What is the conventional wisdom on how long to wait for new paint (re-paint from body work) to cure before applying clay bar, wax, etc.?

 

30 days

 

This will vary because of the chemistry of the paint used and the curing process at the body shop. Our painter uses very high quality paint, Standox, and their curing oven is one of the best on the market. For this reason, curing time for us is a few hours to a few days. However, the body shop I use to use before asked us to wait 60 days.

Ask the shop you had the work done and they'll tell you exactly when it's a good time to wax again. Keep in mind, you can still wash the car.