clay bar cleaning

[teapot tony]

got my x type home today from dealer thought i would get to know it a bit better and gave it a good thorough wash and noticed the paint work feels really gritty, after a bit of internet searching i am now considering using a clay bar, just wondering if anyone here has used them  

[PD Miller]

Quote

Hi Tony

Used one and found it effective to really clean paintwork and remove insects, tar spots etc especially on front lower panel . Got mine off ebay and there's loads of tutorials on youtube on how to use them.

Happy polishing.

Pete

 

[Old Peter]

Hi Tony, 

Using a clay bar needs some lubrication, and I would recommend Auto Glym detailing spray for the.  That detailing spray is also very useful to take off milder mucky parts of the body work which will then allow you to polish with whatever wax that suits.

Regards,

Peter.

[Carole Simpson-Hadley]

Good morning Tony

We used Mequairs Gold Class clay kit on our XK X150 which seemed pretty perfect.  Nevertheless, a film was lifted leaving a perfect base for application of Carnauba wax afterwards.  If the car has had Superglaze or similar applied in the past, then it may be harder work to get rid of that.

The Mequairs kit comes with the spray on lubricant...essential to use this or the clay will drag (and also be really hard work!).  In fact, the kit contains everything you need.

Also essential to apply a non-abrasive wax afterwards....again, we used Mequairs Carnauba which resulted in a really smooth finish.

We took about 3 hours to do our XK with the clay kit, another hour and a half or so to finish with the Carnauba.  As stated in earlier posts, there is lots of advice on the net.

Well worth the effort and you can then join the Sparkly Club!

Happy growling

[Mercury57]

Hi Tony,

A bit late to join the conversation I know. Ditto all the above advice but I also use Swissvax Cleaner Fluid after the clay bar. You think the paint is clean but the cleaner lifts even more filth from the surface and preps the paint for the application of wax. A good quality Carnauba wax is certainly the way to go. Hope this helps.

Enjoy the shine !