HELP! Clay Caused Lots of Scratches

[patrcarl]

Last week I bought a black 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe Limited with 25,xxx miles. It was detailed before I bought it, but I know better, so I set out to get the beautiful black paint as perfect as possible. I went to Target and WalMart (neither had everything I needed) and bought:
- Clay kit
- Swirl X
- NXT
- Microfiber towels
- plenty of other Meguiars interior and exterior maintenance supplies (quick detailer, etc.)

I gave it a thorough wash, then set out to work on the clay job. First, I watched the Meguiars videos on YouTube about how to properly do the claying.

I spent a good amount of time claying every last bit of my car. It was overcast, but not too hot outside. I completed the clay job, using moderate pressure, then pulled the car into the garage to finish the next steps in the morning as it was getting late. When I got into the garage which has great lighting, I noticed that the clean black paint has many scratches all over the car. Places where I spent more time working the clay have more scratching than those where I didn't go over it much. It's not noticeable looking straight on from 3 feet away, but from 2 feet away you can definitely notice it when looking at an angle.

I spent a few minutes trying a bit of Swirl X on some spots, but it really didn't help much. What should I do? Work the Swirl X in harder so it gets a bit deeper? Should I move up to the ScratchX?

And, how did this happen? It was a perfectly clean car, and I only used moderate pressure with the Clay. I folded the clay bar to expose clean clay after each area that I worked (each door, three times on hood, twice on roof, etc).

Also, where can I find a store in St. Louis that carries a wide line of Meguiars products? Target and WalMart only have the basics...

Thanks for the help. I'm beside myself about these scratches in my new car caused by the clay!

[Tuck91]

Re: HELP! Clay Caused Lots of Scratches

I doubt the clay caused the scratches.

Either the previous owner instilled the swirls and scratches or the dealership that detailed it before you got it instilled them.

Most likely a combination of both, not the clay.

[patrcarl]

Re: HELP! Clay Caused Lots of Scratches

I doubt the clay caused the scratches.

Either the previous owner instilled the swirls and scratches or the dealership that detailed it before you got it instilled them.

Most likely a combination of both, not the clay.

That's what I would have thought as well...but I can clearly see the places where I spent more time with the clay...like around the ridges on the hood, the tops of the doors near the windows, etc. I can even see the up and down lines on the door panels exactly in the directions that I was working the clay.

I've been researching the problem in the forums since I posted this, and found two other possible reasons for this:
1) not enough QD lubricant...but I used so much that it would splash off the car as I was working the clay
2) too much pressure with the clay...this could be the reason, though I tried to just use enough pressure that the clay didn't slip out of my hand and onto the ground

I've also learned how the SwirlX works, and will try working it into the paint really well, as it essentially takes a bit of the top coat off of the paint to just below the swirls/scratches (correct me if I'm wrong). Same would hold true with ScratchX and Ultimate Compound?

[davey g-force]

Re: HELP! Clay Caused Lots of Scratches

Do you have photos of the scratches? I too doubt that they were caused by the clay, if used correctly.

SwirlX is quite mild. I'd go grab a bottle of ScratchX and Ultimate Compound.

[Fly Bye]

Re: HELP! Clay Caused Lots of Scratches

That's what I would have thought as well...but I can clearly see the places where I spent more time with the clay...like around the ridges on the hood, the tops of the doors near the windows, etc. I can even see the up and down lines on the door panels exactly in the directions that I was working the clay.

I would speculate to say that the scratches were instilled by the clay. What type of clay did you use? Maybe the clay you used is too abrasive/aggressive?

[patrcarl]

Re: HELP! Clay Caused Lots of Scratches

I would speculate to say that the scratches were instilled by the clay. What type of clay did you use? Maybe the clay you used is too abrasive/aggressive?

I used the Meguiar's clay kit.

[Fly Bye]

Re: HELP! Clay Caused Lots of Scratches

[Bill Davidson]

Re: HELP! Clay Caused Lots of Scratches

Perhaps you picked up contaminants while claying and those contaminants scratched the surface. You have to listen and feel, while you are claying. If there is any increase in noise/friction,scratchy sound, STOP and inspect your clay and the surface.

It's extremely doubtful the clay that comes with the Smooth Surface Clay Kit caused the scratches. Anyhow, there's not much you can do about it now other than correct the defects. If you want you can do some testing. Correct an area to perfection. Take a fresh piece of clay and Quik Detailer and see if you can inflict scratches.

Regarding compounds, I recommend you check out this link

http://www.meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=40514

[Ravi_1992]

Re: HELP! Clay Caused Lots of Scratches

Did you drop the clay by any chance?

[patrcarl]

Re: HELP! Clay Caused Lots of Scratches

Did you drop the clay by any chance?

I'm sure I never dropped it. Literally took it out of the package to the car (with QD in between).

I think I'll try to see if I can inflict some marks like Bill suggested...and then try various compounds to see what it takes to correct them. I'll write back in the morning with an update/success story, or some pictures.

[J. A. Michaels]

Re: HELP! Clay Caused Lots of Scratches

Maybe you did not use enough lube. However, there is a good possibility that the scratches were already present. You just uncovered them when you clayed.

How large of a area did you try with the scratch-x?
What type of applicator?

Try a 1'x1' area. Maybe try a terry cloth towel, it has more "bite".

[agp56]

Re: HELP! Clay Caused Lots of Scratches

To see if there is a dealer that carries more of the line of produts near you, click on the Dealer Locator tab toward the upper right on the home page here.

[BobbyG]

Re: HELP! Clay Caused Lots of Scratches

Possibilities

• The clay could be defective from the factory.
• Very aggressive clay
• Particle picked up and lodged withing the clay

If the clay picked up a small debris particle it can leave small scratches behind. A way to test that is to fold the clay into itself and try again paying particular attention to the area before and after. If it is indeed a errant particle then it now should be contained within the clay and it should be discarded.

[seth1066]

Re: HELP! Clay Caused Lots of Scratches

I've seen beautifully shiny cars that get washed and the ugly truth is revealed. Total filler type of product was used, more akin to the old Armor-All than a real wax product. These products are used for obvious reasons, ultra quick application and stunning results for the effort, until it rains. I would venture that this car had a similar product applied to it and between the washing and claying, it took it all off revealing what that product was hiding. That said, claying strips off all wax good or bad and wax alone does have some defect hiding power.

The scratches may seem to be more in the places you clayed the most, but my guess is that those are areas that normally received more attention by the previous owner. Also, my bet would be this car looked exactly like it looked after your wash/clay on the day it was traded in, but before the dealer applied the magic blaster sealant on it.

Another thing, you say your garage has great lighting, under bright lights, especially flourescent, every minor to major paint defect, particularly scratches, will be seen under that kind of light. Pull it outside in the sunlight and it will look much better.

Bottom line: car already had the surface defects which were hidden by a finishing product; claying took that product off; garage lighting enhanced the perception of the defects. Try a test area with the NXT wax and see what the difference is inside and in the sun.

[Hemin8r]

Re: HELP! Clay Caused Lots of Scratches

I agree with Seth1066.