Alpina D3 No:206
Discussion
Hi everyone! 
Well we petted the family pet, set the timer on the lights and locked up the house ready for our 500 mile road-trip down to Farnham from Fife to view a Black MT D3. I had viewed a shocking condition MT D3 at Edinburgh Lexus last week and was not really expecting much more from this one given the slightly higher mileage. Oh how wrong I was!
The trip down started at 10pm, the obvious plan was to travel through the night, stop off a few times and consume some terrible Wild Bean coffee and associated pastries. All was fine until around midnight when I started to feel a bit drowsy. One red bull later and I was wide awake again and chalking up the miles. Eventually at around 3am I realised I would be at the dealership for around 6:30am at this rate so we pulled over for a bit of shut eye. All in all I was really surprised at how easy the trek was. We eventually arrived at the dealership at 08:30, and after a road test, coffee and a chat with one of the nicest guys ive met in the ‘trade’ we were the very proud owners of MTD3 No:206, and on our way back up to Scotlandshire. We had planned to stay the night in a hotel but both myself and my wife felt great and just wanted to get past the M6.
The drive up was absolutely fantastic. The chassis is tight but amazingly smooth, the turn-in is to die for and the 50mpg was a welcome sight after many years of hideously thirsty petrol cars. I was shocked to see that on arriving at our house we still had a quarter tank remaining!...we had to fill up 3x on the way down!
The car is very clean, respect due to the previous ‘enthusiast’. There are only a few minor light marks that I need to attend to but I’m pen pusher by day and a detailer by night so once again another monster order has been placed with www.cleanyourcar.co.uk – updates to follow. There are a couple of trim panels that I would like to change to get the interior looking A1 so I’m bracing myself for my first ever visit to a BMW Parts Department. I also need to source a new steering wheel or a recommended re-trimmer as the steering wheel is far too shiny and tired looking.
The standard headunit was changed by the previous owner for a Pioneer AV unit with Rainbow and Genesis audio complete with optional Bluetooth and iPod interface. The sound quality was amazing once I had set it up properly with real warmth and clarity, even when listening to the wifes Take-That album!
Overall we are both over the moon with our purchase and can see us buying a BT D3 in a few years time. I cant wait till home-time so I can drive it again!
More pics to follow - Promise to keep you updated on its progress.
Update - 09/11/10
Im a sucker for OE so these were a must have addition. I'll apply them once the car has been detailed. I'll contact Sytner and get number plates ordered also.
[/quote]
Well we petted the family pet, set the timer on the lights and locked up the house ready for our 500 mile road-trip down to Farnham from Fife to view a Black MT D3. I had viewed a shocking condition MT D3 at Edinburgh Lexus last week and was not really expecting much more from this one given the slightly higher mileage. Oh how wrong I was!
The trip down started at 10pm, the obvious plan was to travel through the night, stop off a few times and consume some terrible Wild Bean coffee and associated pastries. All was fine until around midnight when I started to feel a bit drowsy. One red bull later and I was wide awake again and chalking up the miles. Eventually at around 3am I realised I would be at the dealership for around 6:30am at this rate so we pulled over for a bit of shut eye. All in all I was really surprised at how easy the trek was. We eventually arrived at the dealership at 08:30, and after a road test, coffee and a chat with one of the nicest guys ive met in the ‘trade’ we were the very proud owners of MTD3 No:206, and on our way back up to Scotlandshire. We had planned to stay the night in a hotel but both myself and my wife felt great and just wanted to get past the M6.
The drive up was absolutely fantastic. The chassis is tight but amazingly smooth, the turn-in is to die for and the 50mpg was a welcome sight after many years of hideously thirsty petrol cars. I was shocked to see that on arriving at our house we still had a quarter tank remaining!...we had to fill up 3x on the way down!
The car is very clean, respect due to the previous ‘enthusiast’. There are only a few minor light marks that I need to attend to but I’m pen pusher by day and a detailer by night so once again another monster order has been placed with www.cleanyourcar.co.uk – updates to follow. There are a couple of trim panels that I would like to change to get the interior looking A1 so I’m bracing myself for my first ever visit to a BMW Parts Department. I also need to source a new steering wheel or a recommended re-trimmer as the steering wheel is far too shiny and tired looking.
The standard headunit was changed by the previous owner for a Pioneer AV unit with Rainbow and Genesis audio complete with optional Bluetooth and iPod interface. The sound quality was amazing once I had set it up properly with real warmth and clarity, even when listening to the wifes Take-That album!
Overall we are both over the moon with our purchase and can see us buying a BT D3 in a few years time. I cant wait till home-time so I can drive it again!
More pics to follow - Promise to keep you updated on its progress.
Update - 09/11/10
Im a sucker for OE so these were a must have addition. I'll apply them once the car has been detailed. I'll contact Sytner and get number plates ordered also.
[/quote]
So my leather repair kit arrived. I wanted to test it on a small area but decided to remove the gear knob and use that as a test mule. There was a slight amount of wear but nothing too extreme.
Firstly I used a very mild APC solution and a soft brush to get the dirt out from between the knob and the badge.
Applied the leather cleaner, left it for 5 minutes then removed it with a damp cloth as instructed.
Was pretty shocked by the smount of dirt that came off and how much wear was now visible once fully dried.
Time to mask up the Alpina badge.
The slightly rough finish was flattened using 3000 grit W/D.
After 3KW/D.
The kit consisting of leather cleaner, dye, filler and conditioner.
Applied a very thin layer of the filler to the damaged area then smoothed with a damp cloth. It also works like water based superglue for leather
Once dried it was time to apply the dye using the sponge provided.
All dried!
Decided to refurbish the badge using 2k, 2.5k and 3k W/D followed by Menzerna and a soft cloth.
Tada! 8)
Test complete! Im really happy with the finish. I'll investigate the drivers side bolster as its needing a tiny bit of TLC.
Firstly I used a very mild APC solution and a soft brush to get the dirt out from between the knob and the badge.
Applied the leather cleaner, left it for 5 minutes then removed it with a damp cloth as instructed.
Was pretty shocked by the smount of dirt that came off and how much wear was now visible once fully dried.
Time to mask up the Alpina badge.
The slightly rough finish was flattened using 3000 grit W/D.
After 3KW/D.
The kit consisting of leather cleaner, dye, filler and conditioner.
Applied a very thin layer of the filler to the damaged area then smoothed with a damp cloth. It also works like water based superglue for leather
Once dried it was time to apply the dye using the sponge provided.
All dried!
Decided to refurbish the badge using 2k, 2.5k and 3k W/D followed by Menzerna and a soft cloth.
Tada! 8)
Test complete! Im really happy with the finish. I'll investigate the drivers side bolster as its needing a tiny bit of TLC.
Hi folks.
As the gearknob repair was a success I thought I would move on to the drivers side seat bolster. Given the size of the seat bolsters these days its no surprise that the leading edge fails. Resulting in discolouration and grazing. Here are a few pics of the bolster before I used the same repair process as the gear knob.
Here is the seat bolster after a quick repair. There is a slight variance in the colour but it was only 1hr old and I can confirm that after 48hrs the colour match is perfect. I have also yet to apply the supplied conditioner.
Still a few scuffed areas that will require some more work using the filler and W/D, but you get the idea for now.
This looks amazing compared to how it did look.
Okay the steering wheel. I had put money aside to replace the steering wheel when I bought the car as you can see from the original advert photo that the steering wheel looks quite worn. I contacted Sytner Alpina and they infirmed me that with the Alpina Register discount the price would be £540, down from £660. So I had very little to lose.
After searching the internet I found a site raving on about the versatility of those Magic Sponge things on leather and scuffed interior panels. After searching about 5 stores I eventually found them in Homebase for £5.
I did as advised and lightly dampened the sponge then gently worked the entire steering wheel. Once the leather had dried the difference was unbelievable. The colour of the water in the bowl was jet black. Some reckon that the sponge removed the dirt but I think it’s more like really fine Scotchbrite. Either way it returns the leather back to original for the price of a Happy Meal.
The biggest problem after I had removed the shine was that the leather was grazed and had a few cuts in places caused by finger nails. So with the steering wheel off and in the warmth of my kitchen, much to the disapproval of my wife, I set about applying the filler to the various indentations and small cuts. The best thing to do with the cuts is to apply it with your finger and really push it into the recess, as the filler bonds the damaged flesh (Eew!). Once the cut repairs are dry apply another light layer incase the filler has sank during curing, The trick is to leave the filler to cure for around 4~5 minutes then use a moistened piece of folder kitchen roll and very gently sweep back and forward across the repaired area. Its water based so will gradually lift. Do not use a Microfibre as the fibres will reach into the repaired section and remove the filler. Ideally use a lint free pad but they are hard to come by unless you work for the NHS.
You can speed up the drying process safely with a hair drier on a medium setting.
Once it’s dry it’ll look a mess as the filler dries white. You can add a little of the die to the filler and it mixes very well though. I ended up with around 50 or 60 repaired areas. The next stage it to remove any contamination and ensure its free from dust with a dry cloth and apply the dye with the sponge provided. I say to use the sponge provided as its quite porous and gets the dye right into the grain. I tried a closed-cell firm sponge and you could see that it just sweeps over the top of the leather.
A few applications may be required. I found that stippling the leather with the dye gave a much better result. You can see the dye soak into the leather. You have to leave the leather for 24hrs before applying the conditioner and once applied it’ll remain sticky for about another 24hrs. But with the heat inside the car it has dried to leave a superb finish IMO.
It’s the difference between me being deeply unhappy to the point of wanting to spend £550 on a new wheel, to being very happy to the point where I don’t even notice any repair.
Wheel refitted – Done.
As the gearknob repair was a success I thought I would move on to the drivers side seat bolster. Given the size of the seat bolsters these days its no surprise that the leading edge fails. Resulting in discolouration and grazing. Here are a few pics of the bolster before I used the same repair process as the gear knob.
Here is the seat bolster after a quick repair. There is a slight variance in the colour but it was only 1hr old and I can confirm that after 48hrs the colour match is perfect. I have also yet to apply the supplied conditioner.
Still a few scuffed areas that will require some more work using the filler and W/D, but you get the idea for now.
This looks amazing compared to how it did look.
Okay the steering wheel. I had put money aside to replace the steering wheel when I bought the car as you can see from the original advert photo that the steering wheel looks quite worn. I contacted Sytner Alpina and they infirmed me that with the Alpina Register discount the price would be £540, down from £660. So I had very little to lose.
After searching the internet I found a site raving on about the versatility of those Magic Sponge things on leather and scuffed interior panels. After searching about 5 stores I eventually found them in Homebase for £5.
I did as advised and lightly dampened the sponge then gently worked the entire steering wheel. Once the leather had dried the difference was unbelievable. The colour of the water in the bowl was jet black. Some reckon that the sponge removed the dirt but I think it’s more like really fine Scotchbrite. Either way it returns the leather back to original for the price of a Happy Meal.
The biggest problem after I had removed the shine was that the leather was grazed and had a few cuts in places caused by finger nails. So with the steering wheel off and in the warmth of my kitchen, much to the disapproval of my wife, I set about applying the filler to the various indentations and small cuts. The best thing to do with the cuts is to apply it with your finger and really push it into the recess, as the filler bonds the damaged flesh (Eew!). Once the cut repairs are dry apply another light layer incase the filler has sank during curing, The trick is to leave the filler to cure for around 4~5 minutes then use a moistened piece of folder kitchen roll and very gently sweep back and forward across the repaired area. Its water based so will gradually lift. Do not use a Microfibre as the fibres will reach into the repaired section and remove the filler. Ideally use a lint free pad but they are hard to come by unless you work for the NHS.
You can speed up the drying process safely with a hair drier on a medium setting.
Once it’s dry it’ll look a mess as the filler dries white. You can add a little of the die to the filler and it mixes very well though. I ended up with around 50 or 60 repaired areas. The next stage it to remove any contamination and ensure its free from dust with a dry cloth and apply the dye with the sponge provided. I say to use the sponge provided as its quite porous and gets the dye right into the grain. I tried a closed-cell firm sponge and you could see that it just sweeps over the top of the leather.
A few applications may be required. I found that stippling the leather with the dye gave a much better result. You can see the dye soak into the leather. You have to leave the leather for 24hrs before applying the conditioner and once applied it’ll remain sticky for about another 24hrs. But with the heat inside the car it has dried to leave a superb finish IMO.
It’s the difference between me being deeply unhappy to the point of wanting to spend £550 on a new wheel, to being very happy to the point where I don’t even notice any repair.
Wheel refitted – Done.
Bad times! With the 'harsh' winter that we had in the UK the roads are shocking, full of massive potholes. I knew it would happen one day. Had a quote of around £120 from http://www.alloywheelrepairs.net. They are only 33 miles away.
I purchased a genuine carbon fibre centre trim with every intention of purchasing the other 6 pieces...that was until I took the car out on a sunny day and was almost blinded from below! I was searching through eBay and found a guy selling a full set of brushed alloy trims in "excellent condition"...5 days later they were in my kitchen. unwrapped and almost thrown out of the door!...what a mess they were in!...major scratches, nicks and dings all over them...I was not impressed. But after a couple of hours I realised that this may be a good excuse for a project!
When life throws you lemons - Throw back bricks!!! :thumsup:
I started by firing up the orbital sander with a 180g sheet fitted to see if the damage could be removed - It took hardly any time at all to correct the shortest trim using the 180. I then used 400g w/d then 800g w/d and a Meguiars sanding block/pad. It only took about 30 minutes to have the trim looking great. I then used a NEW Course ScotchBrite pad to re-aply the brushed effect. I started by applying lots of presure but that just squashed the pad and polished the trim to a high gloss finish ...so I backed right off and used loads of medium speed passes with water. I could really feel the pad bite into the alloy and the brushed finish start to emerge.
Have a look, I think that the finish is amazing - Considering the 7 alloy trims cost me a grand total of £80 :happyanim:
When life throws you lemons - Throw back bricks!!! :thumsup:
I started by firing up the orbital sander with a 180g sheet fitted to see if the damage could be removed - It took hardly any time at all to correct the shortest trim using the 180. I then used 400g w/d then 800g w/d and a Meguiars sanding block/pad. It only took about 30 minutes to have the trim looking great. I then used a NEW Course ScotchBrite pad to re-aply the brushed effect. I started by applying lots of presure but that just squashed the pad and polished the trim to a high gloss finish ...so I backed right off and used loads of medium speed passes with water. I could really feel the pad bite into the alloy and the brushed finish start to emerge.
Have a look, I think that the finish is amazing - Considering the 7 alloy trims cost me a grand total of £80 :happyanim:
Edited by SR06 on Friday 1st July 10:30
Edited by SR06 on Friday 1st July 10:31
The original steering wheel was shiny after having only covered 40,000 miles. I had refurbished it but in the end decided on a retrim. A new sheering wheel from Sytner Alpina was going to cost me around £550 but it would have the Lavalina again which I think is too delicate and soft for a steering wheel. So I wasnt too keen on spending that sort of cash.
I contacted a few UK based trimmers and they quoted between £400 to £450 but they would not be able to recreate the Alpina stitching. I searched further and stumpled upon talk of a guy in Abingdon called Jack that had a very good reputation within the e46 M3 community. The thread was about 3 years old so I sent a txt to the phone number and within minutes received a reply stating that he still did steering wheels..."what are your requirements?"
I pondered over whether to order OEM or a slight tweak to the original theme. I eventually opted to have the Alpina colours incorporated into the M-Style stitching. Jack came back and offered me a few upgrades. Perforated leather, thumb rests and additional padding.
I received an email to say that shipping has been arranged and a tracking number. I was like a kid on Christmas morning - constantly checking its whereabouts in the UK.
When I got home the parcel was waiting for me. I gingerly removed it from the box and prayed for a good job as in the past most trades have let me down.
O....M....G! It is absolutely stunning. I didnt even want to refit it as its a true work of art. The stitching colours are spot on and the level of craftsmanship is nothing other than perfect. Im so happy with the finish. I had bought a brand new base-model e90 wheel to use as a temporary wheel whilst the Alpina one was away so I transferred the brand new buttons over to the retrimmed wheel also. Although Jack has informed me that he can now offer an e90 part exchange option if required.
I contacted a few UK based trimmers and they quoted between £400 to £450 but they would not be able to recreate the Alpina stitching. I searched further and stumpled upon talk of a guy in Abingdon called Jack that had a very good reputation within the e46 M3 community. The thread was about 3 years old so I sent a txt to the phone number and within minutes received a reply stating that he still did steering wheels..."what are your requirements?"
I pondered over whether to order OEM or a slight tweak to the original theme. I eventually opted to have the Alpina colours incorporated into the M-Style stitching. Jack came back and offered me a few upgrades. Perforated leather, thumb rests and additional padding.
I received an email to say that shipping has been arranged and a tracking number. I was like a kid on Christmas morning - constantly checking its whereabouts in the UK.
When I got home the parcel was waiting for me. I gingerly removed it from the box and prayed for a good job as in the past most trades have let me down.
O....M....G! It is absolutely stunning. I didnt even want to refit it as its a true work of art. The stitching colours are spot on and the level of craftsmanship is nothing other than perfect. Im so happy with the finish. I had bought a brand new base-model e90 wheel to use as a temporary wheel whilst the Alpina one was away so I transferred the brand new buttons over to the retrimmed wheel also. Although Jack has informed me that he can now offer an e90 part exchange option if required.
I would have idealy liked I-Drive but I'm not looking to change my car just yet and very few Alpina D3 Bi-Turbo's seem to have I-Drive. Also didnt want to move too far from the original spec as I wanted to be able to revert back to original relatively easily If I were to sell the car. I needed Bluetooth in the car, Ipod, USB and SD card. Those were my main requirements. After searching the net I had my heart set on a Double-SIN Media system. However...the facia adapters look terrible and the whole install looks very aftermarket IMO. Step up Dynavin and their D9X unit. So much technoligy in one box! Ordered online in the UK and it was delivered the next day.
Bye bye Pro Unit - You've been a reliable friend - Just not all that clever!
OE Cradle removal
Bye bye Pro Unit - You've been a reliable friend - Just not all that clever!
OE Cradle removal
olly22n said:
Whats the dynavin like?
SR06 said:
The drive up was absolutely fantastic. The chassis is tight but amazingly smooth, the turn-in is to die for and the 50mpg was a welcome sight after many years of hideously thirsty petrol cars. I was shocked to see that on arriving at our house we still had a quarter tank remaining!...we had to fill up 3x on the way down!
Good thread and good looking car. and I liked the stuff about the leather repair tooCant see the D3 averaging 50mpg though. Don't think the standard 330D can manage that.
Is the D3 based on a SE body or the M-sport?
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