how to remove a lot of surface containments

[79elcamino]

i was detailing my gf fathers car and i went through a 32oz bottle of quik detailer while claying his car and the surface felt exactly the same. i tried swirlx and scratchx to try and clean the paint and that did nothing. how can i remove the surface containments when claying isnt enough, would ultimate compound do the trick and i dont feel like ordering the more aggressive clay bars from online.

[BarryK]

Re: how to remove a lot of surface containments

well, if the "standard" clay didn't do the trick than you need to go to the Aggressive clay - whether you "feel like ordering" it or not, that is the answer to your problem.

Would UC do the trick? maybe... but compound wasn't designed for that purpose, the Clay is and think about what can happen if the UC releases some of those bad contaiminants and they are now on your application pad or your buffer pad. All you are going to do is move them around the paint and instill swirls and scratches.

BTW, just how big is this car? I can clay an entire Chevy Tahoe which is a fair amount of surface area to clay and not use 32oz of detailer spray!

[79elcamino]

Re: how to remove a lot of surface containments

its a 96 crown vic, but its never been clayed and sat outside for about a year and half, i used the 32oz on the car because i would clay a surface and i would have to clay the surface over and over and the surface still feels like sand paper

[gsxr310]

Re: how to remove a lot of surface containments

could also be really fine chips from pebbles and/or rocks that you're feeling.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: how to remove a lot of surface containments

How much crud were you pulling onto the clay bar initially and then with subsequent passes. If the contaminants are really heavy the consumer clay will pull them off, but it may take several passes which is why one of the two professional clays are ultimately a better choice with heavy contaminants. But if you continue to clay and nothing is coming up then something else may be happening here. A 12 year old car that has spent a lot of time outside without regular care may well be exhibiting the start of clear coat failure. This can make the paint feel rough but there is nothing you can do for it short of a repaint. Of course, without pictures this is just speculation on our part.

[BarryK]

Re: how to remove a lot of surface containments

A 12 year old car that has spent a lot of time outside without regular care may well be exhibiting the start of clear coat failure. This can make the paint feel rough but there is nothing you can do for it short of a repaint. Of course, without pictures this is just speculation on our part.

excellent point.
the poster didn't mention any hazing, dullness, lifting, or peeling so my mind didn't go to possible clear coat failure but it's a viable possibility.
As you mentioned, without pictures everything is simply a guess though

[79elcamino]

Re: how to remove a lot of surface containments

next time i get the car i will take pictures, but with every pass of the clay bar, the clay looked black, there is so much stuff on the clay, i made 2-3 passes and the clay was still picking up a lot of stuff, i will see if he wants to use the more aggressive clay, now with the more aggressive clay is there anything i should be careful about, i have never used the aggressive clay before and i dont think its clear coat failure cause i was not seeing and paint on my applicator pads or MF towels

[Murr1525]

Re: how to remove a lot of surface containments

Wonder if some kind of Bug & Tar Cleaner, or Dawn, etc would help anything before clayng again.

[searle]

Re: how to remove a lot of surface containments

The clay bar is for removing contaminants embedded into the paint/clearcoat surface. Please excuse me for asking but:
1) did you give the car a really good wash (or two) to remove all loose surface dirt before beginning the claying?
2) if there is lots (years) of dirt not really loose but not really embedded, a light cleaning with a cleaner might help remove this semi-loose dirt and *then* clay.

In other words, I wonder if your claying is essentially just cleaning a really old and dirty car ?

[J. A. Michaels]

Re: how to remove a lot of surface containments

Since you are hesitant to go with the more aggresive clays. I think that the C-2000 mild blue clay wouyld be fine. It is stronger then the smooth surface clay, it will not induce hazing on the paint.

Try this: get a hold of the C-2000clay. Give the vehicle a good washing, then try the mild clay. I bet that would help a lot. Good Luck.

[79elcamino]

Re: how to remove a lot of surface containments

thanks guys

[Michael Stoops]

Re: how to remove a lot of surface containments

next time i get the car i will take pictures, but with every pass of the clay bar, the clay looked black, there is so much stuff on the clay, i made 2-3 passes and the clay was still picking up a lot of stuff, i will see if he wants to use the more aggressive clay, now with the more aggressive clay is there anything i should be careful about, i have never used the aggressive clay before and i dont think its clear coat failure cause i was not seeing and paint on my applicator pads or MF towels

OK, it just sounds like it's really, really coated with bonded contaminants. If you go with the C2000 blue clay it will remove a lot more of the contaminants, and do it more quickly - noticeably so. It shouldn't cause any hazing of the paint, either, but something about the overall description of the car tells us it's going to need some fairly aggressive paint cleaning anyway. The C2100 red clay will speed through the contaminants but may well haze the paint a bit. If you're going to machine polish, or aggressively hand polish anyway, then that's really not a big deal.