SO i decided to dedicate 5 hours of my time today to max's exterior.

4 hours of clayin and man was it WORTH IT.

after i washed my car, i touched the surface and it was smooth, so i was thinkin that clay bar might not do anythin for me. i then started clayin and usin that spray and i couldnt belive my eyes. the liquid kept on turnin black, i wiped all that off and touched the surface and i was like, OHHHHHH $hit.

man i got 1 thing to say about clay bar, it simply OWNS.

it gets all that junk off and leaves u with nothin but a smotth a$$ surface and made MY car a little shinner. clay bar is a MUST for anyof u guys out there.

i had 2 questions now.

should i wax my max usin meguiars gold class wax or the cleaner wax that came with clay bar was enough?

and also, whats the best way to get rid of all that junk on my rags/ towels. i got like 6 of em all dirty and waxy!!

 

Glad you enjoyed your first clay bar experience! I'd suggest using a polish before applying any wax. I am partial to Menzerna, but there are a bunch of others. You'll be amazed at how much better it looks after polishing it.

Then follow it up with something to protect it. My process is clay bar, Menzerna polish, Klasse AIO, Klasse SG, and finally S100. It takes some time, but the results are worth it.

 

i already put that cleaner wax that came with it. is it too late?

 

No, you're fine. Polishing of some kind is usually suggested because often during the claying process you introduce some marring in the surface (more apparent on dark paint). Sometimes a cleaner wax is enough to take this out, but there are lots of other products that will do it too.

If you think the finish looks fine to you after the cleaner wax then you can stop, but often enthusiasts will do the claying step in preparation for a full blown paint overhaul (see Blue's post). You could always use your Gold Class now if you want (which is also a cleaner wax, but it's supposed to be milder and some people like the way it looks better).

Pre-soak the towels in warm/hot water with some detergent and rinse them out before throwing them into the washer. Getting them clean before they have a chance to really dry out helps.

 

Yeah, the straight polish would be an optional step. I was amazed, though when I tried it. Even on my 2K2 with almost new paint, it added a layer depth and shine. Check my web page for more pics.....

 

Glad you enjoyed the experience of claying. You will notice that the more you do it, the faster you become at it.

When I first clayed my '94 GXE, it took me the same amount of time as you because I was learning the process. Nowadays, I am quicker because I don't even wait until the car is dry to start claying.

But like Blues, I did the same thing on an almost new 2002 Maxima a month after I got it. But all I did was the following:

Washed with Meguiar's Gold Class Shampoo
Clayed with Clay Magic Clay Bar
Polished with Klasse All In One
Waxed with Pinnacle Souveran

As Blues, Bman, or I will tell you, the steps you take to improve the finish will vary according to the paint's current condition.

 

Where can u buy the clay bar? pep boys didn't have it.

 

Check Wal Mart. They will have the Clay Magic kit for $9.99

 

i got mine from pepboys.

i have 1 more question, im out of the spray that came with it so what should i do? throw the clay out ( its kinda dirty) or use it with water?

 

It took you FOUR HOURS to clay the car? Yikes!

If I were you, after all that work, I'd hit the car with some polish to clean it up even more as well as remove the crappy cleaner wax. Then use Gold Class or whatever high quality wax you want to use. If you don't want to do that just wax over the cleaner wax with the gold class.

 

If the clay is dirty throw it out. You won't be helping your paint by grinding dirt into it. Usually you can use clay a couple times...but if it looks dirty just get new clay. NO don't use water...get some quick detail or clay lube.

 

I've never tried water, but I've heard that it works. Or you can use any of the quick detail sprays.

 

You can use it with water. It works just as effectively.

 

thanks to everyone for help/info and everything. altho it took me 4 hours, im still happy with the results and i think it was worth it. feelin the smoothness is priceless and it just makes me proud of what i did to my max. next time i will put some polish and gold class wax too

btw, how long should i expect the smoothness to last?

 

t minus 4 months till i get to clay my car cant wait

 

I got mine at Advance Auto Parts for $15. I think Autozone also has them.

 

If the clay is really dirty, throw it out. Otherwise, you can use a mixture of car wash soap and water instead of the detailing spray. I put a teaspoon or so of soap in to a full spray bottle of water. Using distilled water in the sprayer is probably better too.

 

It all depends on how much fallout you encounter in your city and the places where you drive. You'll just have to wait and find out, but in the meantime enjoy your smooth paint.

 

As long as you keep a healthy coat of wax on the car, the majority of any contaminants can just be washed off. Or they will possibly be trapped in the wax coat and you can just wash with Dawn and then rewax. Most members will clay their Max once a year or more anyway though, so do I. Just knowing that your finish has absolutely no contaminants in it, motivates me to do it once a year.

-Paul
White95Max 4DSC