AG Clay Kit Purchased
 

Hi all,

Washed the ZT today and dried off, it comes up well and looks very clean and shiny but, when I rubbed my hand across the panels it felt a bit like sand paper and you could hear it.
In the past I have used T Cut on other cars to get the paint smooth and de-oxidised with good results but, it is messy and hard work on the arms plus the ZT paintwork is good. So I decided to get the Autoglym Clay kit which I have never used before. I have only done one panel to try it and am amazed at how effective and easy it was. After a few minutes the paint was glass smooth and there was brownish coloured **** on the clay. Result !!!

Ok, my plan now is to do the whole car with AG products (because that's what I have in the shed)in the following order:-
1. Wash and dry with AG Shampoo Conditioner
2. AG Intensive Tar remover
3. AG Clay Bar Kit
4. AG Super Resin Polish
5. AG Ultra Deep Shine
and finally
6. AG High Definition Wax.

If the above is over the top or it is felt I could do better, please feel free to comment.
Wish I had tried Clay a lot sooner. :}

The above seems ok to me.

Looks ok to me too.

FWIW, my procedure is:

Wash & leave wet
Clay
Remove tar
Wash again & dry
Polish
Wax

I did an experiment on my copperleaf 75 boot lid last weekend. It has never had any claying done whilst I've owned it (over 3 years) nor been pampered in any other detailing way. I used a wheel cleaner, specifically Bilt Hamber auto-wheel, to see how that dealt with both removing particles and cleaning the paint and it worked great. I clayed it afterwards and couldn't see any contamination on the clay. Nor could I feel any difference on the surface through cellophane. I went on to test some cleanser polishes, waxes and suchlike after that. I thought the auto-wheel worked so well I'm going to give it a go on my ZT this weekend. :)

i would be carful useing wheel cleaner on a paint as i am sure they use some sort of acid to beake down the bake dust off the wheels, so am unsure how that would affect a clear coat or if it would, just make sure what ever is in the product isnt going to damage your clear coat

It's pH neutral and not a typical acidic or caustic wheel cleaner. I mentioned it over on Detailing World and BH didn't say it shouldn't be used. Granted, they didn't say it could, but I was asking about a way of missing out two of their products in favour of this one. ;)

Depending on how oily Ultra Deep Shine is (most AG products are oily) the wax may not stick, so it might be a waste of time using both. Personally id give it a day between the 2 top coats to allow the UDS to fully cure.

The order you are doing it in is right, but could you do better? Yes, dont use AG products. If you want to really clean the car before you start forget the car Shampoo, use an All Purpose Cleaner, it will strip off all previously applied products and give you a true view of your paints condition, but remember to re-dress plastics afterwards.

As mentioned not a fan of Autoglym and yes i did use there stuff for 16 years before finding better...:D

Personally if i was using autoglym as you say you have them so may as well.

I would leave out the srp and uds and simply use the hd wax for best bond and longevity.

In the thread there was mention of the bilt hamber auto wheels, it is virtually the same as there fallout remover Korrosol only more clingy so it sticks well to the wheels to really get stuck into the brake dust etc.

Yep, clingy Korrosol with increased de-greaser. Basically I think it is like using Surfex HD followed by Korrosol, but all in one go. I was very surprised how clean the paint both looked and felt after I used it. I left it to dwell for a few minutes and because it dried out (turned creamy) quite easily I kept squirting a bit more on and moving it about with a soft brush.

You should have a go James. With your experience you'd be able to make a much better judgement about its effectiveness compared to other methods.

Sorry to the OP for hijacking. :)

No problem with hijacking my thread FredSpencer.
Although I am in my 61 st year I find it fascinating about all the different products and opinions with regard to car cleaning.
When I was a kid I used to wash and wax my Dad's Morris Oxford with the old fashioned "Hard Wax" which was real hard work but, seem to remember it lasting for ages compared to all the modern products now available.
Whether this is due to more contaminates in the air these days or, more emphasis on ease of use or, me remembering through Rose tinted spectacles I don't know but, i'm sure the old stuff used to last longer.
Thanks for your comments RovexCDTI. When the AG stuff runs out I will consult the forum for the best replacements.
Thanks to all who replied........Tc.