next process.

Next was to hand wash the car, I use the best wash mitts from carpro which are made from lambs wool. A great buy for anyone looking for a durable yet soft wash mitt, I have this for about three years now!

The hard to reach areas were agitated with a soft bristle brush.


After another pressure rinse the inner bodywork areas needed to be cleaned, areas like the fuel filler, booth and door jambs/shuts, plastic and rubber trims. Here I used a medium strength all purpose cleaner (APC) to remove any grease and dirt.







Front and back number plates were removed and the covered paintwork was cleaned in the same APC.

JAMES VTI S

The next step is the most important, the paint is now washed and dried but still is not fully clean its not totally smooth which means that there is contamination stuck onto the paint and this will need to be removed if the ceramic paint protection is to bond correctly with the paint.
First was to remove any tar deposits.

Next iron fallout was removed with carpro Iron-x





Final step is to clay the paint and glass 100% free of contamination, I used a clay pad and spray lubricant by hand.

After a final hand wash the exterior was dried and brought inside, to finish the detail.
The stone chips needed to be fixed which I done with the correct volcanic orange BMW paint.



While the paint was drying I removed the wheels so they could be detailed correctly.

First the tires were deep cleaned free of dirt, grime and blooming with strong APC and a strong bristle brush.

On to wheels which were very badly contaminated with iron, surprising for a car only four months old!

And tar deposits next, autosmart tardis being used here.

Final step was to dry the wheels and remove any grease and chemical residue from the wheels paint in preparation for the ceramic coating, this was done with isopropyl alcohol (50% mix).
I applied Carpro Dlux to the wheels with a foam block and suede cloth.

The calipers also got a cleaning (picture taken during the cleaning process)

The wheels were refitted and after looking through the owners manual I found that the wheel bolts needed to be tightened to 140 NM of torque.

JAMES VTI S

I dressed the tires with a Matt finish dressing

Next I concentrated on the paintwork, first step was to remove any imperfection which were light hazing and swirling, Carpro reflect was used on a lake country polishing pad with the every trustworthy kestral DAS6.

After an isopropyl alcohol (20% mix) wipe down to remove any polish residue we're left with a bright and flawless finish!

Now to protect that finish I applied Carpro Cquartz UK ceramic paint protection coating with a foam block rapped in suede cloth.


The finsh was very deep and rich.
Next up I machine polished the glass with the same combination as on the paint and done an isopropyl alcohol wipe down then applied Gtechniq G1 the G2.

The exhaust needed a polishing, and for ease of cleaning I applied Carpro Dlux.



Some inside reflection shots (still using my samsung galaxy s6)

JAMES VTI S

Video showing the clarity and brightness of the finish.

And finally some outside shots with the Cannon 550D DSLR






Some pictures when the car was on show in the UK at the Mini OC

punisher5112

Savage work.

JAMES VTI S

Thanks!

edburg

Great work.

I'd be bit pissed with BMW if paint is chipping so easy on a new car.

JAMES VTI S

edburg wrote: »

Great work.

I'd be bit pissed with BMW if paint is chipping so easy on a new car.

Thanks. It's a bummer alright, only four months old!

punisher5112

If I ever bought a brand new car I know where I would be sending it to be worked on.

MetzgerMeister

Superb work James!

It doesn't matter how old or new a car is, if a stone hits the paint it WILL chip it. The only way to stop it is a ghastly bonnet bra or a clear permatech-style wrap.

Voodoomelon

Look tyre fitters/garages, that's how you re-tighten wheel nuts!

Great work.

JAMES VTI S

I have seen year old cars from Cork city just up the road from this car with less than one handful of chips, and one of them is a bmw also, x5 so a very flat front. Remember this car was 4 months old!! And there was a few chips I didn't photograph.

edburg

MetzgerMeister wrote: »

Superb work James!

It doesn't matter how old or new a car is, if a stone hits the paint it WILL chip it. The only way to stop it is a ghastly bonnet bra or a clear permatech-style wrap.

The old 2pac paints are much better at taking a hit compared to the eco water paints.

Part of the rust guarantee with some manufacturers will have that repaired, although not in ireland so much as people just don't service or have car inspected by those pesky fraudulent dealers on regular basis.

JAMES VTI S

That's it (imo), too much 'eco' going into materials these days.

SoupyNorman

Amazing stuff.

JAMES VTI S

Thanks everyone for the kind comments!

SoupyNorman

JAMES VTI S wrote: »

Thanks everyone for the kind comments!

The closeup shots of the tar melting are heavenly

Theboinkmaster

Amazing, great thread thanks

JAMES VTI S

You're welcome. Thanks also.

traco

Super work!

readytosnap

Looks Amazing but also looks like a lot of work, question is, what sort of money is it to get something of that quality done?

JAMES VTI S

Thanks guys.

GustavoFring

Excellent work James.

JAMES VTI S

Thank you.

Slattsy

Unbelievable work, serious kudos!

JAMES VTI S

Appreciate it.

chases0102

Fantastic stuff - great attention to detail, and indeed work ethic.

I have bought a silver i40 recently, and, as a poster mentioned above that unfortunately low-level damage and chips on the body are inevitable, I would love to fix some of mine on my new car.

My question is, as the OP expertly did above, can they be satisfactorily filled using paint? And if so, how can one find out the exact paint that would do it?

JAMES VTI S

Go to you local i40 dealer with your registration number and chassis code, there you'll get OE paint.

It's OE (original equipment) paint I used above to fill in the chips.

chases0102

Cheers James, will do, thanks for that!!