Some pics after clay bar and a bit of Zaino polish....

http://www.chevymalibuforum.com/gallery/images/410/1_DSC02974.JPG

http://www.chevymalibuforum.com/gallery/images/410/1_DSC02985.JPG

http://www.chevymalibuforum.com/gallery/images/410/1_DSC02989.JPG

http://www.chevymalibuforum.com/gallery/images/410/1_DSC02994.JPG

Winter is coming. It looks like you got a good coat of was on. It looks awesome.

I swear by those clay bars. It's a hard job to do but a clay bar job then chase it down with a full wax job and you can see urself like if u were looking in a mirror.

Awesome. Black and Zaino...enough said:cool:

You must be the envy of the neighborhood now :p

"Jack got a new Benz, would'a look at that."
"No way. It's a Chevy!"
"Actually, I think he just popped off the Mercedes emblem and attached a Chevrolet one. Does not look bad, though."

Thanks guys...

If you're thinking of waxing or polishing your car, the clay bar is an absolute must. What a difference it makes...

I washed and polished my car before, shortly after I bought it, but the paint still felt rough - so I clay barred it and couldn't believe the amount of grime stuck to a brand new car...

If you haven't done it to your own yet, I highly recommend it...

Thanks guys...

If you're thinking of waxing or polishing your car, the clay bar is an absolute must. What a difference it makes...

I washed and polished my car before, shortly after I bought it, but the paint still felt rough - so I clay barred it and couldn't believe the amount of grime stuck to a brand new car...

If you haven't done it to your own yet, I highly recommend it...

I've always just washed my car in the past, What products do I need and what steps do you take to do that.. Id like to give it a try

I've always just washed my car in the past, What products do I need and what steps do you take to do that.. Id like to give it a try

There is a great deal of info at this site including a video on using a clay bar. There products are excellent.
http://www.meguiars.com/

And if you really want to start being a crazy detailer, head on over to this forum and become "one":

http://www.autopia.org

I never knew how extensive the world of detailing products and tools were until I hit this site several years back. Now you should see my closet...

Will a clay bar effect hand painted pin stripes? i dont want to smudge them.

Also, will this remove that rust colored dots that gets on the rocker and fender area of the car? We have a white Pilot that looks bad after one year and regular wash and wax has not worked.

There is a great deal of info at this site including a video on using a clay bar. There products are excellent.
http://www.meguiars.com/

I swear by Meguiars as well but if your looking just to purchase a clay bar then you should just pick up a cheap bar of clay at Toys R Us or something. No need to spend $20+ on a tiny clay bar and some cinnamon smelling liquid from Meguiars...

I have both the Meguiars and some cheap clay...same results

clay bars are great, i use one on mine and it does make a difference. then i use some mothers cleaner wax... thats great stuff

I swear by Meguiars as well but if your looking just to purchase a clay bar then you should just pick up a cheap bar of clay at Toys R Us or something. No need to spend $20+ on a tiny clay bar and some cinnamon smelling liquid from Meguiars...

I have both the Meguiars and some cheap clay...same results

Do you just use the oil based modeling clay or the silly putty type stuff?

looks awesome!

Do you just use the oil based modeling clay or the silly putty type stuff?

Just get the clay bar kit from an auto parts store, since it comes with the spray to use with it.

Probably a stupid question but what's the difference between waxing and polishing? I know you'd probably wanna clay before doing the above two. I'm thinking you'd wax first then polish after. I have a white malibu and I waxed it before the winter however; i've noticed some tiny red dots on the paint. I usually hand wax and some of the spots will come off.

I'm gonna get info on the steps but would like some opinions from fellow car owners. Although it's an 08 I still get the stares and I always stare when i see another bu on the road.

I have the exact same car and color. But Holy crap how did you do that? I don't like doing anything special with waxing,buffing etc it just ends up being worse years later. But this clay bar thing is looking tempting.

Probably a stupid question but what's the difference between waxing and polishing? I know you'd probably wanna clay before doing the above two. I'm thinking you'd wax first then polish after. I have a white malibu and I waxed it before the winter however; i've noticed some tiny red dots on the paint. I usually hand wax and some of the spots will come off.

I'm gonna get info on the steps but would like some opinions from fellow car owners. Although it's an 08 I still get the stares and I always stare when i see another bu on the road.

Normally a polish contains mild abrasives, fillers, and oils that help smooth & fill in fine scratches.

Wax is just that, wax. It protects the paint and gives it a nice luster.

This of course is just a very basic explaination. I would definitely recommend going to autopia.org and reading up on everthing. Oh, and you want to polish BEFORE you wax! Polishing will help remove any wax you have on your car.

Some pics after clay bar and a bit of Zaino polish....

http://www.chevymalibuforum.com/gallery/images/410/1_DSC02974.JPG

http://www.chevymalibuforum.com/gallery/images/410/1_DSC02985.JPG

http://www.chevymalibuforum.com/gallery/images/410/1_DSC02989.JPG

http://www.chevymalibuforum.com/gallery/images/410/1_DSC02994.JPG

Could you please do this for my car? LOL jkjkjkjkjkjk it looks amazing I'm sure I already commented but I'm jealous haha

This past weekend I took on the chore of washing and clay barring our 2005 white Honda Pilot.

While the top half was in good condition, years of "raildust" spots made the lower rocker area look horrible.

I used the Mothers Detailer and clay bar kit. This product is simply amazing. I had to go over the area a couple times, once to remove the bad stuff and then came back to get the remaining discoloration from the raildust.

Because of the size of the Pilot and the amount of crap on the lower half of the vehicle, it took me over 3 hours to do but the results are well worth it. Yes - my arms were sore for the next two days!!

The vehicle now looks better than new!!!

This past weekend I took on the chore of washing and clay barring our 2005 white Honda Pilot.

While the top half was in good condition, years of "raildust" spots made the lower rocker area look horrible.

I used the Mothers Detailer and clay bar kit. This product is simply amazing. I had to go over the area a couple times, once to remove the bad stuff and then came back to get the remaining discoloration from the raildust.

Because of the size of the Pilot and the amount of crap on the lower half of the vehicle, it took me over 3 hours to do but the results are well worth it. Yes - my arms were sore for the next two days!!

The vehicle now looks better than new!!!


You are pretty brave going that low on the car...but I'm sure it was worth it.

Do you just use the oil based modeling clay or the silly putty type stuff?

I use more of a modeling clay that I get in a block...last one I picked up was a purple color. I do not use Play-doh if thats what you are getting at...

I take a piece of clay and knead it a little, dip it in water and glide it across the paint.

I have found myself using the mothers clay kit I got a while back more recently than the cheap clay but if you didn't already buy a kit than this is a cheaper option.

You can get a 3 step from Mother's Gold that has worked pretty good for me!!! I do detailling as a hobby.

Will the clay bar remove the "very small" water stains on my new bu? I just noticed them after cleaning and waxing it. Very small circular water stains that were still visible when you look very closely at an angle after waxing ... Heck it is less than 3 months old and kept in a garage... any suggestions?

Will the clay bar remove the "very small" water stains on my new bu? I just noticed them after cleaning and waxing it. Very small circular water stains that were still visible when you look very closely at an angle after waxing ... Heck it is less than 3 months old and kept in a garage... any suggestions?

Yes it will.

Thanks... a lot to read about on these boards... I just read where using vinegar might be the best way to remove the spots... I think I'll try the clay first....

I washed and waxed my new Malibu and then when the sun finally came back out, I noticed swirl marks.
The next time, I only washed it and found some rough bumps when I ran my fingers over the areas around the wheel wells and lower rocker area.
I went to the Meguiar's website for info. I'm going to use their SwirlX for the swirl marks and according to what I read, feeling those bumps indicates I should clay bar.

I think someone else asked this question somewhere else. What order should I do everything in?
Wash first, then clay bar, then SwirlX, then wax?

I've never used a clay bar before. Do you just wipe it over the car or do you really have to put some elbow grease into it?

Any tips or information would be appreciated.

Thanks!

http://meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=24151

Wash the car first and dry. I use the turtle wax Ice kit and it seems to work rather well. I just apply the lube spray (makes me think its glass cleaner because of the way it looks) to a small area and rub lightly with the clay bar to that area while rubbing your hand across that area to feel any raised spots. If so, repeat to remove them. Then repeat the process over the entire car. Some spots of bug juice or tar can take a little longer to remove. Once the clay bar has picked up on it's surface the debris from your finish, fold it to expose a new clean clay surface to be used and so on..... I wipe dry with a micro fiber towel and then I apply the Ice polish following the directions on the bottle and remove with a micro fiber towel. Seems to remove the swirls in the paint pretty good and leaves a deep gloss in my red jewel finish. I like!

Malo and Red, thanks for the info!