[ricerocket]

I don't know if it's me or the car, but I just quick detailed my 8th gen sedan no more than two weeks ago, and after about 2-3 days (probably 8 total hours) of driving it feels like my doors have been sandblasted or something. Could it be my detailing or could it be that Honda has just cheaped out on paint over the years? :dunno: I haven't really owned a Honda since the mid 90s so I guess you can say I'm an old-new guy ahaha.

And just for the reference, here's what I basically did in my quick detail.
-Wash with normal car soap.
-Lightly clayed with Clay Magic clay bar as not to ruin the paint (or so I hope)
-Hand polish and wax with Meguiars product. I forget what kind of polish I used but I know I used the nXt liquid tech wax.

Anyone else seem to notice this problem? I mean, my car is fairly new (only 125ish miles on the odo)

 

[blackv6]

what kind of wash mitt and cloths are you using?

 

[RinconVTR]

Does the surface look swirled or hazed? I cant imagine it would...just asking.

2-3 days or even 8 hours later, after driving a bit??? That stands out to me. I would say your feeling dust and dirt that has collected on the surface. May be wash the car and check again?

 

[wxman]

Only on the doors? That's odd. Can you post some pics?

 

[ricerocket]

Does the surface look swirled or hazed? I cant imagine it would...just asking.

2-3 days or even 8 hours later, after driving a bit??? That stands out to me. I would say your feeling dust and dirt that has collected on the surface. May be wash the car and check again?

I think you may be right. No the surface of the paint does not look swirled or hazed in any way. It's just, the surface feels somewhat rough along the bottom of the doors after just a couple days of driving. So I'm guessing it's just dirt that has collected. Just wondering if in case this may be a bigger problem then I think it is. I used all microfiber towels for the cleaning, drying, wipe-offs, etc. As for wash mitt, just a normal (cotton I'm assuming?) wash mitt.

 

[sy272004]

list products u used, do you use 2 bucket method? if u say car has 125k on it then i can say 100% it has swirls on it unless paint has been corrected by somebody, here is what car looked like after about 20k

most likely dirt got on lower panels again, you might not see it but deff would be able to feel it, meguiars nxt tech wax is more of wax with glaze mix because i seen it can fill minor swirls but its not a polish

 

[Trip]

I would re-clay the car for starters. When it was mentioned the car was "lightly clayed"... put some elbow grease into it. The only way clay will hurt the paint is if you pick up some contaminants (namely dirt, stones if you drop it). Start with a fresh bar, use the instructed amount of surface lube and have at it.

My cars always feel "waxy" at least for a few weeks. It probably does feel rough because of accumulated grime from driving. But does it feel smooth again immediately after washing? It should for a few weeks.

If the paint is hazed up or scratched, you might want to try scratch removal products. Better yet, take it to a professional to have a light rubbing compound taken to it.

 

[SatinSilver]

I think Trip is on to something. Heres another method that works very well for me. I would wash panel and rinse. Soap up panel again. Run clay over the area. You will feet it grab the paint. Keep moving the clay over the area until it glides over the paint. This may take going over the area 3 times or so. Soap up panel again and rinse.

Fold clay over into a new pancake after each panel. Pick out contaminants in the clay as you see them. Cut clay bar into 3 pieces. So if you drop it you don't have to throw out the whole thing.

 

[wxman]

I think the OP says he only has 125 total miles. I can't imagine his car being that bad off. OP also states that <i>the surface feels somewhat rough along the bottom of the doors after just a couple days of driving. </i> - sounds to me like he may have drove over a puddle or it was wet and then road grime accumulated along the bottom of the door panel.

 

[RTexasF]

A car with 1 mile on it can have contaminated paint. Every new car I've ever purchased had contaminated paint from transit, dusty lots, poor washing techniques by the dealer, etc. Clay is the answer as Trip said. After a thorough clay and an additional wash a top quality sealant will do wonders as to keeping it clean & slick feeling in the future. Look into Duragloss products such as #105 & Aquawax.
High quality microfiber towels, like those from Poorboy's, are a must.

 

[ricerocket]

I think the OP says he only has 125 total miles. I can't imagine his car being that bad off. OP also states that <i>the surface feels somewhat rough along the bottom of the doors after just a couple days of driving. </i> - sounds to me like he may have drove over a puddle or it was wet and then road grime accumulated along the bottom of the door panel.

Again, I've come to a conclusion that this may be the issue. Nothing big, just a little concern I had. Haha yeah it only had 125 (almost 300 now) at the time. Most likely dirt and hard water stains that collected on the panels. Thanks for the help guys, much appreciated.

As for the specifics on the products I used and method of wash:
1. Rinse car down with normal tap water.
2. Start washing car with a bucket of car soap in water and with a cotton wash mitt.
3. Rinse of suds and begin drying with microfiber towels.
4. Allow car to air dry a bit after drying it with the microfiber towels and then begin to clay the entire car.
5. After claying is done, I went over the entire car lightly with some Meguiars Scratch X.
6. After I finished with the Scratch X, I went to wax the entire car with NXT liquid Tech Wax.

All this was done by hand, no dual action buffer or any of that fancy stuff. Again, I can't stress enough, that I am no professional detailer of any sort (more of a noob if anything).

Any recommendations for wax/polish/clay that I can use next time, rather than the stuff I'm using now? Am I doing anything wrong? Using the wrong products? I'd really like to learn the basics of all this auto detailing stuff cause I like keeping my car silky smooth and swirl free (if possible haha). Thanks again guys.

 

[SatinSilver]

Are you using clay lube on the car when claying? Apply a moderate amount of pressure when claying.

 

[ricerocket]

Yes, I make sure the entire surface area is well coated with the spray lube before I start claying.