Help - Frozen Grey

[m3nova]

I have just ordered my new M3 sedan for ED in July. Have until Monday morning to make changes and have a couple of questions.

Have ordered the following: Frozen Grey, Black Novillo, Piano Black, Comp Package, Executive Package, MDrive.

There are only 5 Frozen Greys being allocated to Canada for now and I have one of them booked. After I completed the order, though, could't stop thinking about the maintenance concerns and its hard to really find answers. What I have heard is:

a. Can't polish, wax, buff or clay at all, ever;
b. Can only wash with non wax based soap;
c. Bugs, etc should be removed every 2 days;
d. No 3M or other protective products available;
e. Light scratches cannot be buffed out;
f. Chips, dings, etc difficult to match.

All that aside, the car looks smoking hot, though.

What do you think?

[JOHNBMWM5]

Originally Posted by m3nova

I have just ordered my new M3 sedan for ED in July. Have until Monday morning to make changes and have a couple of questions.

Have ordered the following: Frozen Grey, Black Novillo, Piano Black, Comp Package, Executive Package, MDrive.

There are only 5 Frozen Greys being allocated to Canada for now and I have one of them booked. After I completed the order, though, could't stop thinking about the maintenance concerns and its hard to really find answers. What I have heard is:

a. Can't polish, wax, buff or clay at all, ever;
b. Can only wash with non wax based soap;
c. Bugs, etc should be removed every 2 days;
d. No 3M or other protective products available;
e. Light scratches cannot be buffed out;
f. Chips, dings, etc difficult to match.

All that aside, the car looks smoking hot, though.

What do you think?

Not a colour I would entertain, no polish no this no that, no to the colour.

[Gearhead999s]

With those limitations,I would not even think about that colour in Canada.

[GnokGnik]

I didn't realize how hard it is to maintain Frozen Gray. You pay for uniqueness...but most people will not know any better, to them its silverstone or space gray

[Jaypod]

Since you ordered a sedan I am going to guess this is probably a DD? If so, not sure I would go that route for the reasons you mentioned. As a weekend car etc. sure. Maybe just go Space Grey and get it wrapped instead?

[m3nova]

Yeah, its going to be a DD so it will definitely get will get its share of abuse on Canadian roads (salt, sand, etc, etc).

[Bob MG]

I was thinking if doing a frozen Grey wrap for S & G's

Maintenance of the actual paint will be very difficult. Colour matching if you ever need to repair a panel will be near to impossible so don't ding her EVER

[nusevad]

damn those are some strict limitations....but its worth the look.

[swamp2]

Many of those restrictions sound like utter BS. It is a car, a production car, not a fragile work of art. I call BS specifically on:

a - any car can be clayed and waxed
b - for the most part soap is soap
c - bugs should be removed from any car regularly but 2 days is BS
f - generally true of any car

What is the source of this information? Show me a quote or I say BS

[zedsain]

I've owned a Frozen Grey M3 for almost three months now and can confirm that most of the restrictions/limitations that have been circulating about this paint finish are in fact BS. Very few people have first-hand experience of owning this specific vehicle so take everything you hear/read with a grain of salt.

Yes, you are not supposed to polish the car. It will comprimise the matte finish. Having said that, the matte finish is also a lot less "sticky" than regular glossy paint finishes. What i mean by this is that it is much easier getting shit off the frozen grey finish than it is on regular finishes. Two weeks after i bought my car i discovered that something with a red paint finish had scraped the front right bumber of my car. On a regular paint finish, polish would've been the only way to go. But with the matte finish, i simply wet a cleaning cloth with some water and voila, the red paint came off within seconds. I was shocked at how easily it came off. And so unwanted paint from other vehicles won't stick to your car as easily.

Also, i've noticed that when i take the car through an auto wash, the matte finish isn't as suscpetible to the swirls that usually start appearing on glossy paint finishes. I've only owned the car for 3 months so i dont know if this will hold true but my previous regular paint finish car started showing swirls in the first three months of ownership.

There's always drawbacks with anything of course and this finish isnt any different. Here are some that i have experienced thus far:

1. When you grind the car against something, like let's say you get too close to the pavement while parking the car at the mall or something like that, it doesn't just leave a rough-feeling scratch on the body of the car. The paint finish actually looks like it is peeling off somehow. That was bit surprising for me, it looked like what you'd expect a piece of plastic to look like in the same situation.

2. This finish is a dust/sand/dirt particles magnet. If it's dusty your car will be the first to get covered and it shows! This paint job definitely needs a daily wash/rub. Really.

So that's been my experience so far. Like the previous post said, this is a production vehicle paint finish and so it is BS to say that it will be difficult to match the color during a repair. That's not true. It can be fixed and matched at the dealership.

Also, the look that this paint finish gives you is super sick. Haven't seen anything like it. Everytime you see your car you will have a huge smile on your face, and others will be staring like crazy.

In short, go for it man. You'll never regret it.

[M3Bliss]

Look at it this way even if you don't like it because it is a scarce commodity it will probably hold its value better than a standard M3 and it may be easier to sell to a private party. Life is short, take a chance. Hell, its an M3 what can be the downside to that.

[JOHNBMWM5]

Originally Posted by M3Bliss

Look at it this way even if you don't like it because it is a scarce commodity it will probably hold its value better than a standard M3 and it may be easier to sell to a private party.

I very much doubt this, it's your choice but me ........... NO

[quality_sound]

To make it easy just have the whole car wrapped in a matte paint protection film. That way you maintain the matte finish and you don't have to worry about the paint and how ot maintain it.

[gthal]

If, and that's IF, those restrictions are true, I would avoid this color for a Canadian daily driver. It's difficult enough to maintain a car when you CAN care for it properly but if you can't wax, seal, clay or polish then the car would look like crap after a winter or two. I REALLY question the restriction on sealant/wax though and call BS on that. The polishing I understand (maybe).

But the color would be so unique and different, I would want it if I were you, so I would make sure those restrictions are true. If so, I would then avoid it.

[m3nova]

I am really hoping some of the facts I picked up are BS, but I doubt it. Here are some of the observations from avlnch who owns an M5 Frozen Grey (link posted). Here is what he has to say:

Verry different and difficult to maintain. Rock chips show up very easy on this paint.. you cannot detail this car. All you can do is wash it with a special car shampoo that has NO wax-anything-ingredient in the formula. You cannot let bird crap sit on the paint, because if it does any damage, you cannot buff/clay/wax/polish the paint. If it ever gets scratched, you have to bring it to a bodyshop and have it repainted. You also have to remove any bug juice off the front bumper at least every 3 days but I do it every other day.

Car Wash Shampoo = Mothers California Gold
Bug/Insect Remover = BMW's Insect Remover (available at dealer)
*for anybody with this color, know that you cannot use any tire shine product. if any over spray or the tire shine product gets onto the paint, it could destroy the matte appearance.

The use of any wrong product (any wax, the wrong car shampoo/insect remover) will cause damage to the paint, creating gloss spots.

There is paint, and a clear coat on the car. If any water/rain hits the paint, it beads off as if it were a detailed car. So there is something on the paint. BMW Individual / M is in the midst of creating maintenance products, but they are doing extensive R&D on the product they are creating (including long-term testing - necessary before they can brand it as a BMW Product).

Frozen Grey is a great color. The metallic flake the matte paint really something special.
I always keep my cars very clean, inside and outside, so this extra maintenance isn't too bad. By Spring 2010 BMW should be finished with R&D and send the product(s) out to me.


http://www.m5board.com/vbulletin/e60...-2010-a-2.html

Again, this is a current owner of a Frozen Grey M5... I am not looking to slam the colour or spread BS. After all, I have ordered it. Just trying to make sure that I will not be disappointed and only have until tomorrow to make changes to my order. Appreciate all of the comments, especially from those who have it!

zedsain: I am guessing you have pretty good road conditions where you are. Given our really bad roads, salt/sand on the roads in the winter, etc, do you think keeping the colour maintained will be doable? Have you had any minor dings (like the paint crumbling) touched up yet? Did it turn out well?

[quality_sound]

Again,

Wrap the enire car with a matte paint protection film and be done with it.

[Mark's M]

Wow, do you ever have a lot to think about, pros and cons to the points we talked about yesterday. My suggestion.....wrap up all of these comments into an e-mail today and send it off so that our CA in Germany can read it all first thing tomorrow morning and provide feedback. Input from the current owners of the FG M3 and M5 were fantastic but I still saw of couple of red flags that would concern me. But that's me and my opinion. This is going to be YOUR car.

This hasn't made things any easier, has it?????

Good luck, Mark

[Kdawgm3]

As sick as it looks, no way I go with this color. Even Zedsain, who says "go for it", has plenty of arguments aginst this color in his post. As said above, go SG and then wrap in matte.

[quality_sound]

I didn't say to wrap SG in a matte film. I'm saying get FG and wrap that in a matte film.

[Polarcharger]

Swissvax makes a wax for matte finishes. They make outstanding (and expensive) products. I encourage you to look at their web page and the detailing thread on this forum for more information.

I wouldn't let finish care dissuade me from the matte finish.

From Swissvax (get the Pre-cleaner Opaque too):

SE1015117 Product Price: $55.00 Total Shipping Package Weight: 1.00 kilograms
Quantity:
Premium wax specially developed for all satin matt paintwork types (incl. foils) with 40 Vol. % of pure Brazilian Grade One Carnauba.
Offers your automobile's paintwork thorough long term protection against all kinds of negative immissions without damaging its satin matt appearance.
Very easy to apply.
Prepare the paintwork with Pre-Cleaner Opaque prior to the wax application.
Conventional polishes, waxes and insect removers should not be used on matt paintwork and will most likely cause damage. Please only use products which were specifically developed for matt paintwork like the Swissvax «Opaque» product line which will not damage the matt surface appearance. Swissvax Opaque wax is a premium wax for all satin matt paintwork types (including foils). Thanks to its formulation including 40 Vol. % of pure Brazilian Grade One Carnauba wax it offers your automobile's satin matt paintwork thorough long term protection against all kinds of negative immissions, bug tar and fingerprints.

Thanks to its proverbial ease of application and the perfect results it provides, Opaque is very popular both with private collectors and enthusiasts and professional users.

A wax container of 50ml is sufficient for 2 to 5 wax applications whereby we recommend you to wax your vehicle every 3 - 6 months meaning that one container of wax allows you to maintain your automobile investment for one or two years.

Before Opaque is applied, the paint has to be prepared with Swissvax Pre-Cleaner Opaque in order to ensure that the paintwork surface is perfectly clean and free of contaminations of old wax, acid rain, tar, insects and other remains. Perfect preparation is the key to the world famous Swissvax finish to ensure that the wax can perfectly bond to the paintwork surface.

[m3nova]

Thanks Polarcharger. Very helpful! Have heard great things about the Swissvax stuff.

[karussell]

Originally Posted by quality_sound

I didn't say to wrap SG in a matte film. I'm saying get FG and wrap that in a matte film.

wrap the entire car in matte ppf to protect the matte film from being glossy. thats funny. i wonder if the special nature of matte clear coat has any unintended effects like the glue from PPF sticking to a porous structure versus the clearcoat. also a wrap for an entire car (PPF) is easily $3K.

sounds like its too tough to maintain for a daily driver unless you really want to be worried about it all the time.

flat clear coat on aftermarket always has problem of glossing out over time. just rubbing the clear coat will make it shinier over time.

i thought about a flat clear coat for another car I have ordered, but decided not to after reading up on the care involved since I do plan to drive the car and not keep it in a garage all its life.