Okay to just throw on a coat of wax?

[AntonV]

I've never waxed my car before without doing all the other steps before. Strip, clay, polish, seal, wax. I haven't needed to polish the car for a while. It's been over a year since the last full detail. My car is a garage queen, and I can't imagine it picking that many contaminants.



I just really want to wax the car. I won't have the time until November to break out the flex. Is it a bad idea? Can I be doing more harm than good without cleaning the paint properly(kaio & clay) first? I would imagine by now that my jetseal 109 is gone as well.



What's your "in-between" routine?

 

[Dan]

You'll be completely fine. If the surface has any containments, you can use an AIO and get even better results.

 

[Accumulator]

AntonV- I simply redo my LSPs (after merely a normal wash) all the time. No problems to speak of. Yeah, plenty of people would say you oughta at least clay first, but I often don't do that.



My S8 basically sat unused for many months, since before last Christmas. Clean when I parked it, but desperately needed a wash by late August. So I just washed it normally and reapplied the UPP. Turned out fine.



If you notice any staining on your applicator, that indicates that things weren't/aren't as clean as you might want them to be, and you might want to stop and reconsider at that point; a quickie (VERY gentle) claying might then be in order so you don't grind any existing dirt into the paint. But notice how I kept saying "might" Even if the applicator gets a bit stained, *I* won't go so far as to say the claying/etc. is absolutely mandatory; hey, applicators get dirty when you use paint-cleaners too but that never seems to bother people. All a matter of degree IMO and if somebody wants to err on the side of caution I won't criticize 'em for it.

 

[Bill D]

I just do the hand in a cellophane bag test and run my fingers over the paint gingerly to feel for roughness-contaminants after I wash ,before I reapply the LSP. I clay wherever I may feel, and test again. The great majority of the time I don't have to clay, or a few select spots on some of the lowest parts of the car may need it, but even if I had to clay most of the car, I don't find it to be a gigantic job, but there's re-checking to do, then finally apply the LSP. Maybe I'd clay the night before, then LSP the next day, but it's been a long time since I had to do that.

 

[Brad B]

My method is while giving the car a wash I do a quick clay, mostly the horizontal surfaces which catch more contaminants, I use the shampoo as lube for the clay. It's one quick step. Then I dry and wax. Pretty efficient.

 

[wascallyrabbit]

i do much like bill does. baggie test and clay as needed. when i clay it'll usually be during a wash.

 

[Accumulator]

Wonder if my spot-claying at every wash has much to do with my being able to (ofen) skip it when LSPing :think:

 

[Bill D]

Yep, makes total sense to me. Only have to use Sonus light cut clay too, IIRC.

 

[Accumulator]

.. Only have to use Sonus light cut clay too, IIRC.

Yeah, though I do have a stash of SmartClay for "real" claying and, of course, some nasty stuff for serious work.

 

[Ron Ketcham]

My vehicles are lucky to get a quick wash job! (on occassion I do hit them with a quick Fast Finish shot)

Guess it's like the old saying, "The house painter's house is the one on the block that needs painting the worst."

As I grew up, the best bodymen/painters I learned from drove cars or trucks that would cause most around here to have a heart attack if they saw how bad they looked.

Grumpy

 

[extrabolts]

You can definitely throw on a coat of wax - I do it all the time. I only clay annually, and even then rarely pick up much contamination because I keep the car clean and waxed throughout the year anyway.