Frozen Paint - Everything you've ever wanted to know - Including Washing & Detailing

Ilovemycar commented:
July 11, 2012, 8:04 pm

I don't like it, not on a computer monitor anyway. I've seen matte finishes on cars, and I'm just not a fan, though I'm not sure if I've see Frozen ones yet.

If I DID love the paint, I would put the effort towards taking care of it (if I could), but then another problem is that I'm pretty much not ever allowed to do any kind of correction to it. I have to hire some expensive, specialized, frozen paint guy every time. Yikes. Say I have some nice fat rock chip in the bumper: How much to repair it? Maybe I don't want to know. I'm going to go ahead and guess $2,000 though for discussion's sake.

Nordic_Kat commented:
July 11, 2012, 10:04 pm

Short Answer: No. Not because of time/energy investment, but because Frozen colors are a fad and not classic.

Long Answer:The appeal of frozen colors are very dependent upon hue. I have seen in person, an M3 E93 Frozen Gray at the Munich Niederlassung in 2010 and Frozen White on a 3er parked in front of one of the production halls at Regensburg, July 2011. While personally a fan of gray cars, the Frozen Gray (gefroren grau) to me was very aptly described by my father, who when I showed him the pics of the E93 quipped, "Jawohl, fanden sie etwas links über Primer aus dem letzten der Panzer.", (or some such thing). OTOH, the Frozen White (gefroren weiß) 3er I saw at Regensburg was beautiful in the morning sun. The finish looks much better in person with reflective vs. absorbtive hues. That being said, they are very much a fad/collectable and certainly not practical, especially for the American market, considering the lack of care demonstrated on a daily basis by the general status seeking BMW drivers (at least in my current market demographic).

Zeichen311 commented:
July 11, 2012, 11:29 pm

Agree on both the short and long forms.

I have seen in person the Frozen Grey, Frozen Black and Frozen Monte Carlo Blue M3s, as well as the Frozen Bronze 6er Gran Coupe. Almost everyone jokes initially that the first two look like primer, though of course there is an enormous difference. The blue and bronze are just plain gorgeous--but in an I'm-glad-they-made-it-but-I-wouldn't-want-to-own-one kind of way. They make terrific show cars. I would love to see one on the road from time to time. They work precisely because they are rare and dramatic. My feeling is that as frozen finishes become...well, if not commonplace then at least, more popular--they will go from exotic to merely peculiar in a New York minute.

And yet, dammit, I'd still take the blue one if Matt handed over the keys. I gotta admit, in the here and now, that thing is hot!

chris328 commented:
July 12, 2012, 10:49 am

im not really a fan. i guess it's unique and all that, but to me it just doesnt look that good, kind of like orange peel to the extreme.

cwinter commented:
July 12, 2012, 12:20 pm

It's unique, but given the amount of time I have to invest in car care, that paint job would look like utter crap within 6 months if I owned the car.

Matrixolution commented:
July 12, 2012, 12:39 pm

Another alternative would be vinyl wrapping it with Matt finish. Same result and it won't damage the paint (it actually protects the paint).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3LPfHk3gKo

vince217 commented:
July 12, 2012, 2:23 pm

i think it looks good on certain vehicles, like Escalades. I think i have seen an R8, it looked ok. haven't seen one on a BMW in person though.

3ismagic# commented:
July 12, 2012, 2:51 pm

Am i missing something? It seems like the upkeep is a a lot less than with a standard clear coat. Just a simple two-bucket wash and you are done. No worrying about swirls, waxing, polish etc. One thing I'm curious about is how it feels to the touch. Does it feel smooth and glossy or rough to the touch? Can it/need it be clayed?

A8hnaios commented:
August 17, 2012, 6:31 am

I Like it alot.!! is the future of the colors anyway..
Many people in yhe future they choose this color..

eventually BMW surprising us...

furby076 commented:
August 17, 2012, 12:09 pm

No wax/polish? Sign me up. I can bucket wash my car anytime...it's the other care that blows.

captainaudio commented:
August 17, 2012, 12:11 pm

There was a frozen blue M3 at BMW Manhattan when I took my car in for service on Tuesday. I thought it was hideous.

CA

espressomiata commented:
August 17, 2012, 12:34 pm

I don't understand why the maintenance would be different. It is clearcoated just like any other modern car and the clearcoat is the only coat that ever gets touched be it on a matte/frozen or standard finish. Swirls, some scratches, rubs, oxidation, etc., they are all in the clearcoat. You'll still have them on a frozen finish, they're just not as noticeable.

chris328 commented:
August 17, 2012, 1:21 pm

its just a load of hype basically to get people to give BMW even more $$

rgzimmer commented:
August 17, 2012, 2:52 pm

I was fortunate enough to see one of the M3's with frozen black at Cars N Coffee a few months ago. Bad A## beautiful looking car.

Ilovemycar commented:
August 17, 2012, 4:42 pm

Define maintenance. If you mean washing a car with soap and mitt, yes I'm sure it will be just fine to do so.

You want to polish it? Did you see the video? Scroll to about the 5 min mark. Putting a buffer to the paint will absolutely ruin the look.

Waxing is super easy man, just as easy as washing a car, I think maybe in fact it might even be easier. Polishing is hard work yes, but it's really only for beautification, and if anything it can only remove more clearcoat, and never add any additional layering. So if protection or longevity is the goal, just wax it. Forget the polish!

Use a synthetic polymer sealant, and use multiple layers if you feel like it. My two rides have different products, and they can both last half a year pretty easily. If you use a "traditional carnauba wax" that's just a matter of a few weeks. So try a sealant. If you do go through with it, when you wash, just be gentle with the mitt, the least amount of pressure necessary, and use the highest quality soap if possible (I highly recommend Griot's for wax longevity).

Or for greatest convenience, have a pro apply a coat of Opti Coat. It's permanent, until mechanically abraded away. It won't look quite as sexy, but I guess you're not looking for that?

DrSeuss99 commented:
August 18, 2012, 2:49 pm

Looks cool but I prefer the gloss mirror finish more