Just joined the beemer club.....again

[a1sas]

1999 323i...I bought this from a guy at work who had it from 18 months old.
came out the factory with the full 'M' kit but with standard alloys.
So I thought I would treat myself to some 'era correct' M3 wheels...:)

Before......
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v520/A1SAS/bmw9.jpg
After.....
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v520/A1SAS/IMG_2293.jpg

[320what?]

This is stunningly good looking car. :) New wheels, new tyres. Sweet. just sweet. Welcome to fest and enjoy the car!

[E36 Phantom]

Yummy....gorgeous looking car.

Personally, I prefer the old wheels, I've never cared for the DSI/II's. But to each his own.

Either way, its still a stunning car!

[320what?]

dont listen to him. great wheels. :) Of course, the double spoke would be better but they are i reckon more rare and expensive... but those are the ones id want on my car if i had to replace the alpinas.

here is my photoshop.
http://img505.imageshack.us/img505/3194/photoshopedki9.jpg

[Gryz]

Congrats!

I like the color a lot! What is it called?

[a1sas]

Apparently it's sierra red.... or sienna red. Not quite sure

[320what?]

that car looks like its brand new. its disgusting!!! :D

[Gryz]

Yeah, the trim looks great too!

[bounzing_soulz]

wow, thats very nice. It looks spotless, and garage kept, and perfect. My car (328is) was the only one in North Carolina that was for sale at a reasonable price, and you can bet it has its flaws.

How many miles are on it?

[chizao]

Nice looking car and welcome to the fest.

[a1sas]

It's just gone over 93,000 miles.
It wasnt this clean when I bought it. I've spent about 40 hours in total just polishing and cleaning it. All the seats came out so I could clean all the runners. It took 6 hours alone to clean the back seats......
Here's what they looked like when I got it..
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v520/A1SAS/IMG_2269.jpg
And this is now...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v520/A1SAS/IMG_2282.jpg

[320what?]

Even more props to you then for restoring it back to the way it looks now. Got a pic of the car itself before the detailing job? What products did you use? really well done. the black trim looks spotless too. Pics of dash may be as well? :)

[a1sas]

1st I removed all the road tar with petrol then I used Meguiars clay bar to clean the paint work and get it smooth for polishing.
Then applied the Meguiars 3 step polish, step 1 cleans, step 2 is the polish itself and step 3 is a carnauba wax to give a deep finish.
then to top it off I used the Meguiars liquid gold just for good measure.
Probably just a load of marketing hype but it does look better now.
On the leather I used a nail brush and some anti static foam cleaner. It was like a river of mud running down the seats.... then I used some leather care to treat the seats.
here's a few more photo's. To be fair the before picture of the car doesnt show the whole story, It was covered in tar and had that horrible un polished look and feel to the paint work...
Before...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v520/A1SAS/before2.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v520/A1SAS/IMG_2271.jpg
After...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v520/A1SAS/IMG_2309.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v520/A1SAS/IMG_2308.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v520/A1SAS/IMG_2310.jpg
I toyed with the idea of keeping the stock radio in it but the auto volume adjust got on my nerves.

[a1sas]

It also had the usual intermittant climate control problem but a 25p capacitor fixed that...:D

[jason_recliner]

Oh my. :wow:

That leather is just astounding. You have inspired me.
Mine is quite worn though as well.

[Lanc3r]

I heart the analog clock.

[Pirate_copy]

Very nice buddy :thumbup:

Where you based?

[320what?]

AND you have that steering wheel. Damn it. :)

I wonder though, why Alpine makes such ugly looking head units.. they dont fit the bmw style at all, but i know they are very very good... if time comes to replace mine which is stock, ill go with some Blaupunkt, they seem to look closest to BMW interior.

[SewerSideUp]

INSANE ! ! ! Welcome to te 'Fest man.

And Congrats on the monster !!!

Truly a good job, paying attetion to detail is why it turns out amazing.

[SewerSideUp]

One more thing. Any noted difference in handling after installing the M3 rims ?

[a1sas]

320what..... I had the alpine unit from a previous car but was reluctant to put it in this one as the BMW head unit did fit in better with the interior but the volume adjusted with speed and it got on my nerves.

I started this thread with "Joined the beemer club again". Here's 2 other BMs I've had.
The 318i was my wifes car which we bought 6 years ago and kept for about 2 years and the 525i sport I bought about 3 years ago for £800. This was another car that started out as a dog but then polished up well.
I really liked the 525i sport. there's something about old cars in good condition that puts a smile on your face...
my fisrt BMW was a 1986 325i Tourer. That sounded sweet.(Sorry, no pics)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v520/A1SAS/100-0009_IMG.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v520/A1SAS/Pimpmobile.jpg

[a1sas]

Just found a photo of the 325i Tourer...
Sorry about the quality.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v520/A1SAS/IMG_2366.jpg

[VTi]

Man, I love the tourings! so sexy

[320what?]

id buy a car from you A1 SAS (and thats your old license plate?), seems you really keep them all in good condition. always nice to see that.

[a1sas]

Cheers 320.... I'm a bit anul when it comes to cleaning cars.
Here's a few other cars I've had recently.
2001 Alfa 156 Sportwagon...Only had it 2 months because the BMW came along so it had to go...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v520/A1SAS/IMG_2247.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v520/A1SAS/IMG_2246.jpg
The Wifes 1999 Golf GTI...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v520/A1SAS/DSC00069.jpg
1998 Merc E Class (my previous car before the Alfa)...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v520/A1SAS/IMG_1712.jpg
1986 Honda CRX taken 3 Years ago, Not sure if it still looks like this now...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v520/A1SAS/100-0004_IMG.jpg

[E36 Phantom]

I'm absolutely speechless, that interior........*****!!!!!!

You did a gorgeous job on that! BTW I use the same Meguiar's 3 step (You used Deep Crystal, right?), and I love it. I claybarred my last car and the difference almost knocked me over, now that its summer when things slow down I plan to do this one.

Never heard of using petrol to get off road tar and such. Good tip!

For the seats, what exactly did you use? Not sure what you mean by nail brush or the anti static foam cleaner. Mine look like yours used to (big thank you to my previous owner....) and that looks like it worked amazing, your seats look showroom new!

Oh, and great collection of cars...they *all* look showroom new!

[a1sas]

Anti static foam cleaner is a spray foam used generally on office keyboards and desk's etc... But thinking about it you could probably just use warm water with a good measure of washing up liquid (Palmolive dishwashing liquid in America :):) ).

All your doing is getting the grime off the seats. Don't be afraid to use too much.
Then after you've done that use a leather care cream to feed and protect the leather.

I cut the bristles down on my nail brush to make them stiffer so it would get into the creases of the leather. :thumbup:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v520/A1SAS/IMG_2369.jpg

[jason_recliner]

I believe that synthetic detergents aren't really good for leather.
Real soap is ok, but there are a million and one good leather cleaners out there.