BMW X5 Sterling Gray - First of 9 Bimmers for Feb

I

imported_Totoland Mach

New member
Nothing like having a full plate for February! The dealer has 9 BMW's for this month...gonna be busy at least.



First up is this X5 4.6i with 41/k. The finish was in good shape despite the mileage: usual light scratching and swirls and a few chips, but nothing major.



Prior to initial power washing:



05X5Sterling_Before2.jpg




05X5Sterling_Before3.jpg




Into the shop and on the lift! Tackled the exhaust tips and rear hatch first (gotta start somewhere)



05X5Sterling_ExhaustBefore.jpg




I used 2000 grit paper soaked in Adams Metal Polish #2. Gives a nice, OEM appearance.



05X5Sterling_Exhaustafter.jpg




On to the body: Started with System One Polish and their wool/foam pad. I later switched to an Edge yellow wool 6" pad because I'm just more comfortable with a smaller diameter pad. It seems so much easier to work with the smaller size IMO.



05X5Sterling_X3woolpsngrSide.jpg




System One Polish after the foam polishing process. This has been a true time saver for me over the 3M process because I used to power wash after compounding to remove any dust/grit. With the System One, I eliminated that wash step and go right from wool to foam for finish work.



05X5afterX3foam.jpg




Finally got the vehicle out for a final wash prior to waxing. I'll finish up with an LSP today, then tackle the interior.



05X5OutsideRear_Licorice.jpg




05X5OutsideShot.jpg




05X5OutsideSunShot.jpg




Sterling Gray is definitely one of the best colors in the BMW lineup...at certain angles the silver really jumps and at others, the gray is predominant.



Toto
 
Toto,



As always it looks great. When are we going to get to see some more pics of the Mach? I chuckle everytime I see your avatar...My dogs wouldnt be that patient with the glasses.





Is that Adam's undercarriage dressing on the black trim and in the wells?
 
Way2SSlow said:
Toto,



As always it looks great. When are we going to get to see some more pics of the Mach? I chuckle everytime I see your avatar...My dogs wouldnt be that patient with the glasses.





Is that Adam's undercarriage dressing on the black trim and in the wells?
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Thanks Sir: she's real patient on those glasses! knows a car ride is coming when I put them on her.



No to the Adams undercarriage....I don't even know if they can sell or ship that product any more. I used what little I had some time ago. I used a sample of System One's Licorice dressing. Nice stuff and is not greasy at all.



Here's a couple of Mach pics for Ya



SLP_Installed.jpg




MachSide.jpg




DoubleBorder_Mach_Pic.jpg




Toto
 
Great work!



That X5 looks like a 2004, no? I absolutely hate those wheels to clean. I wash my neighbor's weekly in good weather and I can't stand those wheels! I use a soft paint brush to get between the spokes and an EZ Detail brush to get the inside rims. Taping up that plastic is a pain too when it comes time to polish.



Your car looks mean! Very cool.
 
Great work. I think the lift helps you alot to detail the lower areas properly. Even a quite cheap wash and wax place near me use a lift, so I think it's strange not more detailers have one here on autopia also?
 
Splichy: The car is an 05 4.4i....I also have an 04 4.4i in the front of the shop and the wheels are identical. They are a pita to do properly that's for sure.



Mark77: That lift is definitely the dream tool for doing the lower portion of any vehicle. The other shop that I contracted with for Ferrari and Lamborghini work did not have a lift and I HATED it....especially those low slung vehicles. Probably spent 2x the time in doing the lower portions of Ferrari's correctly.



Toto
 
Great job Toto! Nice color, and youre work really brings that out! I hope none of those 9 Bimmers is the black....such a PITA to work with, so soft.
 
grease said:
Great job Toto! Nice color, and youre work really brings that out! I hope none of those 9 Bimmers is the black....such a PITA to work with, so soft.
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Thanks Grease: 3 of the 9 are black.....which is better than one month last fall when I had 7 of 8 BMW's in black....



Toto
 
Great detail I can tell how thoroughly it was cleaned. :clap:



As for your Mach1 I've got to say that is one of the best/cleanest undercarriages I've seen. Plus it looks like you've got a straight through catback which is 10x better than that Dronemaster stuff (looked like SLP but I think it's Borla because it's full stainless).



Good work!
 
Red96GT said:
Great detail I can tell how thoroughly it was cleaned. :clap:



As for your Mach1 I've got to say that is one of the best/cleanest undercarriages I've seen. Plus it looks like you've got a straight through catback which is 10x better than that Dronemaster stuff (looked like SLP but I think it's Borla because it's full stainless).



Good work!
Click to expand...



Actually, it's an SLP Loudmouth II that I fully polished. I had the original Loudmouth cans and it was waaaaaay too loud. The II's have a packed core and soften the sound to a deep rumble.



The tubing was polished by hand and drill with cotton buffing wheels. Lot'sa work and I would use a bench polisher next time LOL.



Toto
 
Wow that must have taken some serious work to polish it like that. I've got the Loudmouth 1 paired with a Catted X pipe on my car...it's loud but I wouldn't have it any other way. :xyxthumbs
 
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