Exactly what the title says... if you are going to polish, would you still clay the car after wash or go straight to the first polish/compound you have?

 

I would only clay if the car needs it. Run your hand over the paint. If it's smooth, don't clay. If you can feel anything stuck to the surface, use clay to remove it.

I'm about to detail my exterior for the first time in more than a year (yes, Zaino eventually wears off ). I plan to start with a good wash, then clay, then Z-PC, then a few coats of Z5 & Z2.

 

hey- i am impressed jeffbrig!!
lotsa guys i know think that clay is the first step of polishing-
and its not...
two separate steps - one for paint contamination and one for paint imperfections. dont always need clay and dont always need polish-
although often if one is needed so is the other, but its not always the case. with neglected cars it is... i have never done both at the same time to my car (cause it has never needed both at the same time).

one of the reasons that imo the most important step of detailing is inspection. wash/dry/ inspect.
inspection = with hands and with eyes. from inspection you can tell what steps to take.

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hey, i see two guys on this thread who need wacko badges!!
(just post up pics of your clean ride and pm the link to me... )

 

Well, here was the last time it was clean




I'll do a before/after when I get a free weekend to detail everything.

 

was in the neighborhood and did a fly by this thread, so no pm needed...
badge in process for that wacko red shine!!

 

Do the baggie test first. place a sandwich bag over your hand, run it across the paint. if you feel bumps, etc. you need to clay.

You will want to clay before polishing, so that your pad doesn't pick up the contaminants, and cause swirls/scratches while polishing. Plus, the polish will work better without the added work load.

If you have never clayed the car before while you have had it, then it's a no-brainer. clay after the wash, then polish.

 

Yea this is my new s2k, '06 with 10k miles, never driven in bad weather up north, but since I've got it here in AZ tons of swirl marks all over the car. It's in need of a wax because the water doesn't bead on the surface and it doesn't feel slick to me.