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Two-tone Interior: A Complete Makeover

38K views 72 replies 40 participants last post by  bimmernut1 
#1 · (Edited)
Upon seeing these pictures of this interior a couple or so years ago, I knew I would someday have to replicate it for mine:






And, because I could not shell out many thousands of dollars to have everything professionally reupholstered, I knew I would have to obtain the parts (all OE) piecemeal. That was almost fully realized when, sometime last year, I was able to source many extended leather pieces and along with a friend, had them installed:










A few weeks ago I found the remaining two door cards in extended leather and commenced with the dye, or paint, project. The color I opted for was OE coral red.

I had read of Leatherique and had seen many a successful project entailing their products so I decided to purchase from them. To keep things terse, this ended up being a huge letdown for three reasons: 1) Their dye peeled faster than your run-of-the-mill Plastidip--and researching various boards showed that I wasn't the only person who had experienced this exact outcome; 2) even if the colorant had not peeled, I would still have remained disappointed with the result it produced because it resembled shiny plastic in its final, dried form; and 3) their coral red did not even so much as come close to resembling the coral red of BMW's.



So I ditched Leatherique's products entirely and turned to another type of colorant I had used in the past to touch-up the center console's leather side inserts and steering wheel trim: Colorbond. They produce numerous OE-specific leather paints for various manufacturers including BMW. They also stock BMW's OE coral red. Colorbond claims that their paint "bonds at the molecular level" and guarantees against chips, scratches, and peeling. There are a handful of threads from various other BMW-specific forums that corroborate this claim. Those users were pleased with the results this product produced for their interiors. So I purchased a single can to gauge its efficacy on the rear head restraints. This was of course preliminary since replacement head restraints can be bought readily and for cheap in case I really botched things up.

The process Colorbond advises you to follow is quite simple: simply wash the leather items with their prep cleaner and proceed to lay on thin layers of the paint once dry, leaving sufficient time (About 10 minutes) in between coats. They, to my knowledge, do not produce a sealant topping to go on the painted leather as a finishing step. This made me a bit uneasy as to the long-term durability of the finished product, especially with respect to things that will be sat on and frequently grabbed/touched. In any case, I was able to completely transform three of the rear head restraints (I purchased more cans of their coral red after successfully finishing one of them) and proceeded to work on the rear seatback. This is how the former looked finished:






And this was the latter midway:


A beautiful shade of red, if you ask me.

But, shortly thereafter, the entire seatback was ruined when a penny-sized hole was torn open in a most conspicuous of places on that seatback because the can spit paint while I was applying another coat. I also noticed that over spray was a huge problem with this system, giving result to rough patches all over the seat in areas not directly being sprayed. This was far more manageable on the smaller head restraints.

So, I ditched Colorbond's paint, too.

Enter a company called Furniture Clinic.

I came upon them during my researches while still undecided over Colorbond. They seemed to have received rave reviews everywhere I looked, and many people had concluded that this was the way to go in achieving a proper color change simply for the fact that they offer a finishing stage consisting of a sealant, just as OE seats are when they leave the factory. Their process is pretty straightforward, so I won't delve into it here. Here's the first part of a short video clip showing exactly how it's done:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9rhDRpe76A

As of today, I am waiting for another shipment of the sealant from them to complete all of the remaining rear pieces (one door card, and the seatbottom) and the two front door cards.

The seatback and head restraints have been completed, and I cannot be more pleased with the end result--the look and feel of the pieces is truly OE-esque.

During the colorant stage:







And with the last of the satin sealant coat applied:








(The defect in the top black portion was there when I purchased these door cards. I don't know how to remedy that, so I'll leave it be. Besides, it's only really conspicuous under direct sunlight.)

Once I finish sealing all of the door cards and rear seatbottom, I will move onto the center console and armrest. From there I will tend to the front seats and lower dash trim pieces.

I should note for inquiring minds: do not opt for anything matte as far as the sealant is concerned if you wish to retain the true color of the dye and to achieve an end result that resembles the finish on OE seats. Satin is the correct sealant/top coat to this end. I found this out the hard way.

I Will update this thread as things come along.
 
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#32 · (Edited)
It's been a while, and here are some updates and a photo:

I've been tending to studies and concerts and as a result have lagged in finishing the project; but I did achieve a few things these last couple of days. The only piece of leather that remains completely unfinished is the driver's seat bottom. Long story short, a buddy shorted the motor that powers the lumbar support as we attempted to operate the mechanism with a compressor once it was out of the car and upon realizing that it wasn't extended. (The passenger side seat bottom posed no such problem. I suspect this is due to the absence of the memory function on that side, and, thus, the main reason why the motor on the driver's side shorted. I did connect the driver's seat to the car to be sure, and sure enough discovered that the motor is out. So, I sourced a used but functioning motor but have yet to get around to installing it. Once it's installed it'll be but a day or two for that portion of the seat to be finished and for the installation of the remaining pieces into the car to commence.)

Since all of the door inserts are out, I've decided to upgrade my speakers as well. I did some research and purchased a pair of Boston Acoustics SE60 two-way component speakers that are accompanied by ~20mm tweeters. I will install the mid bases into the doors up front and if the tweeters are a good fit in the rear door cards, will install those there. I plan on purchasing a pair of Bavsound tweeters to replace the front two with and maybe eventually a pair of their mid base speakers for the rear shelf. Research shows that the front mid bases make the most appreciable difference in sound and that many don't bother with the ones in the rear shelf. So it remains to be seen whether or not I'll actually change those two.

It is very likely that I will change the front passenger door lock actuator as it's slow to respond in comparison with the others--and some reading online shows that this is a sign that it's on its way out. I've also purchased two new interior window moldings for the front doors.

Regarding the installation of the door compartment pieces and air vents/speaker covers...

After considering a few options in terms of what kind of glue or adhesive to utilize, I went ahead with a traditional hot glue gun (~15 dollars on Amazon). Seems to be a good choice so far. Here's a photo of the passenger front door insert all buttoned up.

You'll see that I failed majorly in properly aligning the compartment on the right lol. I can remove, realign, and re-glue it but it really won't be noticeable at all from a seated passenger's vantage point, and I can live with it:


Edit:

And here's one of the completed passenger seat bottom. Notice how, depending on the lighting, the hue of coral red changes. A lovely thing if you ask me:

 
#34 ·
Maybe you've stated in the thread but I just hadn't read it, but are you concerned about the paint on the seats bleeding onto clothing at all?

Looks great though!
 
#46 ·
Thanks, and awesome wheel, no?

There is a very slight palpable difference to the texture when touched but it's very slight. I've driven the car a handful of times because I missed driving it and the seats were just as comfortable as ever and flexed/contorted under my weight all the same.

Looking to have everything wrapped up--including the installation of the new Boston Acoustics speakers--this weekend.
 
#48 ·
I am impressed! A lot of work, but done well! I wouldn't imagine how complicated it is to take the front seats all apart like that.
 
#54 · (Edited)
We finished close to dusk yesterday so taking proper pictures wasn't a possibility. Though it's gloomy and raining today, and the lighting sucks, I figured I'd snap some to quell the suspense. The real beauty in this hue of red is its ability to change ever so slightly under different lighting conditions:













 
#63 ·
I have to say, this is super inspiring and tempting. You did a really good job. I once did a mazda RX-7 using SEM brand leather/vinyl dye. I know what it takes to get it all apart without breaking things, cracking things, losing pieces, scratching the finish of what you just did, etc. I think This is what the two tone Imola interiors should have looked like. It reminds me of the Porsche Boxster or 911s with full leather. Really great job.
 
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