Ask-A-Pro: How to Effectively Polish BMW Jet Black Paint?

Hi Guys!

Late last year I purchased a Meguiar’s G110 6″ dual action polisher, but due to the onset of Winter, I have not used it yet. I recently purchased a 2004 BMW 745i, Jet Black…

… I bought the polisher just for personal use — hopefully it will do well by me, since I now own it! It says use 1-3 for waxing and polishing, and 3-5 for swirl removal and cleaning. I also bought a few pads.

I am very concerned about not being too aggressive, being an amateur. I have always waxed by hand, previously. I will read your previous articles, but would appreciate any tips you could give me for my particular situation. I am particularly interested in product recommendations for this black beauty, and also for the metal wheels, which are BMW 18-inch stock wheels. They are pretty clean now, and I want to make it easy to keep them that way. I will wait to buy product until I hear what you have to say. I was very impressed with the Cadillac V. Shows what can be done, though my BMW seems in much better shape to begin with. But what do I know?! One headlight glass cover is dulled, and I have purchased a kit but it has not responded well to hand-polishing, and I intend to use a drill, as they suggest, though carefully.

The car has 50,000 miles on it. I live in Denver, where the sun beats down pretty well almost year ’round.

Thanks!

Brian

Hi Brian,  very good to see you trying to tackle the job yourself!  I don’t think there is anything more rewarding to us detailers (you are one now, of course), than seeing a car looks better-than-new and knowing we did that!

What I’m going to do is answer each question independently.  It may seem like a lot of context, but don’t be afraid to ask more questions in the comment box below after!

You need-not worry about getting overly aggressive with your G110 in terms of permanently damaging the paint.  It is very, very hard to strike through the clear coat with a dual-action polisher like the G110.  Here is a great article on how to polish with the G110.  (It says Porter Cable, but they’re essentially the same machine!).

In terms of the rock chips.  It is up to you if you want to have the whole panel repainted, or just clear bra over the rock chips.  It is very hard to do a “touch up” on rock chips and make them look half way decent.  So I always tell my clients to get them filled (airbrushed) professionally, or wait to do the whole panel at once.  But if you’re worried about chipping the paint further with the machine, I wouldn’t worry too much.  I’ve never personally encountered an issue when polishing over rock chips (such as chipping more of the paint off).  But with the panel being repainted (possibly bondo’d too?) I wouldn’t take any chances.  Just take a small piece of 3M painters tape, and stick it over the chip.

As for product recommendations, I would go with Meguiars M105 with a few 5.5″ Lake Country Orange or Cyan pads.  Followed with Meguiars M205 and a few Lake Country Black or Tangerine pads. Don’t be confused between the Orange/Cyan and the Black/Tangerine.  They are mostly the same cut, but the newer pads (Cyan and Tangerine) are made with a different type of foam, making them perform better, make polish last longer, and give you better results in the long run.  Also, with the headlights, you can use this combo on them, too! With the G110–say on speed 4 or so, if you feel uncomfortable using a drill. To maximize your results with the  polishes, please read our tutorial on how to use Meguiar’s M105 and M205.

Here are the results I was able to achieve using similar results on a 2006 Jet Black 545i I worked on recently:

For the wheels, I recommend P21s Gel Wheel Cleaner.

Here are the results I was able to achieve:

Before:

After:

For wax, the newest sealant on the market that has gotten rave reviews across the board would be Menzerna Power Lock polymer sealant.  It will give you almost the same look of a carnuba wax (deep, wet reflections), with the durability of a polymer sealant (lasting 3-6 months in most occasions).

And some more similar results:

I hope this helps you a bit more on your endeavors in starting to catch the detailing bug! If you have any further questions, comments or concerns please comment below and we’ll be happy to help!

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