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Easter Zedworks - roof scuff repair, spacers

2003 - 2009, roadster, coupe, facelift
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MrPT
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Easter Zedworks - roof scuff repair, spacers

Post by MrPT » Mon Apr 06, 2015 10:49 pm

Got a few things done today, including fitting interior LEDs (do it), LED sidelights (don’t bother if you have halogens!), touching up my black grilles and the annual AG roof treatment. The two big jobs were fitting spacers and having a go at repairing the scuff in my roof fabric.

Scuff first. I used this stuff - Liquid Vinyl:

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Haven't seen much feedback about it anywhere - I believe it’s the type of stuff used by pro repair shops. Not invisible but very strong and flexible.

Here's my scuff, just above the driver's seat:

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Pretty standard for the E85, unfortunately. It hasn't worsened much since I bought the car, so the dealer may have adjusted the roof and/or rubber seals.

I trimmed the excess fabric and masked off the area, leaving about 3mm for overlap of the repair (as advised by the instructions):

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I created a clay “stamp” of the mohair fabric pattern and intended to try and texture the Liquid Vinyl to match, but this didn’t work at all. The stuff initially resembles very runny tar but the surface dries quickly and forms a skin. You can’t texture it because it remains liquified inside and just wrinkles like a blister - never mind.

The best way to apply it is to drop sizeable, smooth blobs of liquid into the damaged area and gently tease them into shape using a toothpick. You have to work very quickly but the drops flow quite nicely for a few seconds.

Here’s the repair drying (masking tape roll mainly to stop the cats!):

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And here it is, dry:

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You can see that it shrinks substantially when drying and actually feels really solid. I was in two minds whether to add more liquid to make it flush, but I wasn't sure how the additional layers would behave. Visually it's not perfect, but it’s discrete enough for me.

Spacers next. Nothing fancy here - I went with 12mm / 15mm because I think it’s about as far out as you can go without having to go lower to get the right look. Appreciate that this is a personal thing though.

Before:

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etc. Just standard Sport suspension and MV2s.

After:

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Not sure about the silver extended nuts yet - what do you think? Might paint them black.

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Perfect day for a test drive too. :driving:
2008 Z4MC: heavy wheels | crap suspension | skittish rear end | wobbly engine | not enough induction noise | underwhelming turn in | inconsistent braking | lardy battery | chubby steering wheel
2006 Z4 2.5si: gone

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AlanJ
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Re: Easter Zedworks - roof scuff repair, spacers

Post by AlanJ » Tue Apr 07, 2015 8:15 am

Looking good and ready for summer :thumbsup:
///M tri colour steering wheel, mud flaps and loads of other extras! ZHP illuminated gear lever..... Pre Purchase Checks,Getting the Best out of Dealers http://www.bmwz4roadster.net

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Swiftly
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Re: Easter Zedworks - roof scuff repair, spacers

Post by Swiftly » Tue Apr 07, 2015 8:19 am

MrPT wrote: I used this stuff - Liquid Vinyl:
Looks great :thumbsup:

I was wondering where you bought the Liquid Vinyl from, as my hood is suffering the same problem as yours
Last edited by Swiftly on Tue Apr 07, 2015 12:44 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Replacement, G29 Z4 M40i Lci in Alpine White :wub:
Gone G29 Z4 M40i in San Francisco Red
Gone F22 M240i auto coupe in Estoril Blue
Gone 2007 E85 3.0si Sport in Silver Grey,

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Bing
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Re: Easter Zedworks - roof scuff repair, spacers

Post by Bing » Tue Apr 07, 2015 11:20 am

I painted my bolts gloss black when I changed from 108s to 224s on my last car - loved them. You've got dark wheels though, so I'm not sure if black will work or not. Here are mine :

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Alternatively, I had been using silver plastic covers, £10 or so from ebay, and you can get them in dark chrome which might work ? You'd need to paint the locking wheel nut to match though.

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Current... Silver Grey ///M Roadster, non-flimper spec, Imola Red nappa, permanent ear-to-ear grin 8)

Previous... 3.0Si Sport Roadster, Black Sapphire, Dream Red leather with lots of toys and lots of mods...

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MrPT
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Re: Easter Zedworks - roof scuff repair, spacers

Post by MrPT » Tue Apr 07, 2015 1:22 pm

Swiftly wrote:
MrPT wrote: I used this stuff - Liquid Vinyl:
Looks great :thumbsup:

I was wondering where you bought the Liquid Vinyl from, as my hood is suffering the same problem as yours
Got it from here, but PM me your address and I'll send you what's left of mine. I barely used any and it has a shelf life of 6 months. Would be interested to hear how you get on!

Bing - cheers for the pics. Black definitely works with the badge/body colour on those 224s. I think I'll spray mine too at some point - I quite like the "evil" wheels look. :evil:
2008 Z4MC: heavy wheels | crap suspension | skittish rear end | wobbly engine | not enough induction noise | underwhelming turn in | inconsistent braking | lardy battery | chubby steering wheel
2006 Z4 2.5si: gone

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