BMW Jet Black --What now??

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emm3tt

New member
I have a 2 month old 135i in Jet Black. The Performance Center used some kind of cheap glaze or wax that is noticeably coming off, so I washed and clayed the car today and got the PC out. I used #83 on a 4" orange pad on speed 6, and after finishing 1 panel that I had masked off, the area that I had worked on had more marring and was noticeably less clear than the side I hadn't touched. What in the world did I do wrong??



Help. :help:
 
I toyed around on my aunts 300 series... not quite that new but a few years old. I noticed the paint to be super soft. Even 80 on a buffing pad left noticable marring. I think I resorted to scratchX and cleaner wax on a polishing pad... Think it turned out 95% marr free.
 
BigJimZ28 said:
83 and an orange pad is only step one



you will need 1,2, or more polishing steps to finish

before your LSP
Click to expand...



Understood, but I'm not used to seeing more marring and less clarity than when I started. :think:
 
Congratulations - you just bought one of the most finicky paint colors known to man. On that color, I probably would have started with 83 on a white pad, instead of orange. You will probably have to use 80 on a white or grey after the 83, and will need to finish with something like 82 on a grey or blue pad (assuming you are sticking with Meguiar's).
 
emm3tt said:
I have a 2 month old 135i in Jet Black. The Performance Center used some kind of cheap glaze or wax that is noticeably coming off, so I washed and clayed the car today and got the PC out. I used #83 on a 4" orange pad on speed 6, and after finishing 1 panel that I had masked off, the area that I had worked on had more marring and was noticeably less clear than the side I hadn't touched. What in the world did I do wrong??



Help. :help:
Click to expand...



Nothing...other than buying the Jet Black. ;) Seriously, though, that paint is beautiful, but it is, as weekendwarrior said, one of the very most difficult paints to maintain, because it is so soft, a clean MF can mar it.



Once you have corrected the swirls/defects/etc., IME the very best finishing polish for use on BMW jet black is 3M Ultrafina on either a blue or red foam pad. I like the red Edge wave pad the best. This combination should finish down to a beautiful gloss.



Menzerna Final Polish II (aka Micro Polish) is another really good choice for jet black bimmers, too.



Remember that you'll probably need to do multiple applications of whatever polish you decide on to get satisfactory results.



Can we talk you out of some pictures?



Edit: Also, when you remove the polish residue, you might want to consider using a very slick QD. I use FK1 425. Even the residual polish residue can re-mar the paint when you're removing it. Spritzing the area with a good slick QD helps to prevent this.
 
That paint sounds impossible to keep looking nice, I had one black car and it drove me nuts, so I know the feeling. Never again.
 
I think everyone hit the nail on the head



I will add one thing to the conversation. Use the least aggressive method first and work up. Use a polishing pad first before just grabbing the orange pad first. Some paint colors are finicky and can be taken care of with unusual combos.
 
One last tip - I have never seen paint as prone to streaking at the Jet Black. I would recommend removing your wax or sealant, and if there are streaks, don't worry about it. Just wait until the next day, and give the car a proper wash after the LSP has cured.



Otherwise, you'll be struggling to remove all the streaking, and will risk marring with all the wiping.
 
When this color first came out, I said yes to prep a 2 weeks old 3 series.



The only thing that worked was the rotary. In my case the PC chewed up the paint.



Never will I work on another. Not worth it. You just can't keep it looking decent. Worst paint by far.



I feel for you.
 
tdekany said:
When this color first came out, I said yes to prep a 2 weeks old 3 series.



The only thing that worked was the rotary. In my case the PC chewed up the paint.



Never will I work on another. Not worth it. You just can't keep it looking decent. Worst paint by far.



I feel for you.
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I've never tried to finish off bmw jet black with a PC, but what tdekany said makes perfect sense. I've never had any luck at all finishing soft paints with a DA style polisher, actually. Alot of people say you have to finish with a PC on soft paints to avoid holograms, but I've always been able to finish out soft stuff better with a rotary, a no bite pad, a fine polish (like UF or FPII), and slow-fast-slow RPMs. Hologram free, and none of that hazey looking stuff the PC seems to love to leave behind on soft paints.



Edit: I won't do BMW Jet Black cars anymore, either. At any price.
 
emm3tt said:
What in the world did I do wrong??



Help. :help:
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You bought a jet black BMW. ;)



You are going to have a hard time finishing out your paint haze free with a PC. Once you get the swirls out and polish it down with a finer polish, you will probably need a glaze with fillers to hide any light marring left over.



I've only been able to get them haze free with a rotary and 3M Ultrafina.
 
Jet Black? I feel your pain.





As a weekend warrior, yes, this paint is diffuclt to correct. I find it to be a hard paint in that removing swirls and scratches requires heavy-duty products (rotary / orange pad / Optimum Compund). But it also gets hazy easily.



I just detailed my Jet Black BMW 550i this weekend. After some spot work with the above OC approach on some obvious scrapes, I used a rotary with a white pad and Menzerna 106, followed by a PC with a white pad and Zaino ZPC. This worked well to create a bright, haze-free look, and cleaned up minor swirls.



I finished with two coats of Zaino Z-5 Pro and Zaino Clear Coat (with Z-6 in between and a Z-8 anchor).



As others have mentioned, you need to go over it again once or twice more with finishing products. But once you get the surface fully-corrected and well-protected, it should hold up well. My previous work (polishing) on my car was 18 months ago - and that held up very well with just periodic protections.



Good luck.



I probably will never buy another Jet Black car again - way too much worry and work. But when it's good, it's very good.



BMWDetailOct2008007.jpg
 
Tachyon said:
Jet Black? I feel your pain.





As a weekend warrior, yes, this paint is diffuclt to correct. I find it to be a hard paint in that removing swirls and scratches requires heavy-duty products (rotary / orange pad / Optimum Compund). But it also gets hazy easily.



I just detailed my Jet Black BMW 550i this weekend. After some spot work with the above OC approach on some obvious scrapes, I used a rotary with a white pad and Menzerna 106, followed by a PC with a white pad and Zaino ZPC. This worked well to create a bright, haze-free look, and cleaned up minor swirls.



I finished with two coats of Zaino Z-5 Pro and Zaino Clear Coat (with Z-6 in between and a Z-8 anchor).



As others have mentioned, you need to go over it again once or twice more with finishing products. But once you get the surface fully-corrected and well-protected, it should hold up well. My previous work (polishing) on my car was 18 months ago - and that held up very well with just periodic protections.



Good luck.



I probably will never buy another Jet Black car again - way too much worry and work. But when it's good, it's very good.



BMWDetailOct2008007.jpg
Click to expand...



Great Job!!!!:bow
 
Are the problems lots of people are mentioning to do with BMW's "Jet Black" color SPECIFICALLY, or to ALL of BMW's paint colors? I'm just wondering if it has to do with all their paints in general (quality, process), or just an issue with that one color.



The reason I'm asking is I'm considering the purchase of an E90 3-series next year, and possible colors I would choose include Crimson Red (non-metallic), Barbera Red (metallic), or Titanium Silver.



This thread was starting to scare me a little.
 
Inzane said:
Are the problems lots of people are mentioning to do with BMW's "Jet Black" color SPECIFICALLY, or to ALL of BMW's paint colors? I'm just wondering if it has to do with all their paints in general (quality, process), or just an issue with that one color.



The reason I'm asking is I'm considering the purchase of an E90 3-series next year, and possible colors I would choose include Crimson Red (non-metallic), Barbera Red (metallic), or Titanium Silver.



This thread was starting to scare me a little.
Click to expand...



The only BMW color I've come across that is this stupid soft is the Jet Black. All the other BMW's have what I would consider medium soft clear. Occasionally, you'll get a really hard one, but for the most part, I love correcting bimmers.
 
For the most part, I find BMW paint enjoyable to work on. It's the Jet Black specifically that is finicky. Sapphire Black is a cake walk, and looks stunning...I'd take it any day of the week over Jet Black.
 
Bimmer Jet Black will not even finish down clean with a PC, white pad, and FPII. There is a JB X3 in my family, I plan to practice with the rotary on it (lease up in a few months :D), I figure if I can finish clean with a rotary on that, I can finish on most anything. Polishes also have a tendency to fill on this paint.



Good luck washing it, too, it will accumulate enough marring after 6 or so carefull washes that it will look absolutely terrible to most people on this site.
 
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