newbie questions...

[camryKev]

Hello, my first post, i am really new at car detailing but i really want to keep my car as good looking as i can get it.



i had a question that i posted on a different forum and i did not get much help, but was refered to this site. any help would be greatly appreciated.

here is my story, i have had my silver gen 5 camry for about 2 months now and i have been hand washing and occasionally taking it to the automatic ones, (not the gas stations ones) it at least once every two weeks. however, i have not waxed it yet, unless the wax from the car wash counts.



recently, i noticed small specs on the back of my bumper, ther are really small and orange rust-like in colour and i thought, ****!!! rust already? i bought meguiar`s step one Deep Crystal Paint Cleaner which is suppose to prep the car and clear it of contaminants correct? but i also have a meguiar`s clay ball. i have never done anything like this before so i need help as to how about going through step by step.



1) hand wash and dry with Zip Wax.

2) meguiar`s clay ball

3) step 1 Deep Crystal Paint Cleaner

4) zaino wax (3 coats/1application)



my question are as follows



a) how do i use the clay ball and do i do it on the whole surface of the car or just where i see imperfections?



b) when using the claybar, should i see the specs of "rust" dissapear off my paint finish?



c) do i use the step one deep crystal pain cleaner on the whole surface of the car?



d) do i need to use meguiar`s step 2 Deep Crystal Polish after the deep crystal paint cleaner, then apply the zaino?



again, your help is much apprieciated.

[Accumulator]

camryKev - Welcome to Autopia. I can`t really comment on the Meg`s Deep Crystal and Z stuff as I`m not that familiar with them, but what I CAN comment on:



*I`d* use a wash with greater lubricity than the Zip Wax. *I* used to get wash-induced swirls with that stuff.



The spots on your bumper are the classic "rust blooms from rail dust". This is EXACTLY the sort of thing that clay is for. Yes, the clay will diminish or maybe even remove them. IF they come back, keep claying or use AutoInt`s ABC system.



Clay the entire car. Do a quick search and you`ll find numerous posts on how to clay. BTW, Meg`s clay is NOT generally considered one of the easier ones to use! Plan to wash the car after claying to remove the residue (one of the reasons that clay isn`t popular).



Generally, you WILL want to use your paint cleaner on all the painted surfaces.



I`d seriously consider NOT taking it through any automatic car washes.

[camryKev]

thanks Accumulator,

i have been considering moving on to using Meguair`s Gold Class Car Wash Shampoo & Conditioner after using the zip wax. have any other suggsted brands?



i have been reading tons of stuff on this forum for about an hour now and i have picked up quite a bit. just want to make sure though, when i use the clay bar, what kind of lubricant do i use? i am thinking about meguiar`s quick detailing to lube white claying, then rewash the whole car. before the other stuff.

[camryKev]

if i buy a preffered clay bar like mother`s, zaino or clay magic, does it mean that i won`t need to re-wash the car and leave it as is after claying?

[Accumulator]

camryKev- Lots of info on this site, huh?



My (current) favorite car wash is from Griot`s. Very high lubricity, cleans well, rinses well, easy on wax, etc., etc. About $30/gallon plus shipping. Many people like Gold Class, but I`m not one of them. It IS, IMO, better than the TW stuff, though.



The other clays you mentioned (and the VERY GOOD Autopia Block & Glide) don`t leave much residue. *I* wouldn`t wash the car again, but then I usually just clay while washing anyhow. Most of the clays come with a dedicated lubricant (e.g., that`s what the "Glide" is). I honestly don`t know about using your Meg`s QD to lube, but this isn`t rocket science, most approaches work OK. Many just use the car wash solution, some even use running water from the hose (haven`t tried THAT one myself).

[SK2003TypeS]

camryKev,

Accumulator beat me to the punch on the claying. Here`s Nick T`s thread I was talking about.



http://www.autopia.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=23601&highlight=tricks



Here`s a great start for clay

http://www.autopia.ws/topics.php?topicId=10&page=2



Oh, and ditto about the TW stuff. The Z7 is a great car wash.