Is a polish always necessary?

[White330]

I have a car that`s a week old. I am going to wash it tomorrow and then do some clay bar work if it feels like it needs it, which it probably will. Do I need to apply a mild polish before I apply sealant?

[White95Max]

A polish or a cleaner is usually a good idea to get the surface in optimal condition to apply a sealant or wax. You don`t NEED to use a cleaner unless you have stains or oxidation to get rid of. And you don`t NEED to polish unless you desire to remove swirls/scratches.

[a.k.a. Patrick]

A polish or a cleaner is usually a good idea to get the surface in optimal condition to apply a sealant or wax. You don`t NEED to use a cleaner unless you have stains or oxidation to get rid of. And you don`t NEED to polish unless you desire to remove swirls/scratches.

.........but, during the claying process, you may induce light scratching/marring, which would require a light polish to remove.....

Other then that, you dont necessarily need to "polish" before sealing. Cleaning should be a minimum requirement however.......

[White330]

OK, will do. Patrick, thanks for the extra towel, didn`t even notice. :xyxthumbs Nice meeting you today.

[imported_Neothin]

Polishing isn`t always necessary. With the proper wax choice and the use of a glazing product, a good deal of defects present in the paint can be hidden. I would personally rather go this route than to thin out the clearcoat by polishing it.

[a.k.a. Patrick]

OK, will do. Patrick, thanks for the extra towel, didn`t even notice. :xyxthumbs Nice meeting you today.Eugene, thats a beautiful 330 you have, glad to be of help, pleasures mine......

[Accumulator]

Polishing isn`t always necessary. With the proper wax choice and the use of a glazing product, a good deal of defects present in the paint can be hidden. I would personally rather go this route than to thin out the clearcoat by polishing it.



On a new car, with plenty of clear, I`d get it nice and keep it that way. While I do use glaze on our older cars that have thin paint, on our cars with b/c *that I`ve owned since new* I`ve never had a problem from polishing out flaws (and we keep some of our vehicles a very long time). As long as you wash correctly, it shouldn`t be necessary more than once a year or so anyhow.



Biggest thing IMO is to work on the wash technique so you don`t instill marring. That way you can keep the new paint looking that way indefinitely.



Not trying to be critical of the glaze/heavy wax approach, it`s just that IMO one of the great things about buying a new car is the joy of having marring-free paint and being able to keep it that way.