Does a new car need to be clayed?

**Shortspark** · 07-03-2012, 04:58 AM

It might depend on the car. I took delivery of a new ML350 that just came off the assembly line in mid-May. On May 29, two weeks later, it was in my garage. I did the sandwich bag test and it was smooth as silk. The paint was a special German, five layer paint called "Diamond White" and I guess it is hard as a rock. It certainly is the most beautiful white I've ever seen and should be as it was a $1600 option. There was no defects, rail dust or anything else you could see with the naked eye, even under close examination. I forgot to tell the service department not to wash the car prior to my pick up but they did a great job of it.

Since I wanted to seal it right away (by hand of course), I decided to clay. I used a mild clay (Griot) along with their Speed Shine which is specifically made for this clay bar. Although most of the car was smooth as glass I did manage to pick up a few contaminants but really too few to mention. I could not believe how, for the most part, easily the clay moved over the surface of this paint. I finished up with Duragloss 601 followed by two coats of 105 a day apart, skipping the 501 entirely because of the condition of the paint. I topped the third day with AquaWax and "Diamond Jim" (as my Judi named him) now glistens like a true diamond.

I'm not sure if it is the shipping process that is different or the fact that this car did not sit anywhere for long after it came off line or there is special care Mercedes gives it cars or what but it probably did not need claying at all, even with the softest clay. Although nothing is absolute in detailing and there are always different ways to skin a cat, nonetheless, the general rule is to clay - always.

Mike Phillips · 07-03-2012, 07:00 AM

Originally Posted by rzatch

To prove a point to him I used brand new Meguiars white clay so anything found would be easy to see.

I kind of like white clay for teaching purposes, especially for people that have never used detailing clay before. The white color of the clay also shows very easily the color of the contaminants, which can sometimes be surprising.

Once in a while when I have a show car here at our studio for some work people will make comments like,

That car already looks good, what can you do for it?

I received a comment like that when it came to this hotrod Ford Pickup Truck and when it came time to clay it I did use some Meguiar's white clay just to show the owner Glen how dirty the paint on his custom hotrod really was.

Keep in mind, at the time we clayed the paint on this truck, the paint job was LESS than one year old.

So the question is?

Where did all the contamination come from in less than one year?

Even show cars might need to be clayed...

While the paint looks great in the picture below, looks can be deceiving...

BEFORE

Paint shouldn't make sound
You can tell by the sound made when I run my hand over the paint that there are some kind of above surface bonded contaminants on the paint.

1954 Ford F-100 with above surface bonded contaminants

We wiped the truck down using Detailer's Pro Series Waterless Auto Wash and then proceeded to clay the paint.

Detailer's Pro Series Waterless Auto Wash

We used all the tips and techniques for claying the paint on the custom 1954 Ford found in pages 41 to 47 of either the e-book or paperback version of The Art of Detailing.

E-book - Displayed on iPad

Paperback

Restoring smoothness by claying the paint
Here's Glen the owner of the truck claying just in front of the windshield for the very first time..

Here's Jeff claying the back of the truck...

Rene claying the bed rails...

Glen, Adam and Rene claying the paint... you can already see the gloss becoming amped up just from claying...

This truck was re-painted approximately one year ago but just from exposure to the outdoors has made the paint vulnerable to air-borne contaminants...

This shot was taken with my trusty, dusty Canon Rebel with the flash on after claying the roof...

Without the flash on here's what the clay looks like and this is what it looked like in person... The roof and the other horizontal panels pretty much felt like sandpaper before we started.

Ewww....

Besides restoring gloss, by removing the film of contaminants off the paint you'll make machine polishing easier, safer and more effective and enable your choice of wax or paint sealant to better be able to bond to the paint.

AFTER
Here's Robert from Impression's Detailing giving the paint a final wipe after ONLY claying the paint....

Even a show truck might need to be clayed...
As you can see, even a show truck might need to be clayed, the way you tell is after washing or wiping the paint clean, feel the paint with your clean hand and if you feel any kind of texture or little bumps on the paint this is a strong indicator that the paint needs to be clayed.

Gloss comes from smoothness
I think everyone will agree that a great looking paint job is a glossy looking paint job and gloss comes from smoothness. The first step in creating a glossy looking finish it to inspect for above surface bonded contaminants and if discovered, use detailing clay to clay the paint.

Now this is glossy paint... and worthy of being called show car quality and results like these start with the basics...

So yes, new cars and even show cars and show truck still need to be clayed.

**Klasse Act** · 07-03-2012, 07:38 AM

Look at it like this, if a car sits on a lot for sometime, its only on going to get grittier and grittier! i bought my car on a Saturday and went to town on the car the next day, right from the start it got the treatment. The newness of the car has NOTHING to do with it, it all depends if it needs it or not, one swipe over a washed car will tell you everything you need to know

**Klasse Act** · 07-03-2012, 07:43 AM

The team did a great job on the truck, that yellow just pops and looks VERY wet! Nice model standing near the truck too

Now, could you guys detail the wheels off of that thing, they're sooooooo out dated, could use something better for sure. Wheels make or break a vehicle, in the case of those, the billet thing came into their own in the late 80's but by the mid 90's they were out, doesn't help that that particular style isn't very flattering for the truck, IMO. Now don't take out dated meaning you can't go with an old style though, I think a set of 18"/20" Torque-Thrust style'd wheels would set that thing off, charcoal center w/ a polished lip......just sayin'!