GBMINI#3

My plan for GBMINI#3 was to customize the exterior with chrome bonnet stripes and a “moving S” on the roof.
Julian at Sublime Restorations has been working with Scott Mackay of Thin Air Grafx; this is the design he has proposed for the roof:

For the bonnet stripes, I originally investigated painting them but the cost & labor was prohibitive, so we decided to try clearcoating over vinyl chrome stripes in the hope of getting a paint-like finish; unfortunately the results are not what I hoped for:

The “orange peel” mottled effect is disappointing – I was hoping for a mirror finish like the rest of the chrome on the car but somewhere between the vinyl stripes & the clearcoat, the “orange peel” appears.

I don’t know yet what to do about this … I might just try some “plain” chrome vinyl stripes; at least the cost is not too bad if I decide they are not right.
John at MINI Peabody suggested that I actually chrome a MINI hood! Expensive no doubt …

I have aftermarket non-runflat tires on GBMINI; because it is an “S” it does not have a spare tire – so long ago I bought the MINI “skinny spare tire” (the one that is standard with the non-S) and on longer journeys I carry it in the car.
For GBMINI#2 I had a color matched tire bag made for me by JerseyGirl, so for GBMINI#3 I needed a new tire bag to match the new colors – and it arrived yesterday!

Nice 🙂
Thanks Robyn … see Robyns MINI “Nittany” here and check out her many products including the tire bag here at The Bag Lady link

I must say that I very much like the anthracite headliner in GBMINI#3; the dark color matches the other dark parts of the car and helps to highlight the red dash & seats; but the airbag warning stickers on the visors really stand out and look ugly on the anthracite – much more noticeable than with the light headliner!
So a bit of searching on MINI2 gave me a few threads (this, this and this) persuading me that I could easily remove the stickers with denatured alcohol, which we have at work.
I am pleased to say that initially, all went well and the driver side sticker came off quite easily …

 

Sadly at that point I got confident and impatient 😦
The result is that the passenger side visor is a bit battered from where the sticker came off in twenty million pieces and required a metal bristle brush to pick off the residue.
To make matters worse, I got a little alcohol on the painted dash trim – and it washed away the lovely red gloss finish 😦

Very bummed out. I can get a new trim piece ($70+) but Scott at MINI Peabody tells me the part is “on national back-order” … doesn’t MINI know how critical it is that I get GBMINI#3 looking pristine again *NOW*!?

So:
Remove the visor airbag warning stickers with GREAT care.
And keep the nasty chemicals away from all the shiny surfaces.