Concours Corner

Cleaning with Clay

by David Bynon, San Diego Region

from THE WINDBLOWN WITNESS

Every Porsche shares a common enemy, relentlessly pursuing the car from the moment it leaves the factory until it meets its ultimate demise. The enemy: pollution. It's in the air we breathe, on the roads we drive, and it attaches to your car's paint, where it bonds and begins to oxidize.

When contaminants get a grip, washing alone is not enough. Pre-wax cleaners may not be able to exfoliate large particles. In this case, you have two choices: use a polish or heavy cleaner, which removes a lot of paint material; or use a clay bar. Clay isn't a polish or a compound; clay is a surface preparation bar that smoothes the paint and exfoliates contaminants.

Clay bars work great for removing brake dust built up on painted rear bumpers and adjoining surfaces. Likewise, clay is effective on paint overspray. If the overspray is particularly heavy, seek professional help. Tree sap, road tar specks, acid rain spots, bug residue, and hard-water spots can also be safely removed with a clay bar.

How do you know if you need to use a clay bar? After hand washing and drying your Porsche, feel the surface. Do you feel tiny bumps and rough spots? These bumps are contaminants attacking the finish. Removing these surface contaminates will improve both the look and health of your Porsche's paint. Magnify your sense of touch by inserting your fingertips into a thin sandwich bag.

Many clay products claim to contain no abrasives. This is stretching the truth. The reason manufacturers claim their clay doesn't contain abrasives is because the public thinks the word "abrasive" refers only to aggressive, paint removing materials. Fact is, the abrasives in most automotive clay products are so fine that you will not see any reduction in paint gloss. After several uses, paint luster may even improve.

Before using a clay bar, thoroughly clean and dry the car to remove loose dirt. Direct sunlight should not fall on the paint surface, and it's best if the work area is relatively cool to prevent rapid evaporation of the clay lubricant.

To use the clay bar, spray a water-based lubricant (usually a "quick detailer" product) on one body panel at a time and rub the bar back and forth with light to medium pressure. If the lubricant begins to dry, you'll need to spray more. Clay bars are fairly sticky, and cannot be used dry. Try using it dry and you'll make a mess.

After a few passes with the bar, feel if the surface contamination was removed. Keep rubbing until all contamination bumps are gone. Finally, wipe the clay residue off with a soft terry cloth towel, and buff to a nice luster. Check bar frequently for hard particles. Pick off any you find. Occasionally knead and reform the bar so that a fresh surface contacts the paint. If you drop your clay bar on the ground, it's history, toss it out. Don't take chances with a gritty bar. 

After claying, go over the paint with a pre-wax cleaner to restore essential oils. Then, protect the newly cleaned finish with one or more coats of rich Carnauba wax.

Clay products offer many advantages. Best of all, even in the hands of a novice, it's difficult to damage to your paint with clay. Sure, if you whale away with a dirty clay bar, scratches can result. However, compared to machine buffing, polishing or sanding, clay is much safer.

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