As I may well need to visit a local motor factors beforehand to stock up on the right kind of cloths/applicators.

This is what I have done this afternoon;_

Washed a black golf GTI (2006) with warm water & williams car shampoo

Rinsed off with a hose, with an adjustable nozzle

Blasted out wheel arches

Chamoised dry.

AND MOST IMPORTANTLY banned my Dad from driving it tonight/tomorrow.

Tomorrow the aim is going to be (in no particular order):-

Ensure alloys (stock 17s) are thoroughly clean & seal with poorboys sealant

Dress tyres

Clay entire car's paintwork. Already found blemishes/swirls/scratches that I hope can be reduced or even removed

Metal polish the rather manky looking tailpipe

Clean inside door shuts (clay too I guess)

Glass polish all glass inside and out

Apply one coat of Collinite 476s (this is where I am likely to need help in doing right )

If time, apply some trim gel to interior trim, and the plasticy bit of the lower back bumper/front bumper meshy bits.

At the moment this Golf DOES look damn clean but tomorrow I am aiming for it to be REAL clean.

Weather is looking gloomy first thing, but a bit more sun in the afternoon, but also a bit cold - possibly only a couple of degrees above freezing. I hope this doesn't affect the waxing to any great degree.

Go to the pub instead?

What are you reducing the swirls with mate? Claying will only remove the bonded contaminents and possibly depending on the agressiveness of the claying this might increase the marring or appearance of surface scratching.

At the very least I'd give it a coat of filler pollish such as Autoglym SRP then lay a coat or two of colly on top of it, this will mask the scratches for a good while.

Wait till next weekend, its gonna snow on Monday................................... :(

I thought claying would reduce the swirls. :(

Well, I have none of this filler polish, only the collinite 476s. I was going to just clay and then use it. Perhaps the swirls will have to stay for some time yet then.

I thought claying would reduce the swirls. :(

Well, I have none of this filler polish, only the collinite 476s. I was going to just clay and then use it. Perhaps the swirls will have to stay for some time yet then.

Claying doesn't reduce swirls, but it does provide a lovely smooth surface for any swirl filling/removing processes and waxes afterwards Having said that, the best course of action for swirl removal is machine correction (which I have just started doing ), but that's a whole different story...

If there is indeed going to be snow and all the associated road salt crap that it brings, for now it's probably best to just clay and get a coat or two of Collinite onto the paint purely for protective reasons (having said that, it will still look pretty damn good ) until the weather gets better, then you can spend more time doing a proper job taking care of the swirls

Just my 2p

Is there anything "basic" you can recommend for me to buy (from a boggo stock motor factors) to reduce swirls post claying, but pre-waxing?

As BigW said above, the Autoglym SRP (Super Resin Polish) does a surprisingly good job and is quite commonly available.

Its one of the most standard Autoglym products so if you local motor factor stocks any of the range they will probably have this one.

Not sure how close to a Halfords you are but they also have it - Autoglym Super Resin Polish 500ml from Halfords Price £10.99

Aye Jason I would just try and grab some SRP for the timebeing, I can get it in my local Tescos and Asda here so very freely available, its the one with a red logo.

I Lifted this from Autopia which is a fairly good explanation of Claying:

A car clay bar is an essential car detailing tool that targets the common enemy of every car finish: pollution that causes automotive paint contamination. It relentlessly pursues your car from the second it leaves the factory until your car meets its ultimate demise. It's in the air we breathe' date=' it's on the roads we drive, and it attaches to your car's paint, where it bonds and begins a process of oxidation.

Paint Contamination Removed by Detail Clay

[img']http://guidetodetailing.com/imageview.php?imageId=57[/img]Surface contamination, as shown by this diagram, is difficult to clean or polish off, yet paint cleaning clay removes it with ease.

When contaminants get a solid grip on your car's paint, washing alone may not be enough to remove them. Pre-wax cleaners also may not be able to exfoliate large particles. In this case, you have two choices: use a polishing compound, which removes a lot of paint material, or use a clay bar. A clay bar isn't a polish or a compound, it is a surface preparation bar that smoothes the paint and exfoliates contaminants.

USES FOR CLAY

Clay is not a cure-all or a replacement for polishing. It's a tool for quickly and easily removing surface contamination.

One of the many reasons for using a clay bar is the removal of brake dust. Brake dust contamination, which attaches to painted rear bumpers and adjoining surfaces, is a metallic surface contaminant that can be removed safely and effectively by using clay.

Sonus offers the most gentle detailing clay available on the market today. Sonus SFX Ultra-Fine Detailing Clay removes light to moderate contamination with very little effort. Its very low abrasive content reduce the chances of scuffing even the softest paint finishes. Customers report using this car clay as often as monthly with fantastic results.

Clay is also very effective on paint over-spray. If the over-spray is particularly heavy, you may want to seek the assistance of a professional. Tree sap and tar specks can also be safely removed with a clay bar.

Recently, I have also started using clay on my windows (exterior) to remove heavy road film, bug deposits and water spots. It works very well, and seems to outperform even the best window cleaners.

HOW DOES DETAILING CLAY WORK?

Detailing clay marketing information often reads something like this: “…clay pulls contamination off of your paint...” This sounds silly when you realize that you must lubricate the surface when you use a car clay bar. How in the world do you pull on something that’s wet and slippery?

This myth was born from a fear of telling people the truth. Clay is an abrasive paint care system. Yet used properly, detailing clay is not abrasive to your car’s paint; it is abrasive to paint contamination.

CAR CLAY BAR FORMULATIONS

Detailing clay formulation determines the optimal function of the clay and its potential to do damage when used improperly.

As an example, a professional grade clay bar that’s designed to remove paint overspray is very firm and contains abrasives equivalent to heavy rubbing compound. Used properly it will remove heavy overspray without damaging the paint. Used improperly, it can leave some pretty significant surface marring. That’s why it’s a professional product.

Most consumer grade detailing clays are designed to be used as an annual or semi-annual paint maintenance tool prior to polishing and waxing. At this frequency, these detailing clay products work great. Simply use the clay as part of your major detailing regimen.

The problem we were beginning to see is that many car enthusiasts wanted to clay their vehicles frequently; as often as monthly. At this rate of use, some consumer grade detailing clay can begin to dull clear coat finishes. After all, it is an abrasive!

Sonus SFX Ultra-Fine Detailing Clay is so fine that it's safe to use monthly to keep paint smooth and clean. The clay easily removes the dirt and makes the paint finish feel super slick.

DETAIL CLAY ALTERNATIVES

In 2007, the Ultima Finish Care company introduced an alternative to the traditional detailing clay bar called the Ultima Elastrofoam paint cleaning system. The product is a rubberized foam block that works like a rubber erasure. Like detail clay, it removes bonded contamination from paint, glass, chrome and plastic without the abrasive effects of harsh polishes. Plus, it overcomes some of the inconvenience of detailing clay, most notably the danger of dropping the clay bar and the inability to clean a clay bar when it becomes dirty.

Like clay, the Ultima Elastrofoam Paint Cleaning System quickly smoothes your paint to an ultra-slick and bright finish, preparing it for polishing and sealing. A single Ultima Elastrofoam foam block will clean you car up to twenty times, making Elastrofoam the most efficient paint cleaning tool available today.

Ultima Elastrofoam Paint Cleaner Detail Clay Alternative

Ultima Elastrofoam Paint Cleaning System is a detail clay bar alternative that lasts longer than detail clay and eliminates clay limitations.

A single Elastrofoam cleaning block will clean twenty or more cars. The Ultima Cleaning Lubricant Gel is a patented gel lubricant designed to prevent scuffing while at the same time allowing a thorough cleaning.

SUMMARY

At Autopia Car Care, we're fanatics about smooth, clean, glossy paint. With the advent of Sonus SFX Ultra-Fine Detailing Clay and the Ultima Elastrofoam Paint Cleaning System, you can now clean your paint regularly without concern for reducing clearcoat thickness or scratching. It's the perfect solution for crystal clear, super smooth paint.

HTH

Thanks - SRP sounded posh and I never realised it meant the resin polish. I might even have some of that in the garage here.

Well, I have found some carnauba enriched williams car polish so going to try that. Have clayed half the roof and have absolutely frozen my hands, so going to hope it warm up a little bit later, else this detailing session is going to be very limited indeed. :thumbdwn:

If its carnauba enriched it sounds more like a wax than a polish - but in the time limited freezing conditions at least it means you are protecting the paintwork - you may have to do the polishing at a later date if you want to de-swirl etc.

To be honest polishing and waxing are much misunderstood terms - not helped by the manufacturers and the likes of Auto-express tests - but its worth reading the stickies at the top of this section so that you can appreciate the difference

In a few words...

Polishing is correction - Waxing is protection

Well, I have found some carnauba enriched williams car polish so going to try that. Have clayed half the roof and have absolutely frozen my hands, so going to hope it warm up a little bit later, else this detailing session is going to be very limited indeed. :thumbdwn:

Remember to take care to make sure your clay is staying fairly pliable - keep a clean container of fairly warm water handy for this.

Just go with the clay, SRP and Collinite for now - you've got a few months to do some more research etc before the better weather gets here! For what it's worth, I'm doing my sister's Saab 95 Aero Sport Turbo this weekend. I've done the snow foam, 2BM wash, Megs clay, SRP and then the Collinite (915 in this case). That'll do her for months easily.

Best of luck - whatever you do, remember DON'T HURRY!!

Have opted to not do any waxing with the collinite this time, saving it for some time later when it is a bit warmer and I am better armed.

I have given up on claying now and am simply applying the williams carnuaba enriched polish on the freshly clean paintwork. Too feckin' cold to do anything serious! Brrrrr!

Is there anything "basic" you can recommend for me to buy (from a boggo stock motor factors) to reduce swirls post claying, but pre-waxing?

Autoglym SRP or Meguires 3 stage Parts 1 and 2 but specifically NOT 3

If you can get the autoglym SRP it's also worth putting a coat of EGP on top of it and letting that dry before you put the Colli on IMHO.

Means the protection should last for ages.

Shall think about that in May when hopefully the temps reach double figures.

Have polished the roof and bonnet and it's come up well - Helpful having a decent paint job to start with (black 56 plate GTI) - I got a good shot on my mobile which I will put up later on

Give it a clay, some AG SRP, a coat of car lack 68 and a couple coats of colly 915 works wonders for me on the paint work. I cant wait till the weather picks up so I can get stuck in properly! Good luck with it all.

Thanks Gave up on claying and just used my williams polish everywhere. Roof came up well. Dad is happy enough for sure, until I can get properly stuck into it.

Anyone got a cheap porter cable?

Looking good