What to use for sealant/wax/etc.

I'm a total scrub when it comes to cleaning the exterior of the car. Usually use Meguiar's car wash soap, then dry, then Meguiar's wax, once a month.

I'd like to get a little more involved in protecting the paint of my car, with keeping into consideration that it's a daily driver which will never be perfect.

That being said, I'm looking at store bought products, including clay bar and polishing stuff but I have no idea how to use any of those things. So I have no idea what to buy to give my car a good cleaning on the exterior. There's landscaping every Monday in my neighborhood and my car gets covered in dust/leaves and more ground up leaves so I'd like to protect the paint from that stuff.

For instance can I get some, let's say Meguiar's clay bar kit thing and expect good results, or would I be wasting money? How about a polish to remove swirl marks (not a huge deal, my car is white so they aren't that visible)? What's a decent brand that can be had from a store?

Do I wash, clay bar, wash, polish, wax?

Meguiars clay works fine, but I would personally go the synthetic route.

https://www.griotsgarage.com/produc...etic+clay.do?sortby=ourPicks&refType=&from=fn

I haven't used this particular one, but I haven't bought a clay bar in a lot of years, these last longer, if you drop them, just rinse them off, they are faster and they have no issue pulling contaminants out of paint.

If you are going to polish the car, you can do it by hand but you'll hate yourself after that. I went the harbor freight dual action route some years back and it's lasted through a few cars with no signs of slowing. I did replace the backing plate though and bought all my pads from online retailers.

Your order is fine. If you don't want to keep waxing every month, there are products out there that will maintain paint protection for 6-12 months, depending on how much weather the car sees. Look for coatings/sealants.

I would suggest getting a waterless wash concentrate that you can dilute and use as a quick detailer and clay lube (you'll need it). It's nice to have that stuff for little things. If the car is clean and a bird decides to carpet bomb it, you only need to get it wet and wipe it up.

I really like Chemical Guys Butter Wet Wax. It goes on very easy, can be applied while the car is still wet, and comes off very easy. It's also cheap and works great. In-between wax applications I generally use a spray wax. Lately I've been using a Waterless Wash & Wax to detail the car while adding a bit more wax protection.

Don't use butter wet wax. It's crap and only protects for a week or two. Especially if the car is daily driven. And it's not that cheap. There are far better waxes or sealant that give better protection for same price or cheaper. If you don't want to order online then go to local oreilleys and get Griots products. Professional quality but can be purchased without ordering. As far as clay bar it's only good for removing contaminants. If you want to remove minor swirls then the harbor freight DA will work great as long as you get some decent pads to go along with it. If you want an all in one product(AIO) there is a product called HD speed made by 3D, and it works great to remove minor swirls and imperfections and leaves a coat of wax all in one easy step. The wax in the HD speed is good for about 3 months. I use it a lot for my clients that don't want to pay for a full paint correction. Personally I wouldn't use much of anything from chemical guys. And many detailers will say the same.

I've had good results with chemical guys. I buy in store it's cheaper. I also use McGuire. Different products for different purposes I like Chemical guys butter wax works will last me about six months and their convertible cleaner and repellent work great. Maguires spray detail in polish.

If four out of five dentists recommend a toothbrush and dentist get paid upon my return visit why would I use that toothbrush

phatsesh said:

I've had good results with chemical guys. I buy in store it's cheaper. I also use McGuire. Different products for different purposes I like Chemical guys butter wax works will last me about six months and their convertible cleaner and repellent work great. Maguires spray detail in polish.

If four out of five dentists recommend a toothbrush and dentist get paid upon my return visit why would I use that toothbrush

Click to expand...

Are you sure it lasts 6 months? Is the car garaged? It's been proven time and time again that the butter wet wax only lasts two weeks on average for daily driven vehicles. Waxes aren't even designed to last 6 months. 2-3 months is the normal for a wax

I bought a Meguiar's Clay kit back in April, very pleased with the results and very noticeable improvement. Never clay'd a car before, watched a couple YT vids and went to it. The finish still feels glass smooth today. Pretty easy task, just take your time. Wax - I use Collinite 845 Insulator wax, solid product. For touch ups - Meguiars X-Press Spray Wax (save some $$ and buy a gallon jug). All of these products work well, are easy to use and won't put a huge dent in your wallet.

catchthecarp said:

I bought a Meguiar's Clay kit back in April, very pleased with the results and very noticeable improvement. Never clay'd a car before, watched a couple YT vids and went to it. The finish still feels glass smooth today. Pretty easy task, just take your time. Wax - I use Collinite 845 Insulator wax, solid product. For touch ups - Meguiars X-Press Spray Wax (save some $$ and buy a gallon jug). All of these products work well, are easy to use and won't put a huge dent in your wallet.

Click to expand...

Good choice on the collinite 845, great stuff

Drek08 said:

Don't use butter wet wax. It's crap and only protects for a week or two. Especially if the car is daily driven. And it's not that cheap. There are far better waxes or sealant that give better protection for same price or cheaper. If you don't want to order online then go to local oreilleys and get Griots products. Professional quality but can be purchased without ordering. As far as clay bar it's only good for removing contaminants. If you want to remove minor swirls then the harbor freight DA will work great as long as you get some decent pads to go along with it. If you want an all in one product(AIO) there is a product called HD speed made by 3D, and it works great to remove minor swirls and imperfections and leaves a coat of wax all in one easy step. The wax in the HD speed is good for about 3 months. I use it a lot for my clients that don't want to pay for a full paint correction. Personally I wouldn't use much of anything from chemical guys. And many detailers will say the same.

Click to expand...

Hmm this seems like the direction I want to go towards. I did buy one of those synthetic clay thingies and tried it out today. Worked pretty well to get the fenders and hood nice and glassy feeling. Was too late to do the rest of the car but I'll be taking time to do that next week. Not sure how if it really worked or not though because it just feels like a rubbery pad...I thought clay bars were supposed to pick up stuff, rubber seems like it would pick it up and leave it elsewhere.

That HD Speed stuff also looks like it would interest me so I'm ordering that from Amazon...

csmaan12 said:

Hmm this seems like the direction I want to go towards. I did buy one of those synthetic clay thingies and tried it out today. Worked pretty well to get the fenders and hood nice and glassy feeling. Was too late to do the rest of the car but I'll be taking time to do that next week. Not sure how if it really worked or not though because it just feels like a rubbery pad...I thought clay bars were supposed to pick up stuff, rubber seems like it would pick it up and leave it elsewhere.

That HD Speed stuff also looks like it would interest me so I'm ordering that from Amazon...

Click to expand...

Yes the clay bar should actually be clay. It will
Leave it smooth and glassy but won't remove swirls or anything like that. Wise choice on the HD speed and amazon does have it. Pick yourself up a dual action orbital and some lake country polishing pads off of amazon as well. You'll need it for the HD speed

Drek08 said:

Yes the clay bar should actually be clay. It will
Leave it smooth and glassy but won't remove swirls or anything like that. Wise choice on the HD speed and amazon does have it. Pick yourself up a dual action orbital and some lake country polishing pads off of amazon as well. You'll need it for the HD speed

Click to expand...

So would you say the synthetic stuff is still usable or should I just buy clay for when I do the rest of the car. I know it won't remove swirls I'm just trying to clean up the paint before I polish it and create more swirls lol.

I use Adams polishes - start with paint sealer then buttery wax or detail spray. Look at their website - have lots of videos with Adam demonstrating how to use product with tips. I got a 15% off coupon code. I'm a believer of Adams products!!!

csmaan12 said:

So would you say the synthetic stuff is still usable or should I just buy clay for when I do the rest of the car. I know it won't remove swirls I'm just trying to clean up the paint before I polish it and create more swirls lol.

Click to expand...

The synthetic should be fine. Lol and I hear you but you shouldn't create swirls even if you don't clay bar first. That HD speed not only polished and seals but it also cuts the paint a bit to remove defects and swirls. Clay bar if you want but isn't necessary unless it's really bad

ClutchAce said:

I use Adams polishes - start with paint sealer then buttery wax or detail spray. Look at their website - have lots of videos with Adam demonstrating how to use product with tips. I got a 15% off coupon code. I'm a believer of Adams products!!!

Click to expand...

Adams is also great stuff

Drek08 said:

The synthetic should be fine. Lol and I hear you but you shouldn't create swirls even if you don't clay bar first. That HD speed not only polished and seals but it also cuts the paint a bit to remove defects and swirls. Clay bar if you want but isn't necessary unless it's really bad

Click to expand...

Noted Thanks for all the tips. As you can see I'm completely uneducated in exterior upkeep so this helps.