wax, polish, wash, clay bar, pre-wash, sealer/glaze..???

[madking411]

I'm a little confused about the detailing process....So, here's the story;
Yesterday, i went to NOPI and on the way in, i was lookin around at all the cars in the parking lot, and i noticed that they ALL had this deep crystal-clear shine and it was SICKK.:camera: Then, i looked back at my car and the paint was all dull and lookin like it was in need of some tlc...

So, today, i've decided to buy some detailing products, but im not sure about what to get or in what order to use them, to restore my shine and make it look fairly impressive.

But, i THINK i've got..
1)wash. 2)dry. 3)polish. 4)liquid clay bar. 5)Wax.
Does that sound about right, so i can restore my finish and get a nice, beautiful, deep shine?
(my car is white btw...)

PS. can i use rubbing compound as a polish?? and what does that ICE synthetic spray detailer REALLY do??:???:

[81911SC]

Search button or there are forums for it too. If nobody helps ya that is, idk.

[madking411]

Search button or there are forums for it too. If nobody helps ya that is, idk.
i did that...it didnt help very much...thats why i made this thread....

and i thought there used to be a ''detailers'' section on IA??? made specifically for talkin bout this sort of stuff?

[allmotoronly]

Ive used the turtle wax ICE and was not impressed. I bought the liquid clay bar (what a joke) and the liquid polish. I usually use mothers clay bar and meguiars gold wax, which is about 732123 times better than the ICE. The only up side of the ice is that you can use it on the trim of the car, so I will probably keep it just to use on places like that. The liquid clay bar must have some kind of chemical degreaser, because it made the front bumper of my car fade really bad, and I only left it on for about 5 minutes or so while I did the front bumper and then rinsed it off. It is a liquid and when you apply it its almost like car wash. it gets soapy. In my opinion it didn't do jack shit other than ruin the finish of my front bumper cover. I had to use a real clay bar, rubbing compount, and 2 coats of real wax to get it back to about half of what it used to look like. I will probably be getting it re-clear coated soon.

[madking411]

so what exactly DOES clay bar ACTUALLY do? Oh, and after which step do you start to actually notice a difference in the finish?

[KevinT707]

If your paint looks really faded than you will need to get some compound + high-speed buffing (if it's a dark color than you'll need some swirl remover also). But if you just need to wax it for protection & get a nice gloss than use Meguiar's NXT Generation Tech Wax (http://www.autobarn.net/menxtgetewax.html); It's a polymer wax so you can apply it to everything, it'll make trim shine! It's better than Meguiars Gold wax (leaves smudges).


so what exactly DOES clay bar ACTUALLY do? Oh, and after which step do you start to actually notice a difference in the finish?
You'll notice a difference after each step, starting from washing the car. After each step the finish of the paint will progress. CLAY BAR does this (http://www.properautocare.com/usclaybartor.html)

[madking411]

No, its not TOO faded. All the paint IS there... It just looks like it needs to be cleaned and waxed up real gud.

(read the article..i dont need to use clay bar on it...)

[madking411]

So, i guess i'll do it like this then;

1)wash. 2)dry. 3)polish. 4)wax.

and i'll use, Meguiars NXT Generation Tech Wax, and Rubbing Compound as polish.

[allmotoronly]

So, i guess i'll do it like this then;

1)wash. 2)dry. 3)polish. 4)wax.

and i'll use, Meguiars NXT Generation Tech Wax, and Rubbing Compound as polish.

I say to use meguiars gold wax, not tech wax. The gold has never left smudges when I use it, but the tech wax leaves a greasy looking residue that is hard to get off. The gold wax is a carnuba wax, so it wont leave smudges. Hand apply and buff. I have used pretty much every wax product on the market on my different cars, and I prefer the meguiars gold. It is a little harder to apply and remove but it is worth it. The main advantage of the tech wax is that it does not leave white residue on plastic trim, but if you do it right, you dont have to worry about that anyway.

[madking411]

so should i get the gold class liquid, or paste? which one seems to work better overalll? paste or liquid?

[.blank cd]

madking411, PM me, i'll do it for you. I have all the shit you need and the high speed buffer to do it with

[RealRHDSil80]

I love this thread there needs to a "detail wax, wash" section. Yea that liquid clay bar ICE stuff is a joke. I had to take my car to a detailing place to get all the leftover residue off.

[.blank cd]

If you dont know what your doing, any kind of clay bar will fuck your shit up

[1SICKLEX]

Wash
Dray with microfiber
Claybar. What you want to do is put your hand in a plastic bag and feel over the paint. All that stuff u feel but can't see, the claybar pulls up.
Clean. Then you need to clean the paint.
Polish. This is what gives the shine
Wax. This is what protects all the hard work u just did.

Don't use the same cloths. But a bunch of microfiber towels and use them. Don't allow the cleaner/polish/wax to dry. You wipe on and wipe off.

Than buy some Meguiars spray wax to keep the car nice looking anytime u want to.
Here is my write up with pics
http://www.seloc.net/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=6424

[madking411]

Don't use the same cloths.


I didnt....:goodjob:



Well, i did the work.....only have one layer of wax though, i was thinking about puttin maybe 1 or 2 more layers on top...i want a BIT more shine...it looks GOOOOOOOD though!!! that Meguiars does some GOOD WORK MAANNN!!

what i did was...
wash, use rubbing compound, wipe off leftover compound, Polish and wipe off leftovers, wax....buff off.
Gave me a MIRROR FINISH. I LOVE IT. :camera:

(....haha, anybody wanna see some pix???? i know how 'picture-happy' IA tends to be....)

edit: So, when i want to ''restore'' the mirror-shine, or maintain it, i can use that ICE liquid detailer spray every now and then?? not to be confused with the liquid clay bar...

[1SICKLEX]

Good work. Yes, when you want to restore, you can use detailer spray.
LOL, I was at the Varsity meet Thursday and my car was filthy, I literally got her shining back up using my Meguars speed detailer and then spray wax. I always keep spare microfiber in the trunk.