Wash, Iron, Clay, Polish, Glaze, Seal then wax?

[Spice&Wood83]

Back when I detailed my 1990 ( Diamond Pearl Black ) Nissan 300zx I used a 3 step system.
After washing:
1) Very light cleaning compound by hand
2) Light hand polish
3) Wax


Looked amazing. And still does today.


But the game has changed. Nowadays theres Iron removers ,sealers, glazes, clays, foam cannons oh my…


This is what I’d like to do with my Blizzard Pearl Avalon.
1. Wash
2. Iron remover
3. Clay
4. Light hand polish
5. Glaze
6. Seal
7. Wax


*** I’d like to get your views. Way over kill? Sounds good? Pointless?


************************************************** ***************




It’s been decades since I’ve really got into detailing.
I fell in love with it back in the mid 90’s when I got my 300zx. ( still have it. 99K miles ! ).


Sadly over time I lost that desire ( detailing ) due to moving, college, moving out and renting, becoming a health care professional, mortgage, marriage, kids and… bills.


Matter of fact my daily driver ( until recently ) has been a 98 Accord w/ 380k ( approx ) miles on it.
I took it to prom in 98’!!! The thing is an absolute workhorse. It is the most dependable, reliable, simple easy to maintain ( And I don’t ! ) and dirt cheap to repair car I’ve ever had.


But recently got a 13’ Blizzard Pearl White Avalon Limited Hybrid.
Beautiful car!.
30k miles. 1 car local owner ( couple in mid 70’s ).


This thing is in pristine condition. I’m not kidding you. If I told you it was 6 years old after you saw it you would never believe me.


Anyways.. I’m getting way off track.

[Accumulator]

Spice&Wood83- No way I`d do all those steps, but if you enjoy such stuff then I won`t be a wet blanket.

FWIW, if it were mine and I wanted to have/keep it in "everyday Concours" condition (i.e., basically perfect all the time), I would:

-Chemical decontamination (including your "Iron remover" step)
-Abrasive correction as needed/desired
-LSP or Coating, including maybe coating the wheels no matter what you use on the paint

My rationale:

-A proper chemical decontamination, let alone on an already-nice vehicle, should eliminate the need for claying (or reduce it to a few areas of spot-claying if there are serious contamination issues)

-The correction/polishing step should leave it LSP/Coating-ready. IF you chose that final step properly, you should get all the protection/looks you want with one product. Then you can just maintain it, and redo the Final Step as needed, indefinitely. There`s just no need to glaze or do a sealant + wax combo unless you want to do that

SO GLAD to hear you still have your Z! With only 90K on it it`s almost broken in :D Also glad to hear you got so much use out of your Honda, that`s the way it oughta go IMO :D As I read your post, you still have it..right?

[hawaiidude]

You do all that work you may as well use a ceramic coating instead of wax. It’ll last way longer

[briarpatch]

Your process is similar to me `once a year` detail on all three vehicles in our house....minus the glaze. I`ve sort of done away with the wax step, since I`ve been happy with the way the sealants have left them looking.

[Dan]

I`d replace 5,6,7 and do a good DIY coating like McKee`s or CQUK. For the light polish you could use one of the coating prep polishes.

[Accumulator]

Seems like I haven`t seen Spice&Wood posting lately...I`d love to see that `98 Accord. Long-term Daily Drivers just *do* it for me :D