faded red 318is

Mon Sep 17, 2007 12:01 pm

hi i've bought a 318is in red and the bumpers and mirrors have faded to pink, i've t-cutted the body and its come up pretty well, does anyone know of any product that wil bring the red back on the plastic bits? trying to avoid painting so i can spend on the engine!

also what side skirts will fit the car? looks unfinished without skirts imo.

how much would you lower the car by? i dont want it on its arse, handling badly, its on 15" bbs with 205/50/15's

cheers, tom.

Mon Sep 17, 2007 12:38 pm

You could try to mop the plastics to bring the colour back.Most people tend to fit the se side skirts to these cars.

Mon Sep 17, 2007 12:47 pm

You wont want to hear this but Basically mate, your fighting a losing battle, sorry!

I had a red 318is that faded pink, I T-cut it, red polished it etc, but I was fighting a losing battle. The more you T-cut the worse it comes back the next time, you'll be cutting it every week soon!
I ended up biting the bullet and had a full respray done plus laquer, as did my mate with his red Alfa, same problem. Red is a nastey colour to look after when it gets old. You don't realise how much they fade until you've seen the car resprayed the origonal colour.
As a guide line it cost me Ã‚£1000 cash to have a full respray.

Look for E30 touring side skirts, they look good, nice a subtle but make a difference. I had Zender side sills on mine which look like slightly larger versions of the touring ones, picked them up in a scrap yard for Ã‚£20, bargain!
I colour coded the lower rear section of the back bumper as well which looks better in my opinion.

I've got some pictures of it somewhere before and after the above work was done, i'll see if I can fish them out.

Can't comment on the suspension as I leave all my E30's their standard height. Sports springs and shock lower it enough I think.

Mon Sep 17, 2007 12:52 pm

I think the se side skirts look sweet on the iS IMO, check out my bro's iS on here. pal318is and its brilliant red.

rips

Mon Sep 17, 2007 1:13 pm

jonny320is wrote:You wont want to hear this but Basically mate, your fighting a losing battle, sorry!

I had a red 318is that faded pink, I T-cut it, red polished it etc, but I was fighting a losing battle. The more you T-cut the worse it comes back the next time, you'll be cutting it every week soon!
I ended up biting the bullet and had a full respray done plus laquer, as did my mate with his red Alfa, same problem. Red is a nastey colour to look after when it gets old. You don't realise how much they fade until you've seen the car resprayed the origonal colour.
As a guide line it cost me Ã‚£1000 cash to have a full respray.

Look for E30 touring side skirts, they look good, nice a subtle but make a difference. I had Zender side sills on mine which look like slightly larger versions of the touring ones, picked them up in a scrap yard for Ã‚£20, bargain!
I colour coded the lower rear section of the back bumper as well which looks better in my opinion.

I've got some pictures of it somewhere before and after the above work was done, i'll see if I can fish them out.

Can't comment on the suspension as I leave all my E30's their standard height. Sports springs and shock lower it enough I think.

cheers mate, i'l have to get it painted then i guess!, the rest of the car is sound so might be able to get away with just doin the plastic bits. i hope anyway!

Mon Sep 17, 2007 1:43 pm

i look after my dads car which is zinnobar red, when he got it it was faded etc so i got out my detailing kit and set to work.

a polish later and a decent wax it hasnt faded for almost 3 months in the slightest,

a pic of his car to show what it is now like.

Mon Sep 17, 2007 1:49 pm

try simoniz back to black spray, worked wonders on a blue escort which bumpers were almost white, I was ready to repray them until some simoniz landed on them by accident and it worked a treat

Mon Sep 17, 2007 3:09 pm

1an wrote:i look after my dads car which is zinnobar red, when he got it it was faded etc so i got out my detailing kit and set to work.

a polish later and a decent wax it hasnt faded for almost 3 months in the slightest,

a pic of his car to show what it is now like.

Thats because we've had no sun for almost 4 months, LOL!

Mon Sep 17, 2007 3:53 pm

or the fact ive invested money in some decent products? plus it will fade even with no sun due to acid rain.

Mon Sep 17, 2007 4:28 pm

1an wrote:or the fact ive invested money in some decent products? plus it will fade even with no sun due to acid rain.

Joke!

I've now bought some Zymol Titanium, not like the stuff you buy at halfords, something that provides quality long lasting protection. beautiful deep gloss finish.
Might be worth a try if you dont want to waste the money on paint.

Mon Sep 17, 2007 9:56 pm

T-Cut is nasty stuff,buy some quality detailing products like Zaino ,Poorboys ,Wolfgang,cut,polish, and then use a sealant.
Wash it reguraly when done remembering to dry it off completely to avoid water stains.

Cheaper than a respray!

Tue Sep 18, 2007 1:18 am

When I bought my M3 it was faded badly (although in very good condition interms of being straight and rust).

I tried porter cable and G3 and the metalwork came up ok but the plastic (being quite a large % of the car) didnt.

Had to have a full respray but fitted a new scuttle at the same time to save cost in future years!

Yes, I know the M3 badge was on the wrong side.

Tue Sep 18, 2007 1:19 am

After:

Tue Sep 18, 2007 6:38 am

Falkster wrote:After:

i love it.....