Paintwork clay !!! ?????

[steve j]

Is this stuff really as good as it`s made out to be? After using it on my boot and then polishing the whole back end, I can see, NO DIFFERENCE. I know if you have a good lacquer finish, then all you are polishing is the lacquer, anyone shed some light on this so called wonder product.

[dougc]

The thing I noticed more than anything was the smoothness of the finish. I don't think that the clay is intended to add shine, thats the job of the polish and wax afterwards. It removes all sorts of surface contaminants that get stuck to the bodywork but you can't normally see. The Meguiars stuff I used on the last real good clean I gave the S left a mirror smooth surface for the polish and the final effect was stunning.

Having subsequently spent 2 weeks down at Tower View Racing since, the finish is looking a bit grubby now - hopefully the rain will leave off by the weekend!

[page3]

The Meguiars clay bar did wonders on my S, but I think it all depends on how bad your car is to begin with. Mine lives outside and so I found the clay bar removed loads of (unwanted) stuff. The resulting polish and wax came up great, especially as mine S is a non-metalic colour.

(resisted the urge to post a photo...)

[evolutionvalet]

Steve,

You will not necessarily see a big difference but ultimately, it will have had a benefit. The paintwork will feel smoother and the finish after waxing etc. should be noticable.
I would suggest using a piece of cellophone such as a cigarette wrapper or sandwich bag to check if the clay has removed the contaminants. Just rub the paintwork gently with the cellophane and you should feel just smooth paintwork. If not then reclay until there is no apparent 'dragging' to the clay.
Remember to use a lubricant of somekind to keep the clay moving. Also follow the instructions from the manufacturer and dump the clay if you drop it.
It may be that your car didnt need claying in the first place. Then again, we have used this product on brand new cars with great success. For some reason VW's and Audi's seem to have a lot of contaminants on there paint from new.....

Hope this helps. Let me know if it doesnt and I will elaborate..

Kev

[page3]

Probably a thread hijack, but...

I've always wondered if a really good full valet would do wonders for my S. Anyone reckon it would be of any benefit for an old(er) car? I do enjoy (sad, I know) giving the S its monthly wash/wax etc but never seem to get the time (or the weather) to do a really thorough job.

[Wildfire]

Yep, I used it and although the car did not appear any different, the touch and feel of the paintowrk was vastly different. Car felt like glass afterwards. Check out my review for a more in depth opinion.

[steve j]

evolutionvalet said:

Steve, You will not necessarily see a big difference but ultimately, it will have had a benefit. The paintwork will feel smoother and the finish after waxing etc. should be noticable. I would suggest using a piece of cellophone such as a cigarette wrapper or sandwich bag to check if the clay has removed the contaminants. Just rub the paintwork gently with the cellophane and you should feel just smooth paintwork. If not then reclay until there is no apparent 'dragging' to the clay. Remember to use a lubricant of somekind to keep the clay moving. Also follow the instructions from the manufacturer and dump the clay if you drop it. It may be that your car didnt need claying in the first place. Then again, we have used this product on brand new cars with great success. For some reason VW's and Audi's seem to have a lot of contaminants on there paint from new..... Hope this helps. Let me know if it doesnt and I will elaborate.. I`ll give it another go, I followed the instructions and visually can`t see any difference although it is smoother to the touch, my S2 is a metallic blue and has always polished up well and I guess I am looking to better the finish. Kev

[jonnylayze]

I've no experience of the Meguiars stuff but have found that ordinary bees wax or simoniz wax brings the car up beautifully (it was pretty shiny to start with so it does depend on what you start with!) and waht's more it protects the front of the car from dreaded stone chips, the thory being that not only have you got a potective layer of polish, flying stones (to a certain extent) just skid off

[evolutionvalet]

Steve,

Once you have fully clayed the car and waxed it, you should find it will stay cleaner longer than before and will be easier to clean next time.
Its really about preventative maintenance really. Now there are minimal contaminants on the surface, the possibility of minor swirls and scratches to the paint while washing are reduced vastly.

Any age of car can be improved by a quality valet as long as the company you choose know what to do. It is possible to damage paintwork with clay if you try hard enough
A decent company will advise you on what is needed and go through the steps. We always verbal go through the job with the client prior to doing anything so we know what they are expecting and what they want from the finish.
There are not many of us detailers who actually use clay or PC's so choose wisely and you will see a difference.

Hope this helps.

Kev

[steve j]

Clayed the bonnet yesterday, now I can see the difference, perhaps the front of the car gets more punishment due to the slipstream effect and getting blasted by vehicles in front. Anyway I am now a lot happier with the result.

[evolutionvalet]

Steve,


The main areas that we find build up are the bonnet and front bumper and behind the wheels.

Glad you found it works...

kev

[markbigears]

just use plenty of lub so it doesn't stick on the paintwork which can leave scratches!