BMW M3 Forum (E90 E92)

BMW Garage BMW Meets Register Search Today's Posts Mark Forums Read


Go Back   M3Post - BMW M3 Forum > E90/E92 M3 Technical Topics > Wash, Wax, Detail, Cosmetic Maintenance & Repairs
 
Post Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
      08-07-2018, 11:32 AM   #1
SoCalRPM
Captain
SoCalRPM's Avatar
886
Rep
942
Posts

Drives: e92 M3
Join Date: May 2017
Location: LA

iTrader: (0)

CQuartz - Scratch - Help

I recently had my car shipped and it looks like along the way someone wiped the hood with something they shouldn't have, like a dirty rag or something. It doesn't look too deep and I'm hopeful it won't be a headache to remove.

The car's paint is in otherwise great shape, so this was instantly obvious. It's currently coated with CQuartz.

I've been calling local detailers to get an estimate to correct just the hood, as this is something I'm hoping the shipping company can help take care of. I've been getting some wildly varying responses. One guy said they would charge $675, another $250, and someone else said $100. Some say it'll polish right out and then we can reapply the ceramic to the hood, someone else said the whole hood has to be wet sanded and then corrected.

Does anyone have input? Anything would be helpful. Thanks!

*Note* The arrow indicates the edge of a clear bra
Attached Images
  
Appreciate 0
      08-07-2018, 11:48 AM   #2
dparm
Stop the hate, get a V8
dparm's Avatar
United_States
3848
Rep
8,625
Posts

Drives: C7 Corvette GS, AMG C63 S
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: Frisco, TX

iTrader: (1)

Wet sanded? That seems pretty extreme. Can you catch the scratches with a fingernail?
__________________
Now: 2017 Corvette Grand Sport, 2021 AMG C63 S sedan
Past: 2011.5 M3 sedan ZCP
Appreciate 0
      08-07-2018, 12:01 PM   #3
SoCalRPM
Captain
SoCalRPM's Avatar
886
Rep
942
Posts

Drives: e92 M3
Join Date: May 2017
Location: LA

iTrader: (0)

Quote:
Originally Posted by dparm View Post
Wet sanded? That seems pretty extreme. Can you catch the scratches with a fingernail?
Negative. It appears to be really shallow. I asked about the wet sanding and he said that was to remove the ceramic, to then buff out the scratch, followed by reapplying ceramic.

I would otherwise assume a cut polish could take a lot of this out but my experience with ceramic coatings is limited. Also, the wide range of responses has me questioning the best approach.
Appreciate 0
      08-07-2018, 12:16 PM   #4
G80indy
Save the Manuals
G80indy's Avatar
United_States
1708
Rep
2,937
Posts

Drives: Z3, E46, G80
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Indy

iTrader: (0)

Dang!
Yet another reason I won't do ceramic coating.
Isn't the coating supposed to provide a sacrificial layer ? Just reapply?
I don't know jack about c coatings either lol.
__________________
2023 G80 6MT, CCBs
2002 330i Dinan, 5MT
2000 Z3 Conforti, 5MT
Appreciate 0
      08-07-2018, 12:53 PM   #5
zstreet86
Private First Class
United_States
116
Rep
161
Posts

Drives: 2011 E91 328i, 2008 e90 M3
Join Date: Apr 2018
Location: 35824

iTrader: (0)

Did you take your car to each of the detailers for the quote? It's impossible for them to know what it will take without them seeing it first, which could explain the wildly different quotes. If it were me and I was in a new area, I'd take my car to the highest reviewed/rated detailer (Google reviews, etc.) and have them tell me in person. By talking to them in person you should be able to know if they are legit or not. Also different shops have different standards, you get what you pay for in the auto-detailing world.
Appreciate 0
      08-07-2018, 01:14 PM   #6
dparm
Stop the hate, get a V8
dparm's Avatar
United_States
3848
Rep
8,625
Posts

Drives: C7 Corvette GS, AMG C63 S
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: Frisco, TX

iTrader: (1)

Quote:
Originally Posted by 330indy View Post
Dang!
Yet another reason I won't do ceramic coating.
Isn't the coating supposed to provide a sacrificial layer ? Just reapply?
I don't know jack about c coatings either lol.
The shop that told him this doesn't know what they're talking about. In theory you could apply Cquartz right over those scratches but they won't warranty/guarantee it since you didn't prep the surface.


Quote:
Originally Posted by SoCalRPM View Post
Negative. It appears to be really shallow. I asked about the wet sanding and he said that was to remove the ceramic, to then buff out the scratch, followed by reapplying ceramic.

I would otherwise assume a cut polish could take a lot of this out but my experience with ceramic coatings is limited. Also, the wide range of responses has me questioning the best approach.

That's ridiculous, wetsanding is not needed to remove ceramic coatings. It will just need to be machine polished. Find another Cquartz shop and have them assess it in-person. The shop which suggested doing the whole hood is probably worried about the new application not blending or bonding properly, so they just do the whole panel. I understand the reasoning there, but $675 seems kinda high to just do the hood.

Which Cquartz do you have, the consumer version or the professional one?
__________________
Now: 2017 Corvette Grand Sport, 2021 AMG C63 S sedan
Past: 2011.5 M3 sedan ZCP
Appreciate 2
      08-07-2018, 01:31 PM   #7
SoCalRPM
Captain
SoCalRPM's Avatar
886
Rep
942
Posts

Drives: e92 M3
Join Date: May 2017
Location: LA

iTrader: (0)

Quote:
Originally Posted by zstreet86 View Post
Did you take your car to each of the detailers for the quote? It's impossible for them to know what it will take without them seeing it first, which could explain the wildly different quotes. If it were me and I was in a new area, I'd take my car to the highest reviewed/rated detailer (Google reviews, etc.) and have them tell me in person. By talking to them in person you should be able to know if they are legit or not. Also different shops have different standards, you get what you pay for in the auto-detailing world.
Absolutely. I haven't been able to take the car anywhere this week or that would've been the first step. I have a mobile detailer coming out later this week to asses. I have sent pictures to people, but as we can see here, that's still limiting.

Yeah, one detail shop that was highly rated didn't even know what CQuartz was so that conversation ended right there.

Quote:
Originally Posted by dparm View Post
That's ridiculous, wetsanding is not needed to remove ceramic coatings. It will just need to be machine polished. Find another Cquartz shop and have them assess it in-person. The shop which suggested doing the whole hood is probably worried about the new application not blending or bonding properly, so they just do the whole panel. I understand the reasoning there, but $675 seems kinda high to just do the hood.

Which Cquartz do you have, the consumer version or the professional one?
I completely agree. It sounded a bit ludicrous, which is what led me to reach out for help so I can gather more info. I would definitely think doing the whole hood would be the most ideal, though.

I'm honestly not sure which CQuartz. It was installed via a detailer by the previous owner. It's been around a year so I think the Professional line was less available then, but who knows
Appreciate 0
      08-08-2018, 08:16 AM   #8
jeff@autocouture
BimmerPost Supporting Vendor
jeff@autocouture's Avatar
963
Rep
13,778
Posts


Drives: 2002 E53 X5 4.6is
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: New Jersey

iTrader: (0)

Quote:
Originally Posted by dparm View Post
The shop that told him this doesn't know what they're talking about. In theory you could apply Cquartz right over those scratches but they won't warranty/guarantee it since you didn't prep the surface.





That's ridiculous, wetsanding is not needed to remove ceramic coatings. It will just need to be machine polished. Find another Cquartz shop and have them assess it in-person. The shop which suggested doing the whole hood is probably worried about the new application not blending or bonding properly, so they just do the whole panel. I understand the reasoning there, but $675 seems kinda high to just do the hood.

Which Cquartz do you have, the consumer version or the professional one?
This, Just repolish and reapply coating.
Appreciate 0
      08-08-2018, 09:42 AM   #9
SoCalRPM
Captain
SoCalRPM's Avatar
886
Rep
942
Posts

Drives: e92 M3
Join Date: May 2017
Location: LA

iTrader: (0)

Quote:
Originally Posted by jeff@autocouture View Post
This, Just repolish and reapply coating.
Thank you. If it's indeed that simple, that's good news. I figured, but again my CQ experience is limited.
Appreciate 0
      08-08-2018, 09:48 AM   #10
EnVe46
Major
EnVe46's Avatar
1038
Rep
1,216
Posts

Drives: 11 E90 M3 LeMansBlue
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: Fort Lauderdale, Fl

iTrader: (1)

There are special polishes to be used with the Cquartz coating. Tell the guy who said it needed wet sanding to fawk right off. If they were deep, you'd need to wet sand. Those are essentially the level of swirls, easy to remove.
__________________
2011.5 E90 M3
LeMans Blue
Appreciate 0
      08-08-2018, 10:13 AM   #11
SoCalRPM
Captain
SoCalRPM's Avatar
886
Rep
942
Posts

Drives: e92 M3
Join Date: May 2017
Location: LA

iTrader: (0)

Quote:
Originally Posted by EnVe46 View Post
There are special polishes to be used with the Cquartz coating. Tell the guy who said it needed wet sanding to fawk right off. If they were deep, you'd need to wet sand. Those are essentially the level of swirls, easy to remove.
Any product you recommend?
Appreciate 0
      08-08-2018, 10:26 AM   #12
EnVe46
Major
EnVe46's Avatar
1038
Rep
1,216
Posts

Drives: 11 E90 M3 LeMansBlue
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: Fort Lauderdale, Fl

iTrader: (1)

Quote:
Originally Posted by SoCalRPM View Post
Any product you recommend?
Carpro makes sealant safe polishes. Just need to find an authorized Cquartz guy and let him see the scratches. They should know it
__________________
2011.5 E90 M3
LeMans Blue
Appreciate 0
      08-08-2018, 01:43 PM   #13
SoCalRPM
Captain
SoCalRPM's Avatar
886
Rep
942
Posts

Drives: e92 M3
Join Date: May 2017
Location: LA

iTrader: (0)

Quote:
Originally Posted by EnVe46 View Post
Carpro makes sealant safe polishes. Just need to find an authorized Cquartz guy and let him see the scratches. They should know it
The closest authorized installer is about an hour drive. If I can't find someone local that's otherwise capable, maybe I'll try this option. Thanks!
Appreciate 0
      08-08-2018, 08:04 PM   #14
admranger
Retired Curmudgeon
admranger's Avatar
United_States
2981
Rep
4,046
Posts

Drives: ‘19 X3M40i, ‘18 m550i
Join Date: May 2011
Location: Las Vegas, NV

iTrader: (1)

just polish with a very light polish, isopropyl alcohol wipe, apply new coat of cQuartz.
__________________

'19 X3 M40 Carbon Black/Oyster, '23 Jeep Grand Cherokee L Summit, Past BMWs: '18 M550i, '18 330 GT, '16 X5 40e, '11 E90M3, '06 X5 4.4, '03 330i ZHP, '02 M3, '97 Z3 2.8, '95 M3 (2x), '94 530i (manual), '92 525i (manual), '88 M3, '87 325iS
Appreciate 0
      08-09-2018, 05:50 AM   #15
EnVe46
Major
EnVe46's Avatar
1038
Rep
1,216
Posts

Drives: 11 E90 M3 LeMansBlue
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: Fort Lauderdale, Fl

iTrader: (1)

Quote:
Originally Posted by SoCalRPM View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by EnVe46 View Post
Carpro makes sealant safe polishes. Just need to find an authorized Cquartz guy and let him see the scratches. They should know it
The closest authorized installer is about an hour drive. If I can't find someone local that's otherwise capable, maybe I'll try this option. Thanks!
In my experience, your better off making the drive. Authorized detailers with Cquartz are properly trained for these exact situations.
__________________
2011.5 E90 M3
LeMans Blue
Appreciate 0
      08-10-2018, 11:06 AM   #16
SoCalRPM
Captain
SoCalRPM's Avatar
886
Rep
942
Posts

Drives: e92 M3
Join Date: May 2017
Location: LA

iTrader: (0)

A few updates:

I spoke with two authorized CQuartz installers --

One was too booked to take on the work, but was kind enough to lend some tips -- They said it's possible to polish this down, depending on the product and the pad used and then reapply the CQ.

The other authorized installer was willing to take on the work, and quoted appx. $800 to correct the entire hood.

I also had a highly reputable detailer (primarily exotics) come out and take a look and they recommended wet sanding. They referred to it as liquid sandpaper, 5k grit equivalent. Then proceed with compound and polish as necessary before reapplying a CQ. The reason for this is that polishing or compounding alone may not take down all of the coating and if you reapply a new layer of coating on top of that, it could begin to take on a milky appearance that will dull the shine. Additionally, this detailer much preferred GTechniq to any CQuartz variant. They quoted $1200 to take down the existing coating, correct, then reapply a CQ on the entire vehicle.

Additionally, I reached out to Pan the Organizer and Larry @ Ammo NYC for some more input, and because I've always wanted to connect I guess lol. Pan got back right away and said to try Essence Plus with a DA, no need to reapply CQ after as Essence Plus (not regular Essence) is a top coat that adds Si02 to existing coatings.
Appreciate 0
      08-10-2018, 01:35 PM   #17
EnVe46
Major
EnVe46's Avatar
1038
Rep
1,216
Posts

Drives: 11 E90 M3 LeMansBlue
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: Fort Lauderdale, Fl

iTrader: (1)

Quote:
Originally Posted by SoCalRPM View Post
A few updates:

I spoke with two authorized CQuartz installers --

One was too booked to take on the work, but was kind enough to lend some tips -- They said it's possible to polish this down, depending on the product and the pad used and then reapply the CQ.

The other authorized installer was willing to take on the work, and quoted appx. $800 to correct the entire hood.

I also had a highly reputable detailer (primarily exotics) come out and take a look and they recommended wet sanding. They referred to it as liquid sandpaper, 5k grit equivalent. Then proceed with compound and polish as necessary before reapplying a CQ. The reason for this is that polishing or compounding alone may not take down all of the coating and if you reapply a new layer of coating on top of that, it could begin to take on a milky appearance that will dull the shine. Additionally, this detailer much preferred GTechniq to any CQuartz variant. They quoted $1200 to take down the existing coating, correct, then reapply a CQ on the entire vehicle.

Additionally, I reached out to Pan the Organizer and Larry @ Ammo NYC for some more input, and because I've always wanted to connect I guess lol. Pan got back right away and said to try Essence Plus with a DA, no need to reapply CQ after as Essence Plus (not regular Essence) is a top coat that adds Si02 to existing coatings.
The answer is right there. Those scratches are not deep enough to require a full correction. At least from what I can tell. My car will be due for a refresh with Cquartz here soon and the process is a polish like Essence Plus in majority of areas, cut in some problems areas and reload in everywhere except the rough areas that see a lot of swirls and scratches. However, Ill be doing Xpel all around most likely
__________________
2011.5 E90 M3
LeMans Blue
Appreciate 0
      08-11-2018, 12:21 PM   #18
SoCalRPM
Captain
SoCalRPM's Avatar
886
Rep
942
Posts

Drives: e92 M3
Join Date: May 2017
Location: LA

iTrader: (0)

Quote:
Originally Posted by EnVe46 View Post
The answer is right there. Those scratches are not deep enough to require a full correction. At least from what I can tell. My car will be due for a refresh with Cquartz here soon and the process is a polish like Essence Plus in majority of areas, cut in some problems areas and reload in everywhere except the rough areas that see a lot of swirls and scratches. However, Ill be doing Xpel all around most likely
Nice. Thank you. I'm debating on whether to do the Essence Plus and reload all around to extend the coating.

Or--

I do need to remove the clear bra at some point to address some rock chips. That will leave half of the hood un-coated so I may just take down all of the coating to start fresh.

What parts of the car are you adding Xpel?
Appreciate 0
      08-11-2018, 03:15 PM   #19
EnVe46
Major
EnVe46's Avatar
1038
Rep
1,216
Posts

Drives: 11 E90 M3 LeMansBlue
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: Fort Lauderdale, Fl

iTrader: (1)

Quote:
Originally Posted by SoCalRPM View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by EnVe46 View Post
The answer is right there. Those scratches are not deep enough to require a full correction. At least from what I can tell. My car will be due for a refresh with Cquartz here soon and the process is a polish like Essence Plus in majority of areas, cut in some problems areas and reload in everywhere except the rough areas that see a lot of swirls and scratches. However, Ill be doing Xpel all around most likely
Nice. Thank you. I'm debating on whether to do the Essence Plus and reload all around to extend the coating.

Or--

I do need to remove the clear bra at some point to address some rock chips. That will leave half of the hood un-coated so I may just take down all of the coating to start fresh.

What parts of the car are you adding Xpel?
I'm thinking about doing the whole front, rockers, rear wheel arches, roof and trunk. Any surface that's flat and sees lots of action.
__________________
2011.5 E90 M3
LeMans Blue
Appreciate 0
Post Reply

Bookmarks

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off



All times are GMT -5. The time now is 06:03 AM.




m3post
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions Inc.
1Addicts.com, BIMMERPOST.com, E90Post.com, F30Post.com, M3Post.com, ZPost.com, 5Post.com, 6Post.com, 7Post.com, XBimmers.com logo and trademark are properties of BIMMERPOST