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      02-03-2015, 07:26 PM   #1
hyperboost
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Rant -> Clear Coat too thin

Today I was checking over the car and found a chip on the CF roof....
The car has only 19xx miles. I don't tailgate, or do anything that may damage the paint from daily driving. I do understand winter in New England is rough on cars but I try to baby this thing as much as possible. The car has venture shield/clear bra in the front.
There are already tiny chips on the windshield and also the headlight covers.
I try to ignore small things as much as I can but this is pissing me off. I was driving home the whole way thinking of the chip on the carbon roof... WTF BMW

I would say this car is fragile in term of exterior finish and some rattles here and there in the cabin. Time to start drive it like I stole it.
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      02-03-2015, 07:37 PM   #2
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Damn, that sucks. I'm hoping that I make it home from SC without any chips, and it's off to the shop for full front, hood, roof, and rear quarter panels.
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      02-03-2015, 07:49 PM   #3
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....so go clear bra crazy, roger that.
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      02-03-2015, 07:58 PM   #4
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I have experienced the same disappointment with the paint thickness and quality with regards to the aluminum hood and front fascia, likely related to road debris. I already have sub-centimeter defects to the front of my M3...this issue has been previously recognized by many other BMW owners, hence the large aftermarket on protective films and clear bras.

At the end of the day it can be fixed...for a price...
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      02-03-2015, 08:06 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by X2Board View Post
Damn, that sucks. I'm hoping that I make it home from SC without any chips, and it's off to the shop for full front, hood, roof, and rear quarter panels.
Hopefully you won't have to drive on I-26...we have terrible roads in FL, but that highway (of course the same one you have to take from the PCD in Greer, SC) has to be one of the worst...potholes the size of craters and poor shoulder work on both sides of the road.

Good luck
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      02-03-2015, 08:57 PM   #6
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BMW paint has been getting thinner and thinner.

Back in the glory days of old BMW they were in the 5 mils.

By the time E9x came around it was barely 4 mils (my Evo is in the mid to high 3's, talk about budget).

That's why those early 90 BMW paints look nice and thick from the factory, because they were.

All this to save half a can of paint a car, ridiculous.

I am afraid if chips bother you then clear bra is a must nowadays. Find a good guy and have the car wrapped before you drive it off the lot.
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      02-03-2015, 09:15 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by hyperboost View Post
Today I was checking over the car and found a chip on the CF roof....
The car has only 19xx miles. I don't tailgate, or do anything that may damage the paint from daily driving. I do understand winter in New England is rough on cars but I try to baby this thing as much as possible. The car has venture shield/clear bra in the front.
There are already tiny chips on the windshield and also the headlight covers.
I try to ignore small things as much as I can but this is pissing me off. I was driving home the whole way thinking of the chip on the carbon roof... WTF BMW

I would say this car is fragile in term of exterior finish and some rattles here and there in the cabin. Time to start drive it like I stole it.
Did you buy or lease ?

I beat my F30 to hell, 100mph highway blasts with florida bugs at night time through the swamp. Didn't wash her for 5 months. Took me 3 hours to get the bugs off of the front bumper, and surprisingly the paint held up pretty well. I'm not going to say that there isn't some serious marring and micro scratches. Even complete perforations through the paint down to the metal. But overall after a year of abuse, she's holding up with 22k miles. I will say that the paint sucks balls on these new cars, but I'm also driving mine like i stole it. When I get my M3 I'm going to beat her up too, only live once.
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      02-03-2015, 09:17 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by hyperboost View Post

I would say this car is fragile in term of exterior finish and some rattles here and there in the cabin. Time to start drive it like I stole it.

It's no different than any other car. Any car that's driven on a freeway is going to get chips, especially in the winter. The cabin rattles can easily be fixed. Mine had a couple too, and with a bit of felt tape from Amazon they were gone in 15 minutes. Search the F30 forums.
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Last edited by Racer20; 02-03-2015 at 09:30 PM..
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      02-03-2015, 09:38 PM   #9
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Threads like this make me happy that I went with a clear bra. I've driven around 3500 miles and the whole front end looks factory new. Not a single blemish/chip anywhere *knock on wood*.
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      02-03-2015, 09:52 PM   #10
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Agreed. That is why I had Suntek installed on the full hood, front bumper, front fenders, mirrors, A pillars, headlights( a must), side skirts, lower rear bumper and the carbon fiber roof ( a definite must).
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      02-03-2015, 09:53 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by volkl23 View Post
Threads like this make me happy that I went with a clear bra. I've driven around 3500 miles and the whole front end looks factory new. Not a single blemish/chip anywhere *knock on wood*.
You should definitely look into wrapping that quarter panel then, the flared fenders are rock magnets. 3500 miles on mines too and i got about 7-8 tiny rock chips on both panels so I had those wrapped too.
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      02-03-2015, 09:54 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by hyperboost View Post
Today I was checking over the car and found a chip on the CF roof....
The car has only 19xx miles. I don't tailgate, or do anything that may damage the paint from daily driving. I do understand winter in New England is rough on cars but I try to baby this thing as much as possible. The car has venture shield/clear bra in the front.
There are already tiny chips on the windshield and also the headlight covers.
I try to ignore small things as much as I can but this is pissing me off. I was driving home the whole way thinking of the chip on the carbon roof... WTF BMW

I would say this car is fragile in term of exterior finish and some rattles here and there in the cabin. Time to start drive it like I stole it.
Time to do this before you get more!


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      02-03-2015, 10:03 PM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Wei718 View Post
You should definitely look into wrapping that quarter panel then, the flared fenders are rock magnets. 3500 miles on mines too and i got about 7-8 tiny rock chips on both panels so I had those wrapped too.
I did I wrapped the rocker panel and the rear quarter panels after I heard stories of the rear flares developing rock chips.
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      02-03-2015, 10:05 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by volkl23 View Post
I did I wrapped the rocker panel and the rear quarter panels after I heard stories of the rear flares developing rock chips.
Great! Did you wrapped the full panels extending all the way to the front? I only partially wrapped mines following the body line.
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      02-03-2015, 10:20 PM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jacky Treehorn View Post
Did you buy or lease ?

I beat my F30 to hell, 100mph highway blasts with florida bugs at night time through the swamp. Didn't wash her for 5 months. Took me 3 hours to get the bugs off of the front bumper, and surprisingly the paint held up pretty well. I'm not going to say that there isn't some serious marring and micro scratches. Even complete perforations through the paint down to the metal. But overall after a year of abuse, she's holding up with 22k miles. I will say that the paint sucks balls on these new cars, but I'm also driving mine like i stole it. When I get my M3 I'm going to beat her up too, only live once.
you had bug protection lol. I leased. I drive the car hard when it's warmed up and I will take it to the track. For me, I just want my car to look clean and new as much as I can keep it that way

Quote:
Originally Posted by stuka View Post
BMW paint has been getting thinner and thinner.

Back in the glory days of old BMW they were in the 5 mils.

By the time E9x came around it was barely 4 mils (my Evo is in the mid to high 3's, talk about budget).

That's why those early 90 BMW paints look nice and thick from the factory, because they were.

All this to save half a can of paint a car, ridiculous.

I am afraid if chips bother you then clear bra is a must nowadays. Find a good guy and have the car wrapped before you drive it off the lot.
I completely agree.
There are drawbacks of the clear bra. It doesn't fit perfectly when you really look into it. The front end has a lot of sharp edges and angles.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Racer20 View Post
It's no different than any other car. Any car that's driven on a freeway is going to get chips, especially in the winter. The cabin rattles can easily be fixed. Mine had a couple too, and with a bit of felt tape from Amazon they were gone in 15 minutes. Search the F30 forums.
I have read about that already. The small rattle noises don't bother me that much. It just adds up and then all the small things drive you nuts if you know what I mean. Thanks for the pointers.
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      02-03-2015, 10:22 PM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Wei718 View Post
Time to do this before you get more!
that looks GREAT. I didn't know it was offered . I will take a look into it.
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      02-03-2015, 10:26 PM   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Vigilant View Post
I have experienced the same disappointment with the paint thickness and quality with regards to the aluminum hood and front fascia, likely related to road debris. I already have sub-centimeter defects to the front of my M3...this issue has been previously recognized by many other BMW owners, hence the large aftermarket on protective films and clear bras.

At the end of the day it can be fixed...for a price...
Yes for a price everything can be fixed. After some years of modding and owning cars; I definitely see a benefit of having OEM stuff. There is some orange peel in the paint but it's still OEM paint. The more you get older the more stuff annoys you..
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      02-03-2015, 10:29 PM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Vigilant View Post
Hopefully you won't have to drive on I-26...we have terrible roads in FL, but that highway (of course the same one you have to take from the PCD in Greer, SC) has to be one of the worst...potholes the size of craters and poor shoulder work on both sides of the road.

Good luck
I wish I had the option of getting it done at the PC.
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      02-04-2015, 07:00 AM   #19
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I recommend covering the front edge of the CF roof every time I get a client asking about film.
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      02-04-2015, 07:59 AM   #20
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Guess I'm lucky. 1700 naked miles and no chips. I do have opti gloss coat but I don't think that protects against rocks.

*knocks on wood*
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      02-04-2015, 08:37 AM   #21
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I'm really thinking about just getting some bulk stock and putting the film on myself. It isn't very difficult, and you just have to have some patience, a steady hand and plenty of baby soap. lol
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      02-04-2015, 08:39 AM   #22
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I'm considering getting some sort of clear wrap protection, but for you guys that have it: Can you tell it's there? You just wash over it, like you would if there was no film? What about waxing? Thanks.
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