I just bought a 97 se, superblack. The paint is good, but it obviously wasnt very well kept up. I'm curious, is the meguiars three step carnauba wax process a good way to go? Any other suggestions or thoughts would be nice.

 

Clay bar the car first. That will really give it the smooth texture. Then follow up with a polish, and a wax. I use meguiars Show car glaze after the clay baring, then after the show car glaze I use the Gold Class wax. I sometimes do a double layer of wax on some spots that need it.

 

hmm...clay...i wish i wasnt so damn poor. I've got a job, yet can barely afford to keep gas in the car. I'll look into how much that clay bar will run me, then see how ill manage my gas light.

 

Clay bars are not expensive at all, and PLEASE don't use an eBay clay bar. Depending on how much fallout/overspray you have on your car, you will need a different type of clay bar. In fact, I have 4 different clay bars at home... one of which just went from blue (natural clay color) to orange (color of all the f**kin fallout.) I then proceeded to use my other clay bar (yellow) to follow up and remove the finer stuff (which was all black.)

Mothers makes a good clay bar though. It should include their instant detailer as well (mmm... smells like cinnamon.)

 

i dont have any fallout or overspray on my car. its' just going to be used to smooth up the surface, and clean it up pretty much. the paint is in good shape, it just needs to be treated.

 

Yea if you are looking for smooth paint, clay bar will make it happen, trust me. Its amazing how much dirt comes off the car with the clay bar.

 

I've used the 3 step process and it creates a very good shine at a cheap price. You won't be disappointed. Even my friends who know nothing about cars ask me if I just washed and waxed my car cause it looks so good.

 

I used the Mothers clay bar and it didn't pull up anything? It did leave residue behind that I have yet to figure out how to remove.

 

i clayed with the meguiars clay bar, then proceeded to the three step process...my oh my was i satisfied. I could have stopped after the claying...the paint was so smooth!!! I then cleaned, polished, and waxed the car. It looks so nice. It rained tonight, so i left it in the garage and got a ride from my buddy. i wanna see how long i can have her lookin cherry

 

Hmm... I hope you used it right. Cuz it works just fine for me.

 

i personally would wash with dawn to strip away all the old wax
clay the car
and then use the meguiars 3 step

 

i just bought the 3 step today, it was 12 bucks for all 3. good price?

i just got my 99, and the paint is in good shape, has chips in the front.....and some other surface scratches here and there. (I only did the following to my hood!!)

so i wash my car with turtle wax wash, comes out nice. Then the directions on the 1st step say to spread then remove. Does this mean i let the cleaner sit and wait for it to haze for like 30 mins?? I only waited like 5 mins, then i took it off. I did the polish next, and waited 5/buffed. Then i took the carnuba 3rd step, spread it all over, and buffed using a orbital buffer. What happened was that it just kinda spread the haze all over my hood, so then i had to buff it off with the cotton cloth.

#1, how many coats of step 3 (liquid carnuba wax) should i use?
#2, what is the point of an electric buffer if i just have to later buff it by hand?
#3 it came with a synthetic wool pad for "polishing" what step should i use this on? and do i polish the haze, or do i buff the haze, then polish the clear?

thanks ya'll!!

 

the 3rd step is the wax, correct? Usually thats the one you want to let sit the longest. I yet have to figure out how long, i usually wait 20 mins, but sometimes thats not enough time to dry for wax.

 

can i put other types of wax on top of it? i have turtle wax, which i guess is lower quality, but can't i put like 5 coats of that on? what about electronic buffers?

 

i let the cleaner and polish sit for about 5 minutes, then wiped it off. The 3rd step wax i let sit for about 15 minutes or so before i wiped that off. I just used it as a part of the three step, but ill use meguiars nxt later on when i have time.

 

I wish I had come across this thread earlier, but I would personally switch out the step 1 pre-wax cleaner with a swirl remover or possibly even a retail scratch remover. They will be harder to use, but pre-wax cleaners are far too mild to dent swirling very much. Systems like this are often created with ease of use and "universal safety" in mind more than "effectiveness". It's not going to be good at repairing defects, but then again it's also safe enough to use on a brand new car too.
What brand of clay are you talking about here? Clay IS fairly expensive per unit, and generally there are only two grades; a general detailing clay for average use, and a stronger one for paint overspray (like Clay Magic's Red bar).


Andyman692, you don't really have to let the cleaner or polish sit on the paint for any length of time. Sometimes products are easier to remove after they're dry, sometimes when they're still damp. Maybe they just mean it's easier to buff when dry.

Be sure to apply thin coats of wax, but 2 in one sitting is usually the most you should do, just to make sure it's even. Letting the wax sit any longer than is neccessary or attempting to bake it or something like that isn't going to help. Apply thinly, wait until it's dry (however long this takes depending on temperature and humidity), and then buff off with a soft cotton or microfiber cloth.

You can use an electric buffer to help apply some of these products more evenly and thinly, but I would just buff them off by hand. Don't use this machine dry on the surface - it doesn't help.

I would not use Turtle Wax over any of these products. As a cleaner wax it will likely undo some of the previously applied products/wax. Trying to "build up layers" of wax (especially liquids) quickly reaches the point of diminishing returns and is highly debatable if it even happens. The real key to making a finish look fantastic is not the wax at all, but all the prep you do to the paint before that. HTH

 

thanks man, so basically i bought 3 worthless bottles, a retarded electronic buffer, and i need to clay my paint.

you guys rock!