[Lange]

No matter how often I get my black car washed, it never seems clean...

I need a change - I would guess that silver does not show dirt very much - how about sterling gray? I assume that carbon black metallic is hard to keep clean - is this true?

Any opinions welcome. Thanks.

 

[SC'dKellenersM5]

alpine white..unless it rains.

 

[Need4Spd]

Silver. I can go weeks w/o washing it and it still looks decent. All dark colors will show dirt in no time. The downside is that silver when clean never quite looks as good as some other colors like Carbon Black or LeMans Blue.

 

[KevinM]

I have had a silver E39 and two sterling gray ones - a 530 and the M5. I love this color and searched long and hard for my sterling M5. (More difficult than the exterior color was mating it to the caramel interior I wanted.) It does not show the dirt much (nor did my sliver 528) but is just dark enough to add interest. Part of this is the climate I live in, but I also go weeks to months at a time with just a california car duster and spot jobs with a quick detailing spray.

My wife has a white Merc and I agree that it takes quite a bit of dirt to make it look bad.

 

[marcducati]

I've got Carbon Black and it's suprisingly ok.

I though I was going to have a hard time but in fact no. It's dosent always look shoe shine clean but it's not dirty either.

If you spray it with those self drying deminiralized water pressure cleans once a week it always looks clean. Carbon Black is much bluer than I had first thought, the name does not describe the color very well, but sounds cool

I'm happy with it.

Regards
Marc

 

[Frits]

I have a carbon black E39 too, and I must say, it isn't easy to clean that car. Just going to the self carwash, and spraying isn't enough. You should carefully wipe it dry. But when it's clean, it looks really good. Would've liked Le Mans blue better, but when buying used cars, you don't have as much choice as when buying new...

My car is always dirty in a few days, because of the wide wheels. It just sprays dirt all over the side of the car...

 

[marcducati]

I have a carbon black E39 too, and I must say, it isn't easy to clean that car. Just going to the self carwash, and spraying isn't enough. You should carefully wipe it dry. But when it's clean, it looks really good. Would've liked Le Mans blue better, but when buying used cars, you don't have as much choice as when buying new...

My car is always dirty in a few days, because of the wide wheels. It just sprays dirt all over the side of the car...

Now I don't get that with mine. I rarely wipe it clean. The self drying water after haveing scrubbed it clean with the brush dose a great job. I havn't cleaned in about three weeks now and have had about 3 or four days of rain and its ok(not perfect) but doesn't look trashed. My car does sleep inside which helps. Don't get me wrong, Its not very easy to keep clean and silver is easier but I don't find it that bad, not as bad as I thought it would be
Regards
Marc

 

[Frits]

Well, it is not THAT hard to clean it, but I have a mauritius blue E36, and that one is a lot easier to clean.

A good option is to 'speed' the car dry after washing. Just drive 150 km/h for a few 100 meters, then most of the water is allready gone. Then wiping it dry will take less effort.

 

[willm5ad]

Well, it is not THAT hard to clean it, but I have a mauritius blue E36, and that one is a lot easier to clean.

A good option is to 'speed' the car dry after washing. Just drive 150 km/h for a few 100 meters, then most of the water is allready gone. Then wiping it dry will take less effort.

Be careful it may take your license aswell:7:

 

[marcducati]

Well, it is not THAT hard to clean it, but I have a mauritius blue E36, and that one is a lot easier to clean.

A good option is to 'speed' the car dry after washing. Just drive 150 km/h for a few 100 meters, then most of the water is allready gone. Then wiping it dry will take less effort.

Exactly what I do :wroom: I know its not as easy as lighter colours but it could be worse, and it LOOKS SO COOL IN CARBON BLACK :1:

 

[Manx M5]

NOT leMans Blue!


Its the first none silver car ive had in years and having to wash it once a week is a chore!

Could go for a month with the 350z then when i did clean it, it was a pleasant surprise!

 

[Apex]

My Silverstone does a great job of soaking in the dust:cool2:

 

[cosioboy]

Silverstone takes my vote. I have a Carbon Black and it requires a lot of love and pampering. It's an amazing color though, wouldn't change it (it's kinda like having an astonishing looking g-friend that has to wear the latest Prada and Versace collection all the time - looks great, but high maintainance )

My friend and felllow boardmember has the Silverstone and requires at least 3 times less washes/waxes.

 

[bmwusa]

I have silver and it does a good job of always looking good, Josh

 

[BGKBCK]

Lighter shades for sure! My Carbon Black Beast is a ***** to keep clean since SoCal is notorious for crazy dust and pollen...But once cleaned (weekly baths/bi-monthly waxes) the car looks hot! At dusk it looks especially hot...

I guess it comes down to how big you want your traps to get :1:

 

[CMBeamerM5]

I had a Black 540i/6 and it was one of the best look cars when it was clean, but it took a lot to keep it clean. Always had to be hand washed. I now have a Silver M5 and it only needs to be sprayed off about once a week. I always hated to drive the Black car in the rain because I knew that I was going to have to hand wash it again....not so with the Silver!

 

[MEnthusiast]

Lighter colors= easier to keep clean and will show much fewer (if any) swirls in the clear coat= easier to run through an automated car wash.

Darker colors= much harder to keep clean and will show much more swirls in the clear coat (eg. mirror effect from the dark paint color)= nearly impossible to run through an automated car wash if you want to keep the car looking swirl/spider free.

My favorite colors for the E39 M5 are:
Carbon Black, Sterling Grey and Ti Silver.

Sterling Grey+caramel is a very classy combo and reasonably easy to keep clean.

Carbon black+caramel is a very classy combo too and somewhat difficult to keep clean.

Ti Silver + black is the easiest combination to keep clean. If you dont have the desire or ability to hand wash the car somewhat frequently- this is your best combination IMHO.

 

[adam28]

CB on Caramel is very challenging to keep clean...the black powder coated rims hide brake dust pretty good though:7:

 

[WannaM5]

I pretty much agree with the others on the Sterling Grey in that it does hide dirt and dust fairly well, BUT any dirt or dust dramatically decreases the shine/gloss, so while it may not look dirty per se, it will look dull and lifeless. Whether or not you can live with that is a matter of personal preference, but I usually spend 5 minutes each day doing a quick California duster sweep and QD spray for bugs/bird droppings, and wash each weekend.