I just bought Turtle Wax Liquid Clay, has anyone used this? Any good? I have used Meguiars Clay, I like the results with Maguiars, Turtle Wax Clay seems like it will make the job quicker. I'm going to follow up with Maguiars Cleaner, polish, and NXT wax. And that will be my Friday.

 

No, but I saw the infomercial on TV. It seems great (but the product always does on those 1/2 hr commercials). Hope it works well for you & looking forward to your opinion of it.

 

Stick with a traditional clay bar, whether Meguiar's, Mother's, etc. The TW Liquid thing is a joke...it takes a very simple, straightforward process and complicates the heck out of it and doesn't even return as good a finish when you're done.

A friend of mine who owns a detail shop here in SoCal. Wrote a great review on his website. This guy is one of maybe 3 people I know who I would trust with my cars (if I didn't know how to do all this myself)! Hopefully you haven't opened the package and you still have your receipt.

 

I purchased the "Package" from Turtle Wax ( http://www.icepolish.com/?tid=1949&g...FQ6CPAodU2Uq9A) on-line and followed the directions to a letter.
As a test bed I used the '03 Tahoe as a test bed. Finish was OK to start. some swirls and oxidation from the Alabama acid rain and high UV.

Start 29 July 2007

My procedure and conclusions are:

1. Washed with Ice Car Wash and Microfiber Mitt as I normally would to remove grime and dust. Rinsed. While still wet, used slipper and Liquid Clay Bar as per directions. Rinsed. Chamois dried. Was HORRIFIED at the residue remaining.

2. Washed again using Ice Wash. OK. Visible improvement in appearance of black plastic trim parts and rubber door edging etc.

3. Decided to get serious. Cleaned again with the clay bar product. Used same dedication as using Restorz-it (3M) and a foam pad.

4. Rinsed with cold water and Microfiber Mitt. Noticed it did an OK job on sap and tar without scrubbing. Completely removed road (oil) film and all old wax (more on this later).

5. Started to apply Ice Paste Polish as per instructions. Threw away sponge applicator. Started again with 3 in-a-bag for a dollar terry applicator. Tried the polish on a piece of window rubber, waited and buffed off with a Microfiber towel. Nice, but I asked myself what it would look like when the polish went away? Polished/waxed whole vehicle including running boards, rims and window trim.. It buffed off with a MF towel with little difficulty even on a 92 deg F day in direct sun.

Conclusion:

1. Product removed 50%-75% of swirl marks.

2. Plastic trim looks better than in the showroom. Does NOT leave that "just waxed" feel. (Not a Carnauba).

3. Overall, looks better in sunlight and night (street) light than with washing/waxing.

4. Should have done a better job 1st time with the clay bar product. The subsequent application was through sheer laziness. (It was HOT!)

5. Loaded family in said Tahoe and drove on family vacation to Virginia. (700 miles). Washed Tahoe. Drove around Va. as per wife's instructions.
(~ 350 miles). Drove home (700 miles).

6. Washed vehicle next morning. Plastic and rubber still look new. Paint beads perfectly on all vertical surfaces. A bit less so on hood and roof.
Re-applied Ice paste Polish to hood and roof. (August 21st).

7. September 9, 2007. After 3 really good washings, Tahoe still beads like the first day. Black bits still look great. Longest lasting "wax" I've ever used.

After this, I washed and used JUST the polish on my '97 Ranger with only fair paint and was disappointed. No improvement even on the rubber trim.
After 1 week, I used the "Clay Bar" and re-polished. Vast improvement.

I spoke to a chemist I work with and was told that polymers are formulated to adhere to (usually) one type of surface or material, and will not adhere to anything else. At least not for long.

So it seems that the polish works, as long as the surface is prepared (stripped of hydrocarbons and wax) beforehand.

I used to own a '95 Dakota, black and had to buff it 3-4 times a year to keep it looking good. I f you keep your car clean and waxed, I think this product will help if used as a surface prep every other waxing. The only drawback is having to re-wash the vehicle to remove the residue.

 

Maxcichon, thanks for the review...So how does it compare to a regular clay bar? I certainly wouldn't use a regular clay bar on plastic trim or rubber moldings. What do you mean when you say: "Used same dedication as using Restorz-it (3M) and a foam pad?" Thanks again.

 

#1. It would never replace the clay bar in a proper detailing kit, BUT the point I was trying to make is it will make a nice, QUICK way to remove road film and old wax (and the finer swirl marks) after a good road trip. I'm not entirely sure why some people feel the need to pile up new layers of wax on top of old layers contaminated with dirt, oil etc.

#2. When I started, I was treating it as just another car soap. Only after I saw the change in the plastic and rubber trim did I decide to use it as a true finish modifier. When I had my Dodge, and was power buffing it every 12 weeks or so, it was an all-day job, starting with de-waxing with Acryli-Clear solvent and buffing with ReStorzit (3M). Meguires Deep Crystal Polish and, at that time new, Meguires Gold Class Wax. My truck also had a fiberglass tonneau cover that took a couple of hours alone. It was an almost religious thing my wife still doesn't understand.
The point is, when I was doing all that work, I cleaned and polished every nook and cranny, behind the bumpers, wheel wells-everywhere.

As an aside, when I wash out my wheel wells, I finish with a fine spritz of
tire foam. Just a light coat turns it all black, and stays that way for quite a while and repels tar and dirt!

 

Thanks for the reply! I must comment on the ability of a clay bar or any other form of it to remove swirls...it doesn't do that, at least from my experience. A clay bar is not abrasive enough to cut the clearcoat to remove swirls. In fact, on heavily contaminated surfaces, swirls are actually filled-in with imbedded dirt, only to be revealed after the clay bar removes the embedded dirt. Oh, and a spritz of tire foam in the wheel wells after a wheel well cleaning is certainly a great tip!