i need an education ... what is the clay bar and how do you use it?

 

it is a bar of clay that you rub on the paint (with lots of lubrication). It pulls the oxidation staining from the paint - when you are done the paint will feel likes its new.

 

yeah, you wash your car and while it's wet, rub the clay bar on it, when done rinse, then wax. The clay bar smells and feels like playdough

 

Start here autopia detailing guide. Download the exe and register it read a section a day, then read the whole thing a few times. There is too much information to absorb at once.

Clay bar is used with, water, soapy wash, or clay lube. the process can be time consuming 1-4 hours to do properly.

Water spots will respond well to claying, slight acetic acid solution (1 cup vinager to 1 gallon of water) spritzed on and wiped off with towel, and more agressive polishing.

 

Lots of discussion here about clay bar. That's a good thing. Clay bars are THE means by which we remove surface contaminants. Grouse points to an excellent reference (www.autopia.com) for learning about how to use clay bar and other detailing products. A few more excellent resources can be found at Car Care Specialities and Classic Motoring Accessories.

That said, water spots may or may not be surface contaminants. If the car has been subjected to very acidic water (as can happen when a car sits at a port and the high sulpher exhaust from the ships interacts with the rain -- this is why you see new cars showing up at the dealer with protective white plastic on any horizontal surface), the paint can be etched. If this is the case (can only be determined by thoroughly washing and clay barring) then another critical step is called for: polishing. Polishing works by removing a very thin layer of clearcoat/paint from the car. Obviously this needs to be done in a gentle manner so as not to remove too much. How does one learn more about this all imporant step. See the first paragraph above. No, I don't work for any of them. Just love my car.

Cheers to all.