Thanks for chiming in for me Dan and like your advice

 

I understand that Clay is a must prior to Polish and Wash. However is a Polish and a Wash REQUIRED after a clay to restore the outer protective layers? Or can you simply just clay the car and call it clean after a final rinse?

 

This should help:

 

If you clay, then it's always best to polish right after. Clay does a great job of removing contaminants and cleaning the paint, but it doesn't do anything for bringing out gloss and depth of the paint. That's where polishing comes in. Then, polishing doesn't do anything for protecting the paint, that's where wax comes in. Go out of order, and the process will not yield optimal results. Make sense? Great question

 

Hi Moe,
This might have come up already in this thread but what should I use to clean the clay residue off before start polishing using Flex?
Thanks.

 

Just rinse and dry again. If that's not possible, wipe down with a detail spray. But rinsing and drying is preferred method.

 

Moe,
It's been a while since you made any recommendations, so I just wanted to see if they have changed. I just bought a Red 07 997.1 TT. The car is basically flawless, but the paint looks like it could use some very mild correction. It doesn't have swirls, just some very light spider webs in direct sunlight, and a few very fine scratches from improper towels. I washed and clayed, then applied pinnacle paint work lotion and Souveran by hand with a polishing pal, and it still isn't perfect. I was hoping the lotion and a white pad on the polishing pal would take care of the minor issues.

I have a PC, but just wondering what pads and polishes you would use to get the paint back to perfect. I'm thinking of starting with Menzerna Super Finish (SF-4000), but I'm wondering if that is not aggressive enough and I should start with Super Intensive 1500. I'm just trying to cut as little paint as possible. Thanks.

 

Use Menzerna Power Finish (PF2500) on a white curved ccs pad. Then go back with your pinnacle products.

For a more accurate assessment, post a high res photo and I'll tell you exactly what you'll need

 

Thanks for getting back to me. I will post pictures after I was my car this weekend. After I posted I bought/used SF4500 on the car (green and blue pads) and it really made it look great. There are however some RIDS that will require something more aggressive. I was going to buy SIP for those spots, then finish it off with the SF4500. Should I go the PF2500 route instead? I thought having SIP and SF4500 would give me the most mileage with only two products, but I could be wrong. Thanks.

 

A polish is not required after a clay one of the reason to polish a car is to remove imperfections that are in the paint. After claying the car I always apply a wax or a sealant to protect the paint.

 

Unless you're pressed for time, it makes no sense to bypass the most important step in maintaining your car, which is polishing. Polishing is what truly brings out the shine, depth, and brilliance of the paint. It's the pre-curser to a proper bonding of a wax. If you're short on time, or expectations aren't for optimal results, you can bypass polishing and simply wax.

Claying really is only necessary when you're ready to polish and wax. If you're doing maintenance, and in-between washes, all you really need is a good spray wax to keep the paint in pristine shape.

If you're claying, it's usually because it's time for the semi-annual, or quarterly detail depending on the use of the car. So, if you're claying, you're simply taking off contaminants that cannot be washed off. Things like light oxidation on the paint, tree sap, tar, rail dust, brake dust, etc.

Once contaminants are removed, the proper step is to polish and remove light swirls/scratches if any, then wax. If there aren't too many imperfections, a quick paint cleanser will do the trick, then you wax.

As with any detailing routine, it can vary between car, geographic location, and client time/skill.

 

SIP and Super Finish are a great combo. Just get a purple pad and and orange pad. This way you can handle pretty much anything coming your way.

 

New RS5 coming here in a few weeks Moe, will be in touch shortly....

 

WOW...time flies. Can't wait to see in person!

 

Now that you have my car, looking forward to your always spectacular results and picking the car back up on Friday....