As those of you in the NorthEast know, the roads have been covered with all sorts of crap over the last couple weeks.

Yesterday was in the 40's and it wasn't raining, so I washed my CL-S. This was the first wash of the winter and the second rinsing. I briefly rinsed the car off after the snows a couple weeks ago. The rain has also cleaned off a lot of the crap. I've tried hard to not rub any of the debris off my car without a lot of soap or running water.

When I went to dry the car I noticed the towel did grab on the finish occasionally. I guess this is what is meant by 'needing to clay'. Looks like a clay job for the spring.

I also noted a lot of fine swirls in line with the aerodynamics of the car. I think that road debris (salt, dirt) must have finely etched lines in my clear coat. Bummer. That's what I get for having a dark car. You cannot see these swirls if you look directly at the car in the shade, but in the sun at an angle you can see plenty of fine marks.

I guess I'll be trying Z5 this spring as well.

Any thoughts? I've reconciled with myself that my car IS a daily driver and I will get some wear. No doubt about it. It's too bad that the city doesn't use 'softer' rocks and sand to coat their roads with.

 

u can always get 3M film put on by a detail shop...it's a great way to protect the front and mirrors from the above road conditions...however, it's very $$ to do it, so brace yerself

as for existing scratches/swirls...keep in mind Z5 is a filler only, NOT a remover...to remove them, the 3M Swirl Remover helps very much, especially if u have an orbital...again, a detail shop can do the whole car (multi-stage compound + wax) for under $300...if u supply the Zaino, they should knock it down to around $200...IMO, it's worth it

 

Thanks.

I'm aware that only a swirl remover/polish will actually remove the swirls. I'll wait to see what things look like at the end of the winter. Likely I'll see what something like Z5 does before investing in a real professional detail.

I don't own an orbital and I think I'll leave the 'power detailing' to someone with some experience.

 

im in the same boat as u...i tried the 3M Swirl Remover by hand...with my right arm nearly dangling, i managed to get i'd say about 30% of the swirls out completely...an orbital would have bumped that number up significantly...plus the swirl remover is a mild compound...the detailer has more abrasive ones that will get deeper scratches/swirls out with ease...other concern is the clear coat integrity...the Z5 won't damage the clear coat...an abrasive can if not used properly

 

i noticed swirls in my paint when i washed it yester day, i need to clay more often, gonna use z-5 in the spring

 

I just noticed this morning that my car looks like a Saltine again. Its covered in crap. I just washed it about a week or two ago. Damn road treatment.

 

Amen, winter sucks! Don't know what color you all have, but the chemicals, sand and salt wreak havoc on my black baby! I used the Meguires Scratch-X...worked good, but very cosmetic, seems to wash out after a month or two. I'm so anal that I washed my car in the garage a couple of months ago. Worked fine except there was no drain in floor...oops, 1/4" of standing water and lots of soap later, the floor sure was clean! Hope the floor doesn't sink and crack....Good thing I rent :-)