wax polish help

[gcmlear]

I have read so many postings on wax\polish\zaino\claybar\etc, I must admit , I am lost. I bought my 1st vette last year, a white 04 convert. When I got it I thought I would do the right thing and use the Mcquire 3 step procedure. Got the car in late August by the way. Now , I read both the 1st step and polish are abrasives. Since it is already done should I just wax with a good wax from here on in.? Should I ever use polish again or just wax. I also read claybarring is a abrasive as well. I had thought I would give it a good polish again;, and then just wax. Help

[Chrisr]

Hi gcmlear.

I know what you mean about all the posts, it makes my head spin at times.

I just got an '03 coupe about a month ago and what I did was I just gave it a coat of Maguir's NXT. Man, did it bring out the color in the Torch Red!!! It didn't need claying since the dealer prepped it very well to begin with. I'm sure by the end of the fall season it may need it though. I hope to get 1 or 2 more coats of the NXT on it before the hot weather hits here in the Northeast.

I don't think clay is as abrasive as you think. Other's here who have used it could tell you better than I can. I do know this though, if you drop the clay on the ground, throw it away!!!

Hope this helps you some.

Chris

[Aurora40]

Clay is not very abrasive if you lube it properly and use a mild (consumer) clay.

One thing to think about is that *everything* is abrasive. Water is abrasive, air is abrasive, oil is abrasive. The real key is the degree of abrasiveness. Products that say they are abrasive are usually of a degree enough that the manufacturer feels they should inform the consumer. This can be different for each manufacturer.

The Meguiar's step 1 is not actually a very abrasive product. You would have a hard time correcting swirls with it, etc. A fair bit of it's ability comes from chemical cleaners, not abrasives. These work very well on oxidized paint and on staining and contamination, while being pretty ineffective on healthy catalyzed paint. This is a plus for a consumer product, and why most consumer products of this type use more chemical action than abrasive action.

The downside is that it won't do a whole lot for swirls and scratches, though they are hard to address by hand anyway. The upside is that they are very mild on healthy paint.

However, there is no point in using a product that performs an unneeded function. If your car doesn't need claying, there is no gain to claying it, only added risk of messing up and marring the surface. If your paint doesn't need polishing, there is no gain to doing it, only unnecessary removal of some paint, and more chance to mess up.

Don't be afraid to use the Step 1 any time you feel it is necessary, it is a very mild product. But dont' feel the need to use it just because it says "Step 1" on the bottle either. If you wax your car every weekend, unless it sees hell every week you will not need to do the whole 3-step system each time. You can certainly just wax the car. If you wax your car every month or 6 months or 10 years, well you will have to make a judgement call on whether the Step 1 is needed before waxing. It's all about what condition the paint is in, and what those steps can correct.

FYI, The Step 2 polish is not abrasive in any meaningful way. It is mainly a glaze that just adds some temporary pop to the paint. On reds and blacks especially, this will increase the wet deep look of the paint. You can always use this and follow with a wax if you like the look it provides.

[Chrisr]

Hey Aurora40, that's some great info you posted there!!! I think I'm going to print that out and keep it handy!!!

Thanks Again!!

Chris

[gcmlear]

thanks so much for the reply. I guess my only question (since it was a new car and winter stored ) is the one polish session probably ok, with just waxing from here on in?
Will one polish session bring out the maximum of the paint. Shouldn"t need to claybar a new paintjob. Thanks guys, I must tell you in 30 years of driving cars, this is the first car I really want to do my best on.

[Aurora40]

Glad the info was useful!

As to the follow-up, you will probably need to use a cleaner again in the future. Wax will slow down and help prevent things from sticking to, staining, oxidizing, etc, the paint. But nothing, absolutely nothing, will prevent it. If the clear can't stop it, no way some stuff you wipe on is gonna.

How often depends on how often your car is outside, how often you wash it, how often you wax it, a million things. If the surface ever looks less than perfect to you, give it a try. Or try it on a spot when you are wondering, and see if the spot looks cleaner and brighter after you use the Step 1 on it.

Claying is often necessary on a new car. While on a train, truck, etc on the way to you, and sitting out on the lot, the paint can often get embedded contaminants on it (especially on a train). Next time you wash the car, run your clean hand over the clean paint and see if it feels glass smooth or not. It's pretty easy to feel when you need to clay and when you don't. Just do it when you need to. You may find you only need to do parts of the car and that others feel fine.

Just try to get used to evaluating the condition. Then you'll always know what it needs and doesn't need. See what it feels/looks like before you use something, and what it's like after. This'll help you to tell the difference between the conditions and be able to recognize them.

As long as the car looks good to you, and you are enjoying it, though, that's really what is most important. Keep it well protected with whatever wax/sealant you like and that will go a long way towards keeping it looking good for a long time to come.