Thanks, @bentrajeI didn't think about splitting the model up first. That can work, it will take a few more clicks to get to the final outcome, but not too bad.
Is there a tool for Cinema 4d that creates a material for each polygon selection tag on an object? I would like to have an object with several polygon selection tags. No materials applied. Run a script that will create a material for each polygon selection tag with a random color and or illumination and apply the material to the object with the correct selection tag added to the applied material.