Do I need to clay bar my 2023 Subaru?

[Snoopysvet]

Do I need to clay bar a brand new car before my first wax?
Do new Subarus come pre waxed?
Tell me about Graphene, I saw a thread about the Turtle wax graphene, what about this expensice Adams graphene?

https://adamspolishes.com/products/g...84%A2-advanced

[nissanfanatic]

Likely, no. But you can check and see. You can feel the surface after washing by lightly running your fingers over the paint to tell if the surface has any contaminants and if it would benefit from a clay bar treatment.

[Pat]

Wash your car. Then feel the paint with your hand when it is dry. Next, put your hand inside a plastic grocery bag and do the same thing. That will really highlight how many contaminants are embedded in your brand new paint. I plan a full detail including Adams ceramic coating on my BRZ when it comes in next month.

[Desertnate]

Are you going to machine polish the car? If not, I'd hesitate going over it with a claybar. Even when using a gentle clay mitt or other clay substitute there is always a chance of adding marring. The paint on these cars is really soft.

I'll typically always clay a car that is new to me regardless of age. The age of the car will drive how much effort I put into that step before polishing. For a new car, I'll typically go over the paint with either a clay mitt or just be very gentle with an actual clay bar. The paint always seems smoother as you remove embedded grime that accumulated from pre-sale transportation and sitting on the lot. For a used car I'll always use a clay bar and give it a good once-over to clean the paint. I've had a couple used cars that were in really bad shape and using a clay bar actually produced a visible improvement!

If there is any wax/sealant on the car it's probably applied during dealer prep for the sale. I wouldn't count on the quality being very good. I always detail my cars right after I bring them home. In the winter I'll apply a good sealant and wait for spring. If it's in the spring or summer, I'll drag out the tools and give it a full detail job.

I don't think you should use graphene as a decision factor for any sealant or coating product. I've not seen/heard any agreement on whether it really adds anything from detailers and chemists I've talked to/read. There are just as many products that will outperform a graphene enhanced one as there are graphene products that will outperform one that doesn't have it. Go on the overall merits of the product and not the inclusion of that one ingredient. In many cases its just hype at this point.

As far as that Adams coating goes, I've heard a few good things about it. However, if you've never used a coating, I would actually recomend CarPro's CQuartz UK 3.0 coating. It's easy to apply, VERY durable, great water behavior, and looks good. It comes in 30ml bottles for much cheaper than the Adams. I've used the CarPro coating on my vehicles for at least 6~7 years now and it's my go-to whenever I do someone else's car or reccomend a product to someone else.

I an easily do a car with 30mL (half the size of the Adams bottle) and still have some left over.

[Snoopysvet]

Originally Posted by Desertnate

Are you going to machine polish the car? If not, I'd hesitate going over it with a claybar. Even when using a gentle clay mitt or other clay substitute there is always a chance of adding marring. The paint on these cars is really soft.

I'll typically always clay a car that is new to me regardless of age. The age of the car will drive how much effort I put into that step before polishing. For a new car, I'll typically go over the paint with either a clay mitt or just be very gentle with an actual clay bar. The paint always seems smoother as you remove embedded grime that accumulated from pre-sale transportation and sitting on the lot. For a used car I'll always use a clay bar and give it a good once-over to clean the paint. I've had a couple used cars that were in really bad shape and using a clay bar actually produced a visible improvement!

If there is any wax/sealant on the car it's probably applied during dealer prep for the sale. I wouldn't count on the quality being very good. I always detail my cars right after I bring them home. In the winter I'll apply a good sealant and wait for spring. If it's in the spring or summer, I'll drag out the tools and give it a full detail job.

I don't think you should use graphene as a decision factor for any sealant or coating product. I've not seen/heard any agreement on whether it really adds anything from detailers and chemists I've talked to/read. There are just as many products that will outperform a graphene enhanced one as there are graphene products that will outperform one that doesn't have it. Go on the overall merits of the product and not the inclusion of that one ingredient. In many cases its just hype at this point.

As far as that Adams coating goes, I've heard a few good things about it. However, if you've never used a coating, I would actually recomend CarPro's CQuartz UK 3.0 coating. It's easy to apply, VERY durable, great water behavior, and looks good. It comes in 30ml bottles for much cheaper than the Adams. I've used the CarPro coating on my vehicles for at least 6~7 years now and it's my go-to whenever I do someone else's car or reccomend a product to someone else.

I an easily do a car with 30mL (half the size of the Adams bottle) and still have some left over.

Very Good!

[soundman98]

all cars paint is soft. it's a side effect of the environmental changes everyone had to make to save the planet.

really shouldn't be clay barring a car unless you intend to polish it afterwards to minimize the scratches. though i just did exactly that-- clay/wax on my truck because i wasn't motivated enough. it sort of shows, fortunately, the lights not great this time of year.

i tend to be adverse to bandwagons. so i use mostly poor boys world products for clay lubricants and waxes, and wolfgang uber compound for scratch removing/clearcoat work. YMMV

[TommyW]

After washing if the paint doesn't feel like silk then bar it. That will usually be the hood, top and rear deck lid. Dark colors just be super careful and use a lot of lubricant.

[Teseo]

Originally Posted by soundman98

all cars paint is soft. it's a side effect of the environmental changes everyone had to make to save the planet.

really shouldn't be clay barring a car unless you intend to polish it afterwards to minimize the scratches. though i just did exactly that-- clay/wax on my truck because i wasn't motivated enough. it sort of shows, fortunately, the lights not great this time of year.

i tend to be adverse to bandwagons. so i use mostly poor boys world products for clay lubricants and waxes, and wolfgang uber compound for scratch removing/clearcoat work. YMMV

Try Corvettes, Camaro and most GM vehicles have hard clear coat... ended using rotary paired wool and Sonax cut max just to see and say, here is the difference

[soundman98]

wool is a nasty hard-cutting pad.

i watched a guy that 'knew everything' screw up a pristine black cadillac i'd been maintaining every 3 months for 2 years(it was the guys 'baby', literally just washed the dust off and added a coat of wax). he swirled it like peanut butter with a wool pad in 1 try, ruined a nearly 10 year relationship with a customer...

[Desertnate]

Originally Posted by Teseo

Try Corvettes, Camaro and most GM vehicles have hard clear coat... ended using rotary paired wool and Sonax cut max just to see and say, here is the difference

VAG vehicles are really hard too, especially the black metallic paint.

My Mk6 GTI had the hardest paint I've ever seen until I detailed the neighbors Cayenne. Holy cow that paint was hard. I foolishly took on the job without having any MF polishing pads for my dual action polisher. I ended up using my most aggressive compound and foam pads and it still took a lot of work to get out even moderate swirls from the automated car wash.

From the cars I've worked on the VAG family vehicles are crazy hard. A Dodge and BMW were right in the middle along with a Genesis I worked on once. Japanese cars tend to be crazy soft, but Mazda seems to be a bit harder than Toyota, Subaru, or Honda. Those three seem to swirl by just looking at them. Of course you can also correct them really easily too with the right pad/polish combo.

[Snoopysvet]

How do I deal with the black plastic bits, like the diffuser?

[Teseo]

Originally Posted by Snoopysvet

How do I deal with the black plastic bits, like the diffuser?

Ceramic trim coat

[Desertnate]

Originally Posted by Teseo

Ceramic trim coat

This or you can use the same ceramic coating your using on the paint. If the car is new, either option will work well. For a car that's a couple years old I'd go with the dedicated trim coating.

I've done this twice. Once with Cquartz UK 3.0 on a new Challenger Scat Pack and the second time with Gyeon Pure EVO on my new BRZ.

On both vehicles I coated things like the diffuser already mentioned, but also things like the wiper arms, black plastic around the side mirrors, spoilers, grill work, and the plastic panel under the front wipers.

[spcmafia]

Originally Posted by Snoopysvet

Do I need to clay bar a brand new car before my first wax?
Do new Subarus come pre waxed?
Tell me about Graphene, I saw a thread about the Turtle wax graphene, what about this expensice Adams graphene?

https://adamspolishes.com/products/g...84%A2-advanced

I believe you were probably reading my review on Turtle Wax (T.W) Graphene.



To answer your question, yes, you should clay bar your new car if you're going to do a professional or casual wax. Adams is great, I use the "Easier" tier graphene wax, but I must say that while it is certainly easier than the T.W one, it also doesn't last as long by itself, I'll explain that later. In T.W case, it is not as easy, and applying too little or too much of it can leave some weird marks on the car.



I believe most dealership cars come with some level of detailing, but depends on the dealership. I personally would still bring the car home and detail it myself.



ADAMS Graphene Spray makes for a great lubricant for your clay bar, so definitely use that. Any quick detailer will do too. You shouldn't have much if not any contamination.





Before you do anything, get Adams strip wash, to remove any possible wax from the dealership. Do not use any sort of sponges/towels that are not microfiber.

After the strip wash, switch do a Ph Friendly soap such as Chemical Guys Mr. Pink and repeat the wash process. While the car is wet, apply your preferred lubricant spray and get to work with the clay bar.

Get a paint Sealer, Meguiars Mirror Glaze 2.O works great. This will be your first layer of protection. Let it properly dry and then cure.
After 24 hours, preferably without any exterior contaminants present, apply your wax, you can use a quick detailer to give the car a quick wipe before this process.



Graphene lasts a lot longer than Carnauba, with better water, pollen, dirt repellent properties. This will be your second layer of protection, which can be refreshed by using any Graphene wax in spray form after every consequent wash while the vehicle is still wet. I personally recommend using a spray form G.W because the more layers of protection, the better, it also extends the longevity of your second layer of protection. Which as mentioned, if you go with Adams, won't last as long by itself.