For all the new people to the world of cleaning their cars, please read this. I am only writing this:

1) Tired of reading misinformed posts about "wax" and "swirls gone by blah blah blah"

2) I love all fbody's and i can't sit here and let myself not say something because I would hate to see one neglected.

First:

Wash: Wash your car reguarly with a high quality wash. Use a two bucket method and frequently wash your mit out. Choose a plush/sheepskin mit or something that won't scratch. Do not use dishwash soap, you spent all that money on a beautiful car so pay the extra money for quality car wash soap. I use Eagle One Wet for its cleaning ability, won't strip wax, great suds.

Clay: Clay your car at least once a year. Clay is important in removing all types of grime/dirt that regular washing won't. Once you clay you will see a huge difference. Simple to do, read instructions, not expensive.

Paint cleaner: I personally like Klasse All in One and to be honest, I rarely get to use it b/c my car is cleaned frequently and clayed when it needs it. Use cleaner when needed.

Polish: Most misunderstood area and topic that gets confused with "wax." You need an abrasive polish to remove swirl marks permanately. Repeat, permanately, not fill temporarily. It is a waste of time doing by hand, repeat by hand, waste of time. You can either purchase a porter cable or PC and corresponding pads. I like to use Menzerna Intensive Polish and Final Polish. Both use ZERO fillers and leave a clean finish.

Wax: I almost have come to hate this word because of marketing confusions and people thinking wax is the key to everything. People wonder why their cars look like **** after a week again. Waxing is your last step of the process. Look at wax as a sealant or it seals in all your work you've done above. Most waxes contain fillers so if you wax with lets say Meguiars NXT or the 3 step process they sell and then a week later your scratches are back thats why, they have fillers.

REMEMBER: Scratches need to be removed by abrasion or AKA polish. Buy a PC and good pads.

My finish of my car looks perfect without even waxing because of all the time I put in paint correcting, claying, polishing and regular washing. WAX Seals my work. Please search, go to www.autopia.org and learn! Ask questions before you buy. There are numerous other topics to detailing such as wetsanding, glazes, etc. I gave some quick insight for beginners. To recap:

1) Wash
2) Clay
3) Wash
4) Polish Abrasive
5) Final Polish for gloss
6) Wax or sealant

Hope that helps and stop being such damn NOOBS!!!!!!!!!! SEARCH!!!!!!!!

 

So you cant just use the drive thru car wash with the brushes and then spray on the wax in a bay? Damn, maybe thats what Im doin wrong...he, he...

 

no kidding...some of the posts on here absolutely scare me. To think that somebody would take care of these cars the way they do, they should be beaten.

 

I'm not really into polishing myself YET, but I have a question, won't the claying remove the polish too therefore making it not permanent?

 

some good info mc01ta .. there is a ton of information, in a ton of places, people .. READ IT ..


and a question for all:

Does anyone on here buy a cam based on what they heard a guy down the street did to his motor? does anyone do that kind of upgrade without doing some research first? No. (and if they do, their car runs like crap)
Take the same approach with taking care of your paint. Learn what to use, and how to use it, then use if often.

If you don't know how, read and research all you can, and, if possible, ask someone that does know how to do it to Teach/Show you.

 

Polish doesn't stay on the vehicle as a finish. It is used (as stated above) to remove imperfections from the clear coat (swirls, minor scratches). If polish is applied right, there should be no residue left from the polish. Claying will remove wax that was applied to seal the finish after it has been polished.

 

Do not look at polish as a selant or wax. All polishing does is enhance gloss and remove scratches and swirls. It fixes bad finishes to put it one way. With that said, claying removes wax, dirt, etc. Polish breaks down and deminishes. Polish has abrasives that break down. Polishing wihtout fillers and having abrasives PERMANATELY enhance gloss and take out scratches/swirls. Claying wouldn't remove something that is already permanent AKA a nice polished finish.

 

I think there are some people in the same club with me sharing my pain daily reading these posts...

 

Also there is a sticky on the FAQ in this forum on the PC, read it!

 

Yeah/kinda

No clay/polish/wax etc is permanent. It gets degraded by UV rays, weather, grime, salt etc that beats down on it throughout the year(s).

 

Ling_650vette, please read. Polish deminishes and is abrasive so it breaks down to take out swirls, scratches and enhances gloss, THAT's IT. It isnt like wax that is used for sealing or giving extra looks. Did you not read? Goddamn I'm exhausted from this, i'm cutting myself off from this forum for a bit I think

 

Folks, your cars paint is very similar to a fine peice of wood furniture.

Polish = using very fine sandpaper to remove all of the scratches in the wood and to get it as smooth and optically perfect as possible. This is what a polish does (at least a good polish that doesn't contain fillers aka Menzerna intense polish). The only way you get rid of polish is by creating more imperfections from using a dirty wash mit etc.

I don't even use the term wax since it infers a type of morpheus phase solid / liquid (yes I'm a chemist). There are certain types of waxes out there, carnuba is one, but I prefer to use a chemical sealant on the paint as a final step. This isn't going to make the appearance any better, it is comparable to a final clear coat of vanish on a wood surface. It's job isn't to make a shinier car, it's job is to protect that polishing job that you spent so much time on.

Here's how my car prep time breaks down based on effort and amount of importance:

Wash = 10%
Claybar/wash together = 15%
Polish (2 step proccess, intense and final) = 75%
Sealant = 10%

That yeilded me with the best results on a black car.

Here's my wife's door:

 

Maybe you should take some of your own advice and learn to read.

He asked -

I never said anything contrary to your information, I just explained to him that nothing you're applying is permanent. Polish might not "sit" on the car like wax does, but my answer is still correct.

You've got some good information, but damn dude learn to chill a bit. Take some of your own advice and SEARCH the A&D forum and you'll see Im one of the guys who routinely is in here giving out information. If you think its wrong, then give your alternate opinion and move on. If you want to attack me, then take it to PM and we can discuss it.

Im not the detailing expert, Im just here to give my opinion and my experiences with things. Again, if you want to attack that then PM me like a big boy. If you want to continue being billy bad ***, then maybe you should take a break for a bit.

 

Polish is used to remove swirls and small blemishes. By claying you wont have the scratches reappear because the polished was removed UNLESS it had fillers. I've been detailing for a long time (over 8 years) and learn new stuff everyday. But I can 100% confidently say I know this subject very, very well.

Ling_650vette, you are not correct, when I polish I can PERMANATELY REMOVE SWIRLS and SCRATCHES and when I clay after the polish isn't removed because the polish has already broken down and DISAPPEARED BUT it was used to enhance the paint's finish PERMANATELY.

Would you like me to go detail a dirty car, polish and take pictures then clay and take pictures and give you a tutorial? Billy Bad *** has just spoken...

 

Good advice, but..
Clay is good only if the finish has a lot of contaminates on it. Otherwise, it is a waste of time. If you stay on top of you ride, buff it out when needed, and use wax on a regular basis, you may not have the need to use a clay bar.

 

Very True MrPongoSS, thats the best thing about keeping up your cars finish, less work in the long run.

 

Incorrect. That's just like saying if I shower twice a day and keep myself clean 24/7, I'll never catch a disease, so it's a waste of time taking my multi-vitamins. The clay bar removes more than you think it would, even if it is constantly cleaned. Cleaning it even adds contaminants, to an extent... but still, my point stands true.

So, to correct the quote, I'll say, "Clay is good even if the finish has very little contaminants. It is never a waste of time."

 

Why is everyone missing the concept behind polishing????

I guess we should start with what makes a car shiny... it is a result of light being reflected and the less it is 'disturbed' the brighter and shinier it is... (like that technical jargon)

When you buy a diamond, it's shiny and pretty because it was polished to create a perfectly smooth surface so as not to disturb the light as it is reflected, the same holds true for your paint. Actually, you aren't polishing the paint per say, actually you are polishing the clear coat so that the color coat underneath can shine with as much brillance as possible.

This isn't rocket science guys. This is simple visible light spectrum analysis. That's why projection tv's need to have their lenses polished every so often in order to maintain a crystal clear image. I gaurantee you they aren't filling in the scratch marks with a temporary filler like some of these low cost all in one bottle do for your car's paint.

If the polish is worth anything, it won't have fillers. The last thing you want to do is add crap to the optics of your clear coat that will change chemically over time.

 

mc01ta your "tutorial" is good, but you wrote it for the wrong reason. You're just gonna be pissed when this thread dies and people are asking the same questions again. *Almost* everyone on here owns their car and is free to care for it as they wish.

 

definately man... i i hate to stop caring but it gets way too repetitive.. hopefully we can get this stickyed or something. or at least a walkthrough on how to do it right, instead of loosely explaining it each time the question is asked.

heres mine, the autopian way:

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