[TheBlackGT]

I never really planned on getting another GT. Lone behold, here I am. I was actually looking at something else, possibly a GC, but one thing always stayed in the back of my mind. Nothing would ever be unique as this lineup. Despite its controversy, my previous GT made some big waves in the BMW scene. While not everyone loved it, many appreciated the uniqueness of it and the effort put into making one of the most hated BMWs something a bit more special.

However, I made some learning mistakes as I went through the different modding phases in that car. So when I got the chance to do it all over again, with a new fully-loaded LCI (much improved over the old gen), I did a double-take and thought what possibilities lay ahead.

Some friends supported the decision to do it one more time, while others were totally against it. However, after some thought, I realized the untapped potential the GT had that I never got to bring out in my old one. If I was going to get a new GT, I was going to go big. Real big.

It began with what I thought the GT needed most. A drop. I must give a big Thank You to John at CKS Suspension for helping me make this the first GT ever to be on coilovers. I'm currently testing the setup and working with him to develop and perfect the F07 coilover set. I thought my last H&R setup was great, until I got these coilovers installed. Despite being much lower this time around, it actually rides much smoother than the H&R's, and handles so much better. It really is true that coilovers are a world of difference.



Then came the aero. Thanks to Galvez Customs, a very special 1-of-1 custom aero kit for the GT, including a front lip, side skirt "wings," and a DTM-inspired rear diffuser with side fins was created for me. It helped make the car that much more aggressive, even with the few light modifications it had. Since there is no kit for the GT unlike the F10, I had to go the custom route, but I'm glad I did. Thanks to Galvez, I was able to put my vision into reality and design a kit that's both aggressive and tasteful. I also got my side skirt wings done in real carbon fiber by my friend NJ Custom, who's been doing carbon fiber work for over 10 years.



Next came the longest phase of the build. I brought the GT over to my buddy Franklin's new shop, Authentic Vinyl Wrap. Despite his business only being a few months old, Franklin has worked in the wrapping industry for over 14 years. His skills are matched by very few, and he is most definitely a perfectionist.

The car was dropped sometime in October, and from then on little-by-little Franklin helped to transform the car. It started out with the base color, Matte Black by KPMF. KPMF is one of the original manufacturers of vinyl, and their quality is one of the best I've seen. The matte black is the perfect blend between a dull flat black and sheeny satin black. He took apart the entire car until it looked completely bare, wrapping every piece individually. Upclose you literally cannot find a cut or imperfection anywhere, it's astonishing.





The car was there for over 2 months, as my wheels were being built by Litespeed Racing, a company specializing in carbon fiber-reinforced forged wheels. Patrick, the owner of Litespeed, contacted me asking me to debut his brand new unseen wheels, and I couldn't say no. He did warn me that it would take fairly long as the design and testing were still in the works, and possibly prototypes might need modification to be perfected. However, upon seeing the CAD file of the initial design, I couldn't pass it up. The wheels are a 3-piece design with carbon fiber barrels and spokes, with the faces finished in Brushed Bronze.

In the meantime, Franklin didn't only wrap the car. He helped install my exhaust and build part of it. He installed my BlackVue DR650S-2CH dash cams. He put three coats of Ceramic Pro on the entire car to keep the wrap protected. He even shaved my Morph Auto Design canards, originally designed for the M4, to perfectly line up with the GT's front bumper.

Also, 914 Customz helped the GT with a little eye makeup. I didn't want to just do a standard blackout, so I opted for a full matte black housing with gloss black reflective strip, and orange accents. It really gave a whole new look to the front of the car. He even added a little GT logo on the projectors. It was subtle, but really stood out.



The matte black wrap wasn't the end. I didn't want to do the usual cookie-cutter color change and call it a day. If this was going to be a transformation, it needed to be worth it. So after hours of hand-drawing different designs on GT sketches, I finally had the perfect one. The colors from KPMF were picked, and watching the design come to life was the best part. A little modification from the original sketch was done, but overall the design stayed true to its drawing. I knew this was really going to change the game and amaze everyone.

Authentic Vinyl Wrap took amazing care of me. Franklin treated the car as if it were his own; he always took his time to make sure everything was 100% perfect. As a thank you, I wanted to do something for him. So I decided to host an event at his shop, in which the GT would be revealed. However, one thing kept putting it off: the wheels.

The car didn't come home in the 2 months plus it stayed there. However, I wanted to have it tuned before the show. Thankfully, my longtime friend Mo of DME Tuning actually drove all the way to the shop to pull the DMEs to tune the car. The tune paired with the custom exhaust (and downpipes) made the car sound brutal. Really brutal.

Finally the wheels finished right before Christmas, and arrived two days after the 25th. The show was then slated for Saturday, the 31st. I was worried at first because many people would have plans for New Years Eve. However, I kept it earlier in the day so people could still show up an have time for other occasions later on. Due to a shipping delay, I was running really tight to get everything on schedule for the show.

Unfortunately, the factory screwed up and made a little mistake with my rear offset, which meant the rear wheel poked a bit. I had to raise the rear up before the show but it was too late to call it off, and the car still looked pretty damn good. However, I don't blame them as this was an accidental mistake and new ones are in production. So as they say, the show went on.

Before the show, I decided to help Authentic by assisting them with their social media posting, to help grow the account. Franklin was so grateful that he decided to get me a gift, which ended up being a few gifts. He installed custom lighting behind the front grilles and in the interior, which were color/brightness adjustable by remote. At first I thought of those tacky, flashy cars in Japan, but when I saw it in person it was quite tastefully done. My favorite color is orange, as it matches the car's accents perfectly. The second gift was having my engine cover hydrodipped in carbon fiber with orange accents. I was originally planning to paint the whole cover burnt orange, but this was one hell of a surprise, along with the lights. They really were the final pieces to the puzzle.

The event was a huge success. At least 40-50 people showed up, and every single person was blown away by the GT. The car got so much love, many even said the old GT couldn't compare (which I agree). It was almost overwhelming to keep up with all the attendees; I was beat by the end of the show. However, it was well worth it. The new GT really earned its stripes then.

Looking back on my decision, I'm glad I went this route. I still believe no GranCoupe or whatever would have the presence this car has had in the scene, solely because its so unique. It really goes to show how much potential the GT truly has, and how much BMW hampers that potential from the factory. Anyways, I'll probably add more to this writeup later, but till then I conclude here.

Last, but not least, the most important part of this thread. The pictures, and debut video. Enjoy everyone. :thumbup:

The Debut Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ULL4...ature=youtu.be

[vpatel867]

Very cool!

[Graffix]

Awesome!! That's the one word I would use to describe the BlackGT (Panther).

How many times did you void the factory warranty

[AMT92]

Originally Posted by Graffix

Awesome!! That's the one word I would use to describe the BlackGT (Panther).

How many times did you void the factory warranty

All the times.

[ezaircon4jc]

Looks good! The wheels should be directional, not the same for each side. IMHO, the same "twist" on both sides looks off. Has ALWAYS driven me crazy; maybe it's a little OCD (or should it be CDO?).

[TheBlackGT]

Originally Posted by Graffix

Awesome!! That's the one word I would use to describe the BlackGT (Panther).

How many times did you void the factory warranty

when you have an SA who's cool with all this, you won't have much trouble with the warranty. and none of these mods significantly hamper the warranty to be honest.

[TheBlackGT]

Originally Posted by ezaircon4jc

Looks good! The wheels should be directional, not the same for each side. IMHO, the same "twist" on both sides looks off. Has ALWAYS driven me crazy; maybe it's a little OCD (or should it be CDO?).

Yeah i noticed that too. This was a prototype wheel done for me. Revisements are being made for my replacement, so both wheels will spin the right way.

[ezaircon4jc]

Originally Posted by TheBlackGT

Yeah i noticed that too. This was a prototype wheel done for me. Revisements are being made for my replacement, so both wheels will spin the right way.

Royer.... That will look KILLER!!!!

[The_M6]

This is one hell of a build! I'm glad to see you took something a little unusual and did something amazing with it. I've always had a love hate relationship with the GT because I always felt BMW fell way short of the MB CLS and the Audi A7 but you've shown us all how much potential there is with this platform.
Thanks for sticking to your plan and the flawless execution that came with it!

BTW, I don't like tucked wheels, your rears are sitting perfect IMO...flush>tucked!

[TheBlackGT]

Originally Posted by ezaircon4jc

Royer.... That will look KILLER!!!!

royer?

[TheBlackGT]

Originally Posted by Blu550

This is one hell of a build! I'm glad to see you took something a little unusual and did something amazing with it. I've always had a love hate relationship with the GT because I always felt BMW fell way short of the MB CLS and the Audi A7 but you've shown us all how much potential there is with this platform.
Thanks for sticking to your plan and the flawless execution that came with it!

BTW, I don't like tucked wheels, your rears are sitting perfect IMO...flush>tucked!

thanks brother! actually that's how the wheels were supposed to look. a little bit of photoshop magic is reduce the gap. it sits a bit funny currently and the wheels poke far too much. However like i said, new ones are on the way.

[ezaircon4jc]

Originally Posted by TheBlackGT

royer?

Oh... Old work thing. The Spanish speaking airlines always said royer instead of roger.

[TheBlackGT]

Originally Posted by ezaircon4jc

Oh... Old work thing. The Spanish speaking airlines always said royer instead of roger.

hahaha my bad

I'm sure you'll be happy with the end result soon.

[Ickdeep]

Awesome transformation!

[lsturbointeg]

Love the diffuser! Are the wheels forged?

[TheBlackGT]

Originally Posted by Ickdeep

Awesome transformation!

Thanks bro! I peep you in my notifications on Instagram once in a while

Originally Posted by lsturbointeg

Love the diffuser! Are the wheels forged?

Yessir. Carbon fiber reinforced forged wheels.

[lsturbointeg]

what's next brother?

[TheBlackGT]

Originally Posted by lsturbointeg

what's next brother?

Intakes en route

[lsturbointeg]

AWESOME!

[TheBlackGT]

Originally Posted by lsturbointeg

AWESOME!

[lsturbointeg]

Originally Posted by TheBlackGT

Insane! are you planning on being at MPact this year?

[SLVSRFR]

Nice intakes! Watch for those filters, they get pretty nasty quick. Badblack recommended the upgrade for them, OReillys also sells some replacements