ok here's my problem. i was waxing the car today when i noticed that parts of the paint on the hood, spoiler, fenders and doors have this roughness to it if i run my hand over it. it wasn't like this before it actually felt smooth like new paint feels. but today i noticed this. i thought wax would take care of it but it didn't. now i washed the car the other day with dishwasher soap cuz i read on here that you can use that to remove wax. well i planned on waxing it right after but didn't have time so the car spend about 2 days outside after the wash. i dont know if this ****ed up the paint or what but now i really wanna know if theres anything i can buy that'll get the paint back to being "smooth". i hope i explained this correctly. the paint is still intact and everything just now it feels rough for some reason.

i've never used anything besides wax and polish on a car so i dunno if there's anything readily available out there that i can use. thanx.

 

I know what your talking about. I had kinda the same thing of my formula also. The only thing i can say is try this: Try buying some 3&M fine cut or Super fine cut rubbing compound. Dont worry it comes in a liquid form...its not like a hard compound. Put a little of that on a damp cloth and work that into the spot thats rough. After thats all done.....Use the wax you were using or use some mequires gold class stuff, or zaino, just something that is really good and give the spot 1 or 2 coats of that.....really work the wax into it and see what youve done there. I did that on my spoiler and it came out fine. Just make sure with the compound that you get that its either the fine or the super fine cut cause anything else will do harm to the paint.......trust me i know about that one.
Let me know how you make you. I know what you must be going through with frustration on paint and stuff with your car. Im going through the same thing. I cant get over how much cracking my paint is doing on my aero spoiler just from this winter. Looks like ill be taking mine to the shop again for repainting...cause it looks awful.

 

Theres a MUCH easier way to fix this other than using compounds... go to your local parts store and buy Mothers Clay Bar kit. Follow the directions and your paint will feel as good as new!

 

The clay bar might work, however if you have alot of rough spots......its prolly going to take you a long time do to it all.

 

Clay bar will probably help, i dont know how bad your situation is. Clay bars rock at any rate....

 

You just built up some dirt/oxidation while the paint was unprotected after you stripped the wax off of it. Clay bar a small section and if it doesn't clean it up, buy a bottle of 3M "finessit". It's a real fine cut compound. Put it on a rotary buffer with a soft cotton wheel and it will disappear.

 

thanx a lot guys. the thing is i dont have it in just a few spots. the entire hood, spoiler and the top half of each door are like that. feels rough and if viewed from an angle it kinda looks like dry wax. i didnt notice it til today when i was waxing. so because i have a lot to remove its probably best to get the compound. will get it first thing tomorrow morning.

yeah it's very frustrating when stuff like this happens. i spent hours today trying to make the car have a nice shine and get rid of that stuff but didnt work. last time i let the paint go unprotected.

hey torch i used to have a Formula with the old style wing and i feel your pain. you should try and get the 91-92 style wing. no cracking and it looks a hell of a lot better.

 

maybe wetsand it with 1500 grit sandpaper and buff it out and then wax it?

 

You could clay bar all the body pieces you mentioned in less than an hour no problem. Youd be surprised how easy and fast a clay bar is!

 

It won't take long at all to claybar the whole car. The reason I said to do a small section was so yhou can see if the clay bar will fix the problem. No sense in doing the whole car if you're g oing to have to buff it anyway.

 

well i ended up getting 3M fine cut compound for 8 bucks a bottle as opposed to 20 bucks for the clay bar and a couple other small bottles of wax. it seems to be workin but now i have another q,,,some of the color is stickin to the rag as i rub that stuff on. does this mean my CC is now gone and the paint will eventually degrade faster now?

 

Id try a claybar first. My paint got overspray on it and it was rough as hell. The claybar took it 100% all off and the paint as smooth as can be.

 

IROCthe5.7......


You have the twin of my IROC!
(Mine *HAD* a L98 From the factory, and I'm in the process of building up a new short block L98)

I've used the meguiar's 3 step process and beforehand my IROC was sort of a matte black.

Now I can gently toss a dry clean hand towel on the hood or roof, and it will slide off like it's a puck on an air hockey table.
The paint is *VERY* shiny and deep. Problem is now I can see *EVERY* rock chip and small scratch.

Dish soap *WILL* strip wax, so don't use it for "regular" washing.

Never have used a "clay bar" what are they, and where do you find them?

 

The best ive used was the claybar they sell at autozone. I forgot the name, but it's blue.


A claybar is used to remove contaminates off your paint. From overspray to sap, to the crap that builds up on your paint from daily driving.

My father spray painted on a windy day and all the overspray hit my car. The claybar took it all off! Im a big fan of this product. Your paint will feel so much better when your done.

 

So basically you "wash" the car, and use the clay bar, then repolish and wax, or is the clay bar a type of polish?

I'm a bit confuse if it's a polishing type of thing, or just a deep cleaner?

 

The claybar is no type of polish. Just made to remove stuff off your paint.


I do just as you said, wash, claybar, wax

 

i would need to do almost the whole car and from lookin at the claybar it prolly wont last me past the hood. plus it's too damn expensive. i didn't think it cost that much. i looked at auto zone and they didn't have it. went to pep boys and saw the Mother's brand bar for $20. now what i'm worried about though is some red paint stickin to my rag. the paint is back to being smooth though in some areas. i'm still working on it.

 

I still say claybar will be your best route. Plus it isnt abrasive, so your paint wont be coming off onto the rag.


One claybar will be able to get your whole car done.

 

can i use the clay bar on top of the compound? i almost have the whole car done but i'd like to get it as smooth as possible without damaging the paint.