BMW 323i saved.

I'm only half way done through this right now. But since I'm doing it 2 distinct stages I thought it would good enough to post up the first half here since it's been a little bit since I've posted up a good walkthrough here.



First let me appoligize for the pics.. Today I oblerterated my Sony DSLR by dropping it yet again by catching the strap and shattering the screen on it.... There's $700 out the friggin window... Anyways switched back to my Kodak point and shoot so some of the pics just didn't turn out to great....





Anyways... Got a BMW 323i in and at first glance it looked to be in great shape. Nothing out of the ordinary. Some scratches in the decklid and a bumper bing in the back...Then the customer shows me the issue at hand and why he brought it to me in the first place. (He heard I was good and thought this would be a good project for me to shine on) The interior is supposed to be 2 shades of brown. A light almost yellow oak color and then a dark brown. He just aquired this car from an auction in Indiana and apparently for some genious reason they decided to paint the seats dark grey. There is no grey anywhere on this car so I don't get the decsion on this one. But I LOVE customers like this really. it was "Jake it's a used car I know it's a used car so I don't expect much. But I'm in no hurry to get the car back I heard you work wonders on interiors and just do what you can because anything has to be better than this" LOL Music to my ears really. We agreed on a starting price and I told him what would change the price tag any and we went from there. I'm figureing on a 2 day detail here. The first stage is changing this god aweful paint job on the seats back to it's original color and the 2nd day is for the detail itself. Pretty much done with the first stage.. So for those of you that tend to like interior work sit back and enjoy this one. I think he's going to like it.





Arrival everything seems normal.



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But putting the top down really shows just how bad this paint job was... Yes paint. Not dye... Hard cracking stupid paint and they never even bothered taping anything off so there's overspray on everything inside.



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here's what the colors should be



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bad paint job



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They didn't even remove the headrest before painting... The orignal color still on the underside.



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I ended up sanding all the old grey color off and getting back to a soft leather again



Started with the headrest to get a feel of what steps were going to be needed.



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Side by side of before and after..



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remove the seats to get it done right.



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Sanded down the seat with 220 grit nice and aoft like



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Prepped for dye.. Using SEM"s light Oak dye.



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Now the cracks in the drivers seat were pretty deep and I wasn't going to get them all out. and there was a slight tear down in front. However it looks tons better than it did.



the headrest and the back console



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The rear seat out and prepped



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rear seat half and half



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Front seats side by side



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I couldn't figure out to pop the top half of the back seat so I unbolted anything in the way and taped off the edges and started in on that..



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Of course tons more to come. I still have to finish up the top half of the back seat tomorrow (ran out of dye) and then do the detail and put it all back together. Right now I'm having a lot of fun with this one and loving the way it's turning out... More to come tomorrow guys..



Jake
 
:nana::nana::nana::nana::nana::nana::nana::nana::nana::nana:I hate teasers! lmao!:nana::nana::nana::nana::nana::nana::nana::nana::nana:
 
Well I sand it down to the soft leather. I tested out some vodoo on the headrest to see if it would soften things up a bit more. But basically just after sanding I blew it all off with the air gun then a damp APC wipe down to take care of any dusting that may be left over let dry then heat it up with a heat gun to let the dye adhere better and lay flatter (Thanks Barry!!) going to be a fun day tomorrow
 
That is some fantastic work. It looks like it is going to be a great turnaround.



Do me a favor and do not get too HIGH from the dye fumes. (HEHE) You are going to need to be in your right mind for the exterior detail tomorrow.



I hope that you are wearing a paint respirator.
 
howareb said:
It looks great, just do not get too HIGH from the dye fumes. (HEHE)



I hope that you are wearing a paint respirator.





Ya know that would be the smart thing to do... Sadly I'm not... But the garage door is wide open and I have a little fan that cirrculates the air around a bit.... ( I know I know... not the same)
 
Wow Jake, one of the most amazing things I've ever seen on a detailing forum! Can't wait to see the finished product.
 
It's actual leather dye by SEM.



On a Side note (and I'll probably make another thread because I could really use an answer here quick) Anyone know how to reset the gears on the vert top on these? Apparently that lever under the back seat is a manual override and once you pull it they disengage and I can't figure out how to re-ingage them. I read through the owners manual and the only thing it says is it's an override for electrical issues that may arise and I can manually close (or open) the top but I need to take it to the local BMW dealership to have it fixed.... Well it's not broken by any means but I can't figure out how to reset this bad devil.
 
Michigan's King of Interiors is back at it! I dont even know what to say about this one.... it's sick. i can't believe how great they seem to be coming out! keep up the good work and I can't wait to see the full thread: certainly hall-of-fame before and afters on the interior
 
Jakerooni said:
It's actual leather dye by SEM.



On a Side note (and I'll probably make another thread because I could really use an answer here quick) Anyone know how to reset the gears on the vert top on these? Apparently that lever under the back seat is a manual override and once you pull it they disengage and I can't figure out how to re-ingage them. I read through the owners manual and the only thing it says is it's an override for electrical issues that may arise and I can manually close (or open) the top but I need to take it to the local BMW dealership to have it fixed.... Well it's not broken by any means but I can't figure out how to reset this bad devil.



Starts about 2:20 into the video tutorial on how to reset it.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=boiybaJkMrI]YouTube - BMW DIY #3 E36 Top Repair[/ame]
 
Incredible work Jake ... my Aurora is in need of a good dye repair like that. Have you found a new location for your shop yet?? Can't wait to see the end result
 
LOl well since my lack of foresight didn't save a spot on page 1 for the finished work I guess it get's to go here... Finally done with this beast.





Yesterday was the Dye portion. Today was dedicated to the detail side of life...



Since the seats were out I gave the carpets the most complete scrub down I garunteed they've ever had. Some Purple Power APC a good scrub brush and the HWE made all the difference in the world..



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The results are a super clean and smooth carpet that you could almost eat off of.





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The back seats all dyed up and ready for install



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Back together again... Looking like it should now..



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The spare tire had obviously been used and needed some attention as well



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After



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Engine bay looking like it should again



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So How did the interior turn out after it was all put back together??





Well I do think the customer will like it



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Uggg... Done!! LOL.. All in all this one was alot of fun. Learned a few new things along the way. (Don't disengage the vert tops on BMW's!!!!) Hope you guys enjoyed it... Thanks for reading along.
 
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