DIY: Interior trim paint

[jeffbebe 1559]

The walnut trim in my E39 was looking pretty ragged with a few cracks in the lacquer and plenty of sun damage to the wood. I thought about sanding the lacquer off and refinishing the wood but even as a DIY job it would have cost more than buying a good set secondhand so I opted for a re-colour to give the car a bit of a new look.

1) At the start it looked like this.

2) You'll need some dry sandpaper (I used 250 grit) and some fine wet and dry (1500 grit), a trigger for spray cans, meths, a microfibre rag, primer, paint and lacquer (if you decide to go for a gloss finish). You'll need a small phillips head screwdriver to remove the centre trim and ashtray lid pieces from the plastic console trim.

3) I removed all the trim using plastic tools so as not to damage (very easy job) and got my sander to work.

4) Unscrew the centre trim piece from the back, it has 8 screws. The ashtray lid has 4 screws. You only need to unscrew 2 to slide it off the plastic lid, but need to unscrew the other 2 before you paint. The main centre piece just unlocks like this once the screws are removed (make sure your sander doesn't sanding the black plastic trim... ahem):

5) Sand everything consistently all over to get a nice surface for the paint to cling to. It doesn't need to be (and nor do you want it to be) visibly rough. Just a good sand with fairly fine sandpaper (250 grit) will do the job. It should look something like this when done:

6) Wipe the sanded pieces down with a rag and some meths to clean the surface and get rid of the dust and mask the ashtray push button with some painters tape (cover the whole button with a large piece then cut carefully around the button with a sharp knife). Give it two or three light coats of primer (follow the instructions on the paint you use). I used a grey (because I had some left over) then a rust colour to prime for the top coat of maroon.

7) Once the primer's dry start painting with the top coat. In the end I did 4 light coats which used to cans of paint. After the second, I noticed a few imperfections so let it dry for a day then wet sanded with 1500 grit before painting the last 2 coats. Using the trigger for the spray can makes it much easier to apply. In hindsight I think it would be significantly better to get a thicker, tougher finish using a proper spray gun and more paint (but more expensive probably). Apply the coats within 15-20 minutes of each other.

8) Then let the paint cure (recommend 5-7 days) so that it gets properly hard. If you're applying a lacquer do that before the curing process when the paint is adequately dry.

9) Finally wet sand it (and polish if you want a gloss finish). I soaked the 1500 grit paper in a water and washing up liquid solution and very lightly sanded using a sponge pad as a sanding block. Be careful not to over sand on the edges or you'll go through to the primer. If it's a lacquer follow the same instructions but finish with a cutting compound to bring out the shine. I left mine with a matte/satin finish.

10) Reinstall the trim. The centre piece is always a bit of a wrestle as it's a tight fit. Unfortunately I wasn't careful enough and chipped my painted trim very slightly (hardly visible but I don't like imperfections). If you've lacquered your finish will probably be a bit tougher than mine. I also decided to paint the monitor board trim satin black as I thought it would look a bit more stylish than red. The finished product should looks like this:

Overall, I'm happy with the finish especially on the door trim but it could be a touch better on the larger pieces so I may look to do those again.

Edited June 7, 2013 by jeffbebe

[Ultrarandom 3]

That actually came out real nice.

Looking in at an E39 soon and depending on the condition of the trim may have to follow this guide myself when I get it.

Cheers.

[_Matt_ 42]

I like how you made the insert on the center console black.

all you need now are red leather seats

[Arma 134]

Nice one, that looks pretty neat now!

I saw some people had used Neffy Wrap for that CF look so was considering doing that to one of my e39s, but not sure how good they are (photos looked good). Perhaps the silver neffy wrap would be a decent alum trim alternative. Black one looks cool too. Can get the wraps here:

http://neffywrap.com/

Edited June 8, 2013 by Arma

[bellicose 9]

Oh dear

[jeffbebe 1559]

Oh dear

Ha! Don't like the colour or my methodology?

[bellicose 9]

Ha! Don't like the colour or my methodology?

The way ya sis it is fine mate.

The colour...............................ummmm.

Personally i like the woodgrain look (I have a Holden Statesman full of it haha) and think maybe it could've been saved. But it's your car and i'm in no way having a go at ya

I'm waiting for someone to put their hand up to let me do their woodgrain trims, the only limiting factor is their imagination. Carbon fibre, woodgrain, brushed ali' or even rusty plate steel look, i can do it all.

[jeffbebe 1559]

The way ya sis it is fine mate.

The colour...............................ummmm.

Personally i like the woodgrain look (I have a Holden Statesman full of it haha) and think maybe it could've been saved. But it's your car and i'm in no way having a go at ya

I'm waiting for someone to put their hand up to let me do their woodgrain trims, the only limiting factor is their imagination. Carbon fibre, woodgrain, brushed ali' or even rusty plate steel look, i can do it all.

I liked the woodgrain in my 528i - it was mint - but the trim in the 540i was pretty sorry. I was waiting for someone to put their hand up to redo the trims for me! My hand's up now, I like the red but know a pro could finish it much better. Brushed ali would be nice too!!

[yng_750 247]

looks mint.

bellicose just made me think how good this would look when someone rat rods an e39, coat the wood with iron oxide for the rusted look. would confuse the crap out of people.

not sure how you could do it, electrocoat?

[_Matt_ 42]

lets just be thankful those are fridges, not cars.

[bellicose 9]

lets just be thankful those are fridges, not cars.

As i said, the only thing to get in the way is imagination.

Black on black E39 with gold centered RS's and a thin gold leaf stripe through the centre of the gloss black interior trims......................you can't tell me that wouldn't look any good.

[jeffbebe 1559]

Black on black E39 with gold centered RS's and a thin gold leaf stripe through the centre of the gloss black interior trims......................you can't tell me that wouldn't look any good.

If you're Russian mafia or a pimp... Or both.

[westy 614]

Nice work Julian. I really dig it. Shame it would look complete arse with grey meh.

[Mr2low 57]

I love the red tbh works well with the black headliner helps break up the black, i was thinking about going with alcantara but couldn't quite picture it and didnt want to waste that amount of money if it looked like sh*t

i started mine the other day just a few pieces after work each day using 3m 1080 brushed steel, wanted it darker then the usual silver, finished it last night after almost giving myself a black eye after removing the gear knob ( do not get hit in the eye by a knob it hurts ) only have crappy lumia photos at night havent had a day off to see it in the light yet

gf thinks it looks so much nicer, and she liked the wood so win.

Edited June 8, 2013 by Mr2low

[jeffbebe 1559]

I love the red tbh works well with the black headliner helps break up the black, i was thinking about going with alcantara but couldn't quite picture it and didnt want to waste that amount of money if it looked like sh*t

i started mine the other day just a few pieces after work each day using 3m 1080 brushed steel, wanted it darker then the usual silver, finished it last night after almost giving myself a black eye after removing the gear knob ( do not get hit in the eye by a knob it hurts ) only have crappy lumia photos at night havent had a day off to see it in the light yet

gf thinks it looks so much nicer, and she liked the wood so win.

Looks good. Brushed steel 3M was going to be my second option if the red didn't work out! Where did you get the wrap? I could only find brushed ali wrap locally.

[Mr2low 57]

http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/car-parts-...n-601684416.htm

[yng_750 247]

if anyone decides to split the trim into three stripes and put the bmw M colours on it... i will come to your house and i will hurt you, then i may burn your car.

[jeffbebe 1559]

http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/car-parts-...n-601684416.htm

Thanks

if anyone decides to split the trim into three stripes and put the bmw M colours on it... i will come to your house and i will hurt you, then i may burn your car.

It's okay if you do it in your Honda Civic

[M3_Power 636]

Looking good!! I hope you were paying your sander at least minimum wage and not ice cream

[jeffbebe 1559]

Looking good!! I hope you were paying your sander at least minimum wage and not ice cream

The great thing about slaves is that they don't get paid!

[lord_jagganath 421]

Do you think a Gloss plastidip finish would be fine too? so you can remove it and return to the original wood if you want to...

[Tristan 338]

Do you think a Gloss plastidip finish would be fine too? so you can remove it and return to the original wood if you want to...

Plastidip would work fine - Not sure you'd even need the glossifier.

It isn't the most pleasant feeling thing though. I'd be more inclined to get an actual vinyl and do that.

[lord_jagganath 421]

^ fair enough, I actually want a piano black finish to the E34, the wood at the moment is perfect, but unbecoming in a bimmer.

[Tristan 338]

^ fair enough, I actually want a piano black finish to the E34, the wood at the moment is perfect, but unbecoming in a bimmer.

I would be using vinyl sheets like these:

http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/car-parts-...n-629116602.htm

[jeffbebe 1559]

Yep. Agree with Tristan. Don't use plastidip on interior parts. The finish doesn't feel great or look that good on close inspection. Vinyl wrap definitely the way to go for a consistent black gloss finish. Textured vinyls are generally a bit nasty but you can get some nice ones that aren't flat colour which may look a bit better on a black trim piece.