Ted's Blog

Even though it was dark at that point, I washed a small spot on the hood of the Civic, and then started with the clay. The Civic's surface is almost like sandpaper that has lost most of its grit. You don't have to rub very hard, just let the clay move over the surface. Within seconds I had smoothed out a spot. I was able to smooth out the whole test spot in a minute. It was very smooth (except for some scratches from road debris that has hit the front of the car). I applied the wax and buffed it off. Unfortunately the scratches caught all of the wax and showed up white against the black surface. It might be better to either try to repair the scratches or use something that goes on clear. Maybe NuFinish, though I need to look into that some more.

Anyway, the clay doesn't really do anything except give you a smooth surface for you to apply wax. It offers no protection in itself. So you still have to find a wax (not a polish which technically is abrasive and removes material). The one that fanatical people on the internet use is called Zaino. It is a process consisting of six different bottles of stuff and an entire kit costs $84. But it leaves an amazing shine that is more durable than a conventional wax (a regular carnuba wax only lasts a couple of months tops; the synthetics last 3-6 months). The Zaino process takes all day and is kind of expensive and is only available online or through distributors. People posting messages at autopia.com like to make fun of Turtle Wax and other readily available and inexpensive products and then say "there are other products that are better and not that expensive." But they don't tell you the name of those products. Then they might point out that other discussion threads go into the details. Eventually I found out about Duragloss products.

The first thing I found out about is a synthetic coating that gives the car a wet and shiny look. That product is Duragloss AquaWax. It's about $8. They also make a more conventional wax that you should apply first called Total Performance Polish 105, $10, (not actually a polish). But for best results they recommend another product called Polish Bonding Agent 601, $7.50. This is some kind of wax which chemically bonds the 105 to the finish of the car and then hardens like an epoxy. I guess eventually it wears off without affecting the paint. Some people swear by that system, though it doesn't give the shine of Zaino. They say it is more durable than anything Meguiar's makes (apparently Meguiar's is geared towards people who wax their cars monthly). Duragloss is not available at AutoZone or most other chains, but it is available at CarQuest. There are a few stores in Atlanta, so that's what I plan to use.