BMW white

dogma

New member
I am buying a 2009 BMW with alpine white paint. The paint looks pretty good, but doesn`t look real shiny. The seller said its because BMW uses a flat looking white paint. Is this true? What can I do? I only have a PC7424. I have just sold my red Mazda that I had since 06 when I bought it new. The paint was perfect. What products? which pads? I have a lot of products, but everything worked on my Mazda.

Some products I have:

HD polish, HD speed
Kenotc polish
Opt poly seal, GPS
Car Pro essence
prima Amigo
Wolf shine and seal
 
as long as the paint is not mixed with a flattening agent (like matte paint or something) then you can get it to shine

I`d give essence and your wolf shine and seal a shot based off what you listed... maybe hd polis with a cutting pad before if its necessary
 
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Wash
Decon (iron removal/clay)
Wash
Polish
LSP
 
"Flat looking white paint"? News to me. My 2010 is Alpine white. (Alpineweiss 3 on the label under the hood). It looks good to me with glossier LSP`s. Yours looks great in the pics. Try the prima amigo you have, then top it with a good sealant. FK1000 is a good choice, but there a lot of LSP`s that look good on that white. I haven`t played around with carnubas much on this car but sealants and maintenance QD`s work well. Try this out, 50/50 mix of Sonax BSD and Chemical Guys V7 over a sealant. Slick feel with crazy water beading.
 
Alpine white is definitely not flat. It`s very glossy especially when polished to perfection.

White will never be as glossy and wet as darker colored cars. It`s just the nature of white paint.

Here`s a 2013 F30 328i I detailed in Alpine white:
Detailed: 2012 BMW F30 328i - Alpine White

Here`s my car in Alpine White as well:
Review: Wolfgang Fuzion Spray Wax

Do you have any pics of yours? I`m guessing it`s either full of swirls or oxidized like crazy both causing the paint to look flat.
 
I am picking it up in a few hours. It was overcast the 2 days I went to see and drive it. I noticed it didn`t shine like my Mazda, but I have been taking care of my Mazda since it was new. I never had to a full correction detail. I have the PC7424 and tons of products. I just took a look at what I have, some stuff is years old. Is the paint different from 09 to 2012?

Car pro Essence
Prima swirl, prima amigo
HD speed, HD polish ,HD uno
Wolfs shine and seal, shine and glaze, carnauba glaze
Optimum GPS, Poly seal
Zaino aio
clear coat red moose glaze, moose wax
Fusion
Supernatural hybrid

a lot more too
 
Decontaminate; polish to perfection; apply FK1000P; wash/dry without marring it. Oughta be simply blinding in sunlight. I simply *LOVE* FK1000P on a white vehicle.
 
I let someone borrow my fk1000p and they never gave it back. I still the pink wax.

Which polish and what pads should I use?
 
I have a 2011 BMW 335d Alpine White and it is very shiny. Decon, clay, wash, compound, polish, protect. The paint may not shine if it has been repainted. If it was a bad repaint, there is not much you can do.
 
I picked it up today. It`s not as bad as I thought, but still has deep swirls. I was surprised it has a nice shine, it doesn`t look flat. I tried all my AIO`s and they did nothing for the swirls. What pads for my PC? I may have to find professional help.
 
Start with a white lc pad and abrasive of your choice.

If you`re worried about trying to get rid of the swirls, try pb white diamond then pb ex till it is corrected.
 
IMO most people are *very* surprised by how aggressive they have to get to remove "just swirls" using a PC. While I have zero experience with recent BMWs, I`d be amazed if it didn`t require a pretty aggressive compound for at least part of the job.
 
Good that its not as bad as you thought. My Alpine White was pretty swirled up when I bought it, and I was absolutely floored with how hard the paint was. It ended up taking multiple sessions with MF cutting pads and Griots Fast Correcting Creme with a G15 long throw. Ron suggested a good starting point above for test spot, then gradually increase the aggressiveness of the combination of product and pads until you are getting the result you want. If the paint is anything like mine, you may may end up way more aggressive than you originally thought. This is certainly doable, but might be a pretty major project in terms of time and effort if you are using a porter cable. Certainly not insurmountable, definitely have fun with the process, but this won`t be something you can expect to knock out in a day, or even a weekend if its badly swirled.
 
RMD- Very good post, especially the part about how it`ll go slowly.

Panel-by-panel over a period of time has a lot going for it IMO.
 
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