Hi all,

How's it going? I've seen great results on cars with using a clay bar. I'm currently considering on getting a clay bar or kit, just curious to as how often and how long do you usually take to wash, dry, clay, polish/wax your Fit? and what brands have you had good experience with - Mothers, Meguiars, etc?

I'm hoping this can be done in about 1 hour Any suggestions or recommendations would be greatly appreciated, thanks in advance.

 

Hi there mate!

I wouldn't give clay bars all the credit to those wonderful looking detailed cars. Claying is one of the important steps in surface prep before you hit it with a polish & wax. And of course the finishing products play a very important role in it as well.

Wash, dry, clay, polish & wax in 1 hour?!?!? Don't mean to kill your mood off here but you won't be able to do that in such a short time mate!

To wash, dry, clay and wash again would have taken you more than an hour to complete. Add on the polishing & waxing steps... You're looking at a minimum of 6 hours to do a complete detail - even if you're using a rotary.

I normally would do a full detail once every 3 months and monthly quick details if the weather is alright - it is dependant on the weather that my car has gone through.

I'm predominantly a Meguiar's user but I also use Soft99's Fusso Coat (It's a synthetic sealant similar to Meg's M21 sealant) - not sure if it's available in States but it's readily available in my country.

Everyone would have their own preferred products here. Some would love Turtle Wax & some just love Meg's or even Autoglym. The key to it is to try some products before you can actually "know" what you like.

The reason I say this is because not all brand make the best products.
E.g. Soft99 have the worse tire shine (in my opinion) Meg's Hyper Dressing to me is the best tire dressing I've ever used.

If you don't mind paying premium price, then try Meguiar's NXT Wax. You'll love it! Ahahhaha... here I go promoting Megs again!

Hope I've managed to help you out here on your query. Ask away if you have more questions.

Cheers!

 

I've used both Mother's & Meguiars extensivelly on my old NightHawk Black Pearl DC5... I prefer Meguiars products, they are right on the money. Having used almost everything atleast once on a black car, I can tell you definately go with Meguiars

and like the guy above said, its gonna take more than an hour... basically, devote a Saturday or Sunday to completely detailing your car every few months, w/ a quick wash/detail every so often inbetween & your set.

i'd invest in an orbital buffer, that will save you some time and carpal tunnel, lol

 

Hey thanks for the replies,

Wow, I didn't realize it would take 6+ hours to wash, clay, etc. I think I'll need to plan and set aside a day for it As for the clays, I've seen them in all sorts of sizes and colors, what's the difference?

Thanks again

 

Oh yes it does take a bloody long time to detail a car. Especially when it's your own car. You will tend to be fussier! Hehehe...

The different sizes does not affect the performance, it's the clay grade that you should take note of.

Some clays are more aggressive e.g. Meguiar's has 3 grades (if memory serves me right - Aggressive, Medium & Normal)

I would advise you to purchase their Smooth Surface Kit which comprises of a Quik Detailer, MF cloth & clay. This is the normal clay that most consumers use.

Don't go for the Aggressive Clay as it would leave some micro marring on your car & you'll need a rotary to take them off. These are often used by experience detailers.

For a start, I would advise you to do the following with my personal fave products.

Wash - Meguiar's Gold Class Shampoo / Meguiar's Shampoo Plus
Clay - Smooth surface kit
Wash again
Polish - Meguair's Deep Crystal Polish / Meguiar's ColorX (I love this product!)
Wax - Meguiar's NXT Wax / Meguiar's #26 / Soft99 Fucco Coat (if u have it there)

Not forgetting the tires... Hyper Dressing or other brands you you are currently using.

Happy detailing!

 

Wow, that's a lot of steps. I guess that explains the 6+ hours I'll definitely have to check out the Meguiars product line. So you guys still apply wax after the polish?


Thanks again for all the comments, cheers

 

I use all of Meguair's product for washing, polishing and waxing. Great results and use the Quick Detailer for marks, bugs or bird do do! I have not done the claying but know that it is what I will want to do before
winter comes in. I am planning to take a vacation day soon just to do that all day long! I don't know what I'll do when it gets too cold to hand wash - I can't imagine not washing the car! and keeping it clean. I guess
I'll go through the self service car wash and just wash off the dirt and salt without using that evil brush!

Cat :x

 

mar1boroman,

Yes, waxing is a MUST DO step after a polish. Most ppl interchange the meaning of polish but to me polishing is an act to further enhance the shine of a surface. And waxing is the last step where you seal the surface with a protectant.

Go check out Meguiar's Online They are really helpful and friendly chaps over there that would give you great tips on detailing.


Cat,
I totally agree with you on your comments on the QD! It's such a wonderful product that I find it so important that I have 4 bottles of it at any given time. And of cos, 1 bottle sits in my glove compartment for emergencies of getting rid of bird poo.

 

Hey thanks again for the replies,

I didn't realize Meguiars had such an extensive product line I know they're much harder to get but I've been hearing and reading some really positive results from Klasse & Zaino products as well, has anyone had experience with these products?