BMW e46 Beige Leather Interior Detail

[Jim@WD]

BMW e46 328 Interior – Topez Blue with beige leather.

An interior detail only..

Product
• 303 Aerospace Protectant
• AutoSmart G101
• AutoSmart Bio-Brisk
• Jeffs Werkstat Prime
• LTT Auto Ultra Foam
• LTT Step 1 Jean & Dye Transfer Remover
• LTT Auto Ultra Protect
• Water

Car in question:





And inspection photos of the interior:








Shiny, dirty leather..

[Jim@WD]

I started by emptying the car of belongings and rubbish. Personal stash of detailing goodies found!




I opted with cleaning the doorcards first. Leather with LTT Auto Ultra and plastics with G101. Worked in, agitated with a stiff brush, and wiped.

50/50 on card and armrest: (quite tough to see this one. It is there, honest :P !)




Dirt collected from the black plastics on the doors (to touch, they were very tacky!)




Worked my way around until all four corners were done..

[Jim@WD]

Taped off a section of the front passenger seat for a 50/50 on the leather. Cleaned with Ultra Foam:



Results:






Shiny, dirty leather vs clean, hydrated leather:




^this was pretty much the case throughout.


More engrained dirt on the delicate finish..



I had to break out a stronger cleaner for some areas..




After the bolsters were clean, I focused on the middle sections which had a ‘bobbled’ finish.

50/50s:

[Jim@WD]

Passenger seat finally wiped down with a damp microfibre:




Same method for the drivers’ seat.



^Middle section yet to be cleaned.


50/50s






50/50 showing shiny (dirty) side and the clean side of the armrest.




Reminds me of this one...



Top half of the above e46 armrest is ‘shiny’; this is because there is a thick layer of dirt stuck to it. As seen from a different angle:

[Jim@WD]

Dirt that was lifted from the car in question’s armrest:




After all leather work was complete, a further damp wipeover was given to remove residues and add moisture.

Rubber inserts from centre-console removed for scrubbing (usually covered in tacky residues from sweet wrappers etc)




Floor mats removed and hoover was put to work.
Mats doused in Bio-Brisk and scrubbed. Dirt lifted with a microfibre.
Plastics were protected with 303 Aerospace Protectant.
Leather protected with LTT Auto Ultra Protect.
Wooden trim polished and protected with Jeffs Werkstat Prime.

After photos..

[Jim@WD]

[Jim@WD]

Because the leather is a good 10 years old now, it isn’t perfect! However, after today’s session, and, after educating the owner on future maintenance, it should see it remain in top condition for many more years to come.

Owner is also booking the 328 in for a full paint correction detail, so, watch this space!

As always, thank you.

Jim