Do you have to polish after you use a clay bar?

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[fastmike]

You don't *have* to. Use a mild clay bar and lots of lubricant and you'll be on. Even if there was some mild marring you probably wouldn't see it on MW

[lsmkr01]

No you don't. I used clay lube with claying and then dried with micro fiber towels. A nice coat of wax is a nice finisher to protect the finish. I do this 2x a year minimum with great results.

[Z K]

You don't have to polish afterwards but clay bars will mar the surface. You may not see or notice it but it is there. Depending on how fine a grade the clay is, you may have to do an intensive polish or just a one-step wax.

[DeleteAccountPlease]

Originally Posted by lsmkr01

No you don't. I used clay lube with claying and then dried with micro fiber towels. A nice coat of wax is a nice finisher to protect the finish. I do this 2x a year minimum with great results.

Do you wash it again right after you wax the car or just go right to waxing right alway?

[s65e90]

Originally Posted by SpeedyM3

Do you wash it again right after you wax the car or just go right to waxing right alway?

1. wash w/ dawn to removed old wax
2. Clay car
3. wash again
4. polish/seal/wax

[DeleteAccountPlease]

Originally Posted by s65e90

1. wash w/ dawn to removed old wax
2. Clay car
3. wash again
4. polish/seal/wax

And that's a full wash with soap and water or just a rinse?

[Z K]

Originally Posted by SpeedyM3

And that's a full wash with soap and water or just a rinse?

You will need a full wash with soap and water. Using the clay bar with lubricant will leave lubricant residue and all the dirty stuff you clayed off on the car.

[sensi09]

Usually if I clay, I'll polish, but not too long ago I clayed a few sections then followed with klasse and some wax. The next day, I did notice some extra marring from the clay.

I use the dark blue clay from detailedimage which is listed as "fine." Granted, I was rather aggressive with the clay, and I have lemans so marring is more likely to show.

Washing after claying is safer, but using plenty of quick detailer and wiping down well is usually enough

[Vic311]

The clay is slightly abrasive, so to get the most gloss back into the paint, it's a good idea to use a fine polish afterwards.

[dagolfpro]

Originally Posted by s65e90

1. wash w/ dawn to removed old wax
2. Clay car
3. wash again
4. polish/seal/wax

Was told never to use dawn to wash car by a top detailer.

[W Cole]

Originally Posted by dagolfpro

Was told never to use dawn to wash car by a top detailer.

IMO its fine for this type of use. Ideal soap to use when you want to strip off everything before waxing/sealing. When I am doing a full detail I actually use the dawn soap as lube for the clay and wash/clay/wash almost in one step (making sure to fully wash off any abrasive contaminants after each step). May not be the best lubricant but I am compounding afterwards so no worries there.

Obvious downside to using it all the time is it will strip any wax/sealant and perhaps may be hard on the plastic/rubber pieces on the car in the long run? Its definitely not going to hurt the clear coat, you would wash that with acetone if you wanted to.

[rjd598]

Originally Posted by dagolfpro

Was told never to use dawn to wash car by a top detailer.

Only when you want to strip off existing wax. Otherwise don't use it

[FI PETE]

Originally Posted by SpeedyM3

Hey guys. I've had my car for about 8 months now and this will be my first time clay barring and waxing my m3. I was wondering since I have a MW and no swirl marks show, do I need to polish after I use the clay bar or can I just skip polishing and wax it? Sorry for the noob questions I'm new to this. Thanks for the help!

I always instruct my clients to polish after claying a car, using a light polish or a paint cleaner will take care of any marring introduced by the claying process as well as increase the gloss on your vehicle and since you have a MW I would suggest you to go with a paint sealant instead of just a wax (paint sealant will give you 6-9 months of protections unlike a wax that you'll get 2-3 months) Consider this sealants - Blackfire Wet Diamond, Wolfgang Deep Gloss, Sonax Polymer Net Shield.

-Just my professional opinion