Innit for the Long Haul

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waynerp
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Innit for the Long Haul

Post by waynerp »

Hi All,
This is my first Z3 which i purchased a couple of weeks ago.
It was love at first sight, and every time i log onto this forum and see what some of you have done to yours is inspiring me to restore 'Burt' to his former glory.
He's a 98, 2.8, and has a gorgeous exhaust tone.
Body work is far from great, with dents galore and the paintwork is completely shot.
The roof is also in a fairly bad way, so a new one will be on its way soon
The interior is okish, but i have plans for that anyway.

So for the short term i am going to 'dip' the car a dark grey colour this weekend ( weather permitting )
As said this will be a temporary solution until i can afford a quality respray.
The dents are being removed tomorrow, and most of the gingercator clear replacements are on their way.
I intend to make this a long term project as it is going to be my daily run about, so reliability is the main concern at the moment.
Both front wings are either dented to hell or rusted.
I had a go at repairing the rusted one today and i think i have done a good job, so will only need the nearside replaced.

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http://s9.photobucket.com/user/waynerp/slideshow/Z3
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waynerp
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by waynerp »

Forgot to say. i have removed most of the exterior 'stuff' badges etc as getting ready for the dip.
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Southernboy
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by Southernboy »

I think you're going to be a very welcome member here too!... Look forward to watching Burt develop in your care.. :wink:
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bertiejaffa
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by bertiejaffa »

From one Bert to another Burt... welcome, its fun, hard work, annoying but very rewarding
Here come the girls.....
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TR4man
Joined: Wed 24 Oct, 2012 13:34
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by TR4man »

Burt??? :puzzle:
markhinton
Joined: Tue 11 Jun, 2013 16:01
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by markhinton »

Are you going to use plastidip? Will look cool in grey! Good luck! :-)
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waynerp
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by waynerp »

HI All.
So yep i had a crack at the Plastidip today.
Was a bit nervous as i've never tried anything like this before, but I figured the paintwork couldn't look any worse than it currently is.
So while i am saving the pennies for a full on respray i've dipped it 'Dark Grey', or to everyone else other than Plastidip, PRIMER grey !!!!
As I don't have a garage i purchased a cheap tent. All though it was a scorcher today it was a very brisk breeze and to be honest I should have waited another day, but I'm an inpatient Muppet so went ahead knowing dam well it could end in tears.

I started at 8am and wrapped up at 6pm. I still have a bit of finishing and getting some dip of the lights etc, but in all honesty it was a so easy. the finish is spot on, apart from the poxy flies that kept dying from the fumes and falling on the bodywork, and of course the tent that kept blowing into the car. if it was done in a garage it would have been perfect.
All I need to do now is give it a coat of gloss, and spray the grilles and wheels matt black.
I know it wont be to everyone's taste, but hey it cost £280 instead of £1000 + for a vinyl wrap or £1800 for a full respray, so it will do until i can get it done properly

Full Album Link Here http://s9.photobucket.com/user/waynerp/slideshow/Z3


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Davejue1
Joined: Sun 22 Sep, 2013 07:25
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by Davejue1 »

Bloody ell. Spray in a day!! :D That's a huge difference in such a short space of time. Well done for having a go! Your a braver man than me. Just one think, have you painted the high level brake light? :)

Cheers
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waynerp
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by waynerp »

Hi Dave.
Yes i wanted to see what it looked like with the brake light on but hey the lighting board has completely rusted through!!
I am going to try and repair it tomorrow, but the beauty of this plasti dip is that it just peels off! its amazing stuff, so if i dont want it on the high brake light i can just lightly cut around the edges with a razor blade and it simply peels off like a vinyl wrap, but easier.
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markhinton
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by markhinton »

I really like it. How many cans did you need to use?
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waynerp
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by waynerp »

I bought a starter kit from http://www.matt-pack.co.uk
Ingot 10 litres of premixed, but only used 5 litres.
So if you've already got a spray gun etc you could just get the paint for about £60 for 5 litres!
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waynerp
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by waynerp »

Managed to get the last bits plasti dipped today.
Must say it looks a lot nicer with a layer of gloss on top, and the black wheels actually look nice.
Still got LOADS to do....

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http://s9.photobucket.com/user/waynerp/slideshow/Z3
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waynerp
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by waynerp »

So i have been busy with work but i finally got round to adding a few top coats of what is supposed to be gun metal grey.
In all honesty it doesnt really look any different in the pictures, but in the flesh it is a lot darker and actually looks quite nice.
I also added some new after market halo headlights which although not real BMW in my opinion make the car look a lot younger.
Tomorrow i will be changing the door handle gaskets, and giving the door handles a quick spray.
Also got a new stereo to put in

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waynerp
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by waynerp »

Got a new roof fitted on Wednesday.
What a difference it makes.
Also fitted a strut bar.

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bertiejaffa
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by bertiejaffa »

Roof looks great - is it NEW new or reclaimed new?
Here come the girls.....
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waynerp
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by waynerp »

its a new one, fitted by soft tops in croydon.
Amazing value and uses the same material BMW use
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johnz3
Joined: Wed 13 Sep, 2006 10:27
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by johnz3 »

Where did you get your strut brace please and how much.

Thanks
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waynerp
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by waynerp »

roof £325 from here http://soft-tops.co.uk/
strut from orange tuning in Germany. £125 http://www.orange-tuning.de/shop/wieche ... 17103.html
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johnz3
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by johnz3 »

Thanks
Smartbear
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by Smartbear »

waynerp wrote:roof £325 from here http://soft-tops.co.uk/
strut from orange tuning in Germany. £125 http://www.orange-tuning.de/shop/wieche ... 17103.html
Hi, how much extra did they charge for fitting the new roof?
regards
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waynerp
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by waynerp »

nothing its £325 all in
half the price of many other fitters.
I have used them before when i had a mk1 golf.
Amazing value and he uses Twillfast, which is what is used on the Aston Martin DB7, Audi 80 Cabriolet, Jaguar XK8, BMW Z3 and Z8 Roadsters,and the VW Golf
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bertiejaffa
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by bertiejaffa »

Thats great, do they have the inner lining in them too?
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waynerp
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by waynerp »

No inner lining. my original didn't. i thought they added that in the facelift models?
That said it is noticeably quieter with the new roof, i guess because of the shrinking around the window seals on the old one
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Dino D
Joined: Fri 10 Feb, 2012 16:59
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by Dino D »

So they include new rubber seals in that £325?
That's pretty incredible. I think the seals on their own are around £100 quid for the set the last time I looked...

Maybe obvious but did they redo the butyl seal at the rear (on the inside of the car where back end the top fixes to the body at the rear bulkhead).
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Southernboy
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by Southernboy »

The early models didn't have roof linings, and cannot have them retro-fitted. I had a 1997 2.8 and went through the roof lining story when I replaced the soft top... can't be done and doesn't fit... :(
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Robert T
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by Robert T »

Not sure about that - BMW used to sell a roof lining retrofit kit... See http://bmwfans.info/parts-catalog/Z3-Ro ... eadlining/

Cheers R.
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waynerp
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by waynerp »

No they didnt replace the seals, just the roof
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Woody1000
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by Woody1000 »

Thanks for sharing just phoned the soft top guy and £325 fitted is excellent value booking mine in next week
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waynerp
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by waynerp »

He's a nice guy & really knows his cars. You won't be disappointed.
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BimBeema
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by BimBeema »

Great work, must be very rewarding & the car looks great!

I can vouch for Soft Tops in Croydon. I used them to replace the rear plastic screen a couple of years ago when my original one split.
Dino D
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by Dino D »

waynerp wrote:No they didnt replace the seals, just the roof
Ah just reread your post further up where you said there was shrinking (of the top) around the seals, not the seals themselves.

Just had a look at the website and they have the pricing up there. Looks like they can do you one with a headliner too but that is 300 extra...
I had a 2.2 with headliner and it was quieter but not that much quieter. It was just some thin fabric with no real extra insulation that BMW hung in there. More to finish off the inside than anything else.
Perhaps the one the Car Hood guys do is more beefy hence the price.
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waynerp
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Re: Innit for the Long Haul

Post by waynerp »

Dino D wrote:
waynerp wrote:No they didnt replace the seals, just the roof
Ah just reread your post further up where you said there was shrinking (of the top) around the seals, not the seals themselves.

Just had a look at the website and they have the pricing up there. Looks like they can do you one with a headliner too but that is 300 extra...
I had a 2.2 with headliner and it was quieter but not that much quieter. It was just some thin fabric with no real extra insulation that BMW hung in there. More to finish off the inside than anything else.
Perhaps the one the Car Hood guys do is more beefy hence the price.

Dohhh. I didnt notice that!!
Mind you £300 sounds expensive for the headliner, but as you say i guess this is why other places charge £600+
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