I had a few questions concerning detailing my car. I was looking through the detailing section at my local auto shop and was fascinated to see so many various products. After reading practically every label on all the bottles, I'm just a bit confused now. It seems like the steps takin to detail the exterior of a car are usually in the form of, wash, dry, claybar, wash, dry, polish, then wax. I ran into a few products such as car cleaners, Meguiar scratchX, glazes, and such. So I was wondering, is scratchx the same thing as a polish? Because on the bottle it stated to wash the car then use scratchx and then wax it. Would using scratchx and then polishing be over-doing it? What about glazes? Are they like polishes? So looking at the products, I would wash, dry, claybar, wash, dry, car cleaner, scratchX, polish/glaze? then wax? Is that correct?

Thanks in advance for the help.

 

The steps to detailing are:
• Wash
• Examine surface to determine if clay is needed. Typically clay will be needed 2-4 times a year depending on your environment.
• Polish
• Glaze (optional)
• Wax
• Maintain

As far as products go, there are dedicated paint cleaners, polishes, glazes and waxes. There are also combination products that are cleaner/polishes, cleaner wax, etc.

Scratch X is an abrasive polish that will both clean and polish. It is hard to use over the whole car though. This product has to be worked in small areas at a time and it must be worked until the abrasives have completely diminished. It is more intended to remove selected defects. Maybe ColorX would be a better choice for the whole car as it is easier to use.

A product like Meg's #80 is an abrasive cleaner coupled with a glaze. This can be applied by hand but is really effective with a PC.

If you are doing everything by hand you might try Meguiar's Deep Crystal products. Step 1 is a paint cleaner and step 2 is a glaze. Instead of the the Deep Crystal Step 3, I'd use NXT Tech Wax Liquid.

You should try a few products that are highly regarded by others and develop your technique. Then once you have some comfort with the products and how they will act you can experiment with others to compare if they are better for you or worse.

It is not necessary to wash again after you clay if you use the lube that comes with the clay kit. Just spray the lube and clay a small area (2' x 2') and then wipe dry with a MF.

My regimen is:

• Wash with Meg's Gold Class or NXT car wash
• Clay with any clay kit
• Polish with Meg's #80
• Glaze with Meg's #7 or #81
• Wax with NXT Tech Wax Liquid (x2 24 hours apart)
• Maintain with NXT Booster Spray Wax after every other wash

Now there are better and worse products out there but I persist with these choices because I know the products and can get repeatable results, the results that appeal to me, with little effort.

This is what the paint on a 15 year old daily driver looks like with this regimen.



Here is a 2004 Highlander that sits out 24/7.

 

Dang, NICE!!! Thanks for the advice. So during maintaining, you use the detailing spray and the spray wax right? How often do you wash the car? And after each wash do you go with the whole procedure again? or can you skip a few steps? Thanks again for the advice.

 

I wash just about every week and apply the NXT Tech Spray Booster after every other wash. This product definitely requires a technique. It must go on very thin but if you spray it on an Even Coat applicator pad and apply it to the paint it goes pretty easily. I can do the MR2 in about 20 minutes and the RX330 takes about 30 min.

I go through a full detail 2 or 3 times a year. The maintenance step with the booster makes the paint very slick so dirt and grime wash off pretty easily. The car always looks freshly detailed after the booster.

I use the Quick Detailer spray to remove light dust and any bird droppings immediately. I keep a bottle in the car for just such an emergency. Bird droppings can permanently damage your paint if you let it linger.

 

Thanks for the advice and tips again. This will save me hours upon hours of work since I thought most people did the whole process every month.

 

You might want to pay special attention to your washing technique as well. If you use the two bucket method with grit guards in the buckets and new sheepskin wash mitts you will put less swirls in your paint. I wash my mitts after every car wash and replace them every 3 - 6 months. I also dry the car by removing the hose nozzle and reducing the water flow and carefully sheeting the water off the paint. Then I use Meg's Water Magnet Microfiber towels to dab away the remaining water. Anything you put in contact with the paint has the potential to scratch or leave swirls. Being **** about the washing and drying will also make your car look better for a longer time, extending the time before a complete detail is needed.

Post some pics of before and after if you do a detail.