Mustangs first wash....

I just washed for the first time my new 2016 Mustang Ecoboost and she's clean but I now want to wax her. I did the 2 bucket method, foam cannon and was able to get the salt and dirt off. I then parked her in the garage...Now, 5 hours later I go downstairs and run my hand across the paint and it does not feel smooth....can I just apply wax now?? Do I need to rewash it??

You need to clay bar it.

Yep, what Jason said.....get that thing clay barred

Pmauoo said:

I just washed for the first time my new 2016 Mustang Ecoboost and she's clean but I now want to wax her. I did the 2 bucket method, foam cannon and was able to get the salt and dirt off. I then parked her in the garage...Now, 5 hours later I go downstairs and run my hand across the paint and it does not feel smooth....can I just apply wax now?? Do I need to rewash it??

Click to expand...

Even new cars usually will benefit from a clay bar. I normally clay mine once a year and finish it off with a quality sealant.

jasonstang said:

You need to clay bar it.

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+1

My wife's new BMW left more contaminants on the clay bar than any personal car I've clayed before. Definitely want to clay a new car to get all the rail dust, post assembly grime, and crud from sitting on the dealer lot off before applying your wax.

I used Pinnacles paint cleansing lotion when I got my car home. I can't compare ease of use or results against a clay bar seeing I never had to clay bar. The lotion was easy and results were tip top.

It didn't do a good decontamination, that's why it was easy

If it didn't do a good de-contamination then what should I be seeing?

Mitt>bar

Mitt bar what? If the surface wasn't de-contaminated then what should I be seeing as in what would be left on the surface to look at or can you feel it when you polish it. I have great lighting in the shop.

you need to clay the car...it used to be clay bars only back in the day, but now there are many ways to do it...

http://www.autogeek.net/nanoskin-clay-towel.html

this is a very simple way. my recommendation when using this is to wash the car with water, soap it up, then rub the gray side on the paint (while soap is still on, for lubrication) when the section gets smooth move to the next until the entire car is done, then rinse off with water and apply your choice of wax. you just have to rinse of the clay towel after every use and let it air dry before putting it away

the other way of doing it is clay bar and detail spray

Iron-X It

I would recommend that the first 'wash' be an application of Iron-X to dissolve away any iron particles that may be on the paint from the factory and/or rail transport. I didn't realize just how much iron was on my new car until I first rinsed it (no wiping) and then applied Iron-X. The car turned bright purple! I rinsed and then reapplied the Iron-X. Only a slight amount of purple. I rinsed again...and this time no purple. So there had to have been a lot of iron particles on the clearcoat!
I foam washed and rinsed it. To see if I need to clay bar it...I slipped a baggie on my hand and gently slid the tips of my fingers over the paint. I could feel the roughness!. I clay barred it using with a clay bar lubricant. When I was done...I slipped on a fresh baggy and you could feel the flat slippery surface. I again washed/rinsed. Followed by a good sealant and then two coats of good wax.
When it was a year old...I did the baggie trick again and could feel the roughness. I repeated the above.
The magnetic metallic surface still looks like new.

Here was my first wash:
Wash it--> clay bar it--> wash the car again--> wax it --> enjoy

CB said:

If it didn't do a good de-contamination then what should I be seeing?

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Start with a good wash using Dawn or similar dish washing liquid to get grease/tar off
Follow with a chemical decon process, I really like to use Iron-X even though it smells like burning buttholes but it gets the iron filings out of the paint before clay. This is critical because iron (rail dust, other cars, brake dust) embeds itself in your paint and then the clay will pick it up for you to drag all over the vehicle which is not optimal.
Next clay or clay substitute, I use SM Arnold Pint Prep mitts and a soapy solution for this
Now you can polish, glaze, seal/coat, wax in that order.

Decontamination is the key to doing a good detail job, if you don't start with a good foundation you can't build to success.