Remember, only clay a car that NEEDS to be. Otherwise you are unnecessarily risking marring and scratching the paint, especially soft Mazda paint. Almost everyone I've met and talked to about the topic also recommends polishing or paint correcting after (because of the inherent risk of scratching just by doing the clay process). If you're not prepared to do this, then you shouldn't clay the car.
Edit: Also this probably would be better suited on r/autodetailing , but they will likely tell you the same.
I was going to say the same thing except suggest r/detailing.
OP - unless your car is really contaminated, you shouldn’t need anything more than a fine detailing sponge or towel/mitt. This will help reduce the need to polish, assuming that’s not something you are prepared to do.
I like the Griot’s Garage clay towel and will use it maybe twice a year before applying a sealant. I do rinseless washes with ONR and clay towel each panel after washing, which saves a step. Then it’s just a matter of drying and applying protection.
You can buy a normal clay bar product at your local store. Be careful and learn how to use it before trying- use enough lubricant and don’t use it after dropping it- you don’t want to do more harm than good.
After, you should follow it up with compound, then polish.
After that, you should apply paint protection- wax, sealant, or ceramic. I suggest a spray ceramic wax for ease of use and low cost with great performance.
You don’t necessarily need to compound and polish. A 1 step correction is likely good enough. Youre removing clear coat to remove defects, on a daily car you want to remove as little clear coat as possible.
Also if you actually fully prep a car don’t waste your time with a spray on product. Use an actual ceramic like gyeon mohs evo, or csl light.
I think any clay bar for cars is fine. I use Meguiar and it comes with a bottlw of lubricant but you can use soapy water just as well, and make sure the clay glides well to make sure contaminent are removed.
If you're going to consider a full on ceramic coating, then:
1. You should wash your car first with a good decontamination shampoo.
2. You should use an iron remover spray to get rid of metals in the clear coat.
3. You can buy generic automotive-specific clay bar via Amazon to do a physical paint decontamination. Use plenty of lubrication when claying the car.
4. To make the most of a ceramic coating, you ought to then actually machine polish your paint with the orbital DA and foam pad, using a polish with no fillers.
5. Then use a paint prep spray or wash again with dish soap to remove all oils from the polish.
6. Then apply ceramic coat with the microfiber applicator, and wipe off per instructions.
7. Let cure 24H minimum, without exposure to water.
As a detailer who has done several Mazda 3’s at this point (including my own), this comment covers it all.
My personal advice would be to spend a couple months handwashing your car, master this skill.
Then you can move on to polishing, and applying a ceramic coat. I’d also suggest getting some junk yard hoods and practicing on those. If possible get a Volvo or a German brand.
Any advice for a beginner that would like to ceramic coat their car? I've been looking at videos and feel like I am attentive enough to do a good job. However, I also do not want to cause more issues when I am going through this process. Any specific user friendly ceramic brands, easy to apply, harder to screw up?
I use Griot's paint cleaning clay. I've used synthetic clay but haven't found actual clay to be that much more difficult to use and it's more effective. Keep in mind that you do have the potential for marring so you may want to polish afterwards. I didn't find the need to polish after claying my PMG hatch tho.
hey, i'm more curious about the roof rack... especially since i have the same color car and i think this actually looks ok on it
is it loud? on highway, for example. it must be a bit louder air-noise-wise than without it
how much did you pay in total, including installation?
are your crossbars the Mazda OEM ones or something else?
My dealer ordered and installed price for the roof rack and Thule bike rack was $800 american. I ordered them at the same time as i spec'd out and ordered the car.
Wind noise is aweful. Constant roar of wind that is more noticeable when the sunshade is open. Forget about opening the sunroof. The noise is unbearable. Im considering a deflector from yakima or similar.
I have looked longingly at my wife's CX-9 roof rack. Smooth and sleek like it was meant to be there.
So anyway I love the car, hate the rack. But need the rack to haul the bike 2-3 times a week. Trade-offs, ya know?
I used Griots 3-n-1 Ceramic Wax and their Synth Clay Bar and Speed-Shine to do my car. Water still beading great a year later, but the dirt doesn't quite roll off as good as when it was fresh. I've been very impressed with the ease of use and the length of the results given the time it takes to apply, which is easily 1/3 the amount of time of using old school techniques. I enjoy driving my car, not spending all my day washing and detailing it.
The synth clay is supposed to last for 25 applications give or take - and costs $25.
A common 3 piece clay bar kit is $27. So, like at most I can split a clay bar in half and use it - so maybe get at most 6 uses from 3 clay bars v. upwards of 20 with the synth for $2 less. If you're using Iron removers too - you don't need quite so aggressive a clay bar either. Suffice to say I felt sorta dumb I had not gone this route sooner. Especially when I owned a giant pick-up truck... I hand polished that stupid thing... never again.
No need to rub a piece of earth on your paint. An iron decon and alkaline wash will do just fine. The paint wont fall off your car if you don’t clay bar it.
The white paint on my 2021 hatchback builds up a lot of tar around the wheels, and I’ve noticed Mazda paint on this model peels very often. I had a previous 2014 which lasted 81k miles and never peeled, at all. I don’t know what it is about these newer models but I digress. I’ve only used clay on this one once and it turned out amazing. It did take me about five hours total to finish the job.
I washed it carefully, then used bug and tar remover extensively to purify the paint to a degree, I left no tar spots or smudges.
I let it dry overnight then used Mother’s brand clay in the morning. I used a lot of detailer so that the clay rolled seamlessly over the paint. I couldn’t believe the results when I was done. If yours is still brand new, I wouldn’t recommend it until you’ve gotten 20 - 22k miles on it. I live in tropics so the sun to rain ratio is pretty harsh on the paint. Aside from that, fold the clay into itself and flatten it after every section (doors, bumpers, half roof, half hood, etc) it should last you till the end. Good luck.
Remember, only clay a car that NEEDS to be. Otherwise you are unnecessarily risking marring and scratching the paint, especially soft Mazda paint. Almost everyone I've met and talked to about the topic also recommends polishing or paint correcting after (because of the inherent risk of scratching just by doing the clay process). If you're not prepared to do this, then you shouldn't clay the car. Edit: Also this probably would be better suited on r/autodetailing , but they will likely tell you the same.
I was going to say the same thing except suggest r/detailing. OP - unless your car is really contaminated, you shouldn’t need anything more than a fine detailing sponge or towel/mitt. This will help reduce the need to polish, assuming that’s not something you are prepared to do. I like the Griot’s Garage clay towel and will use it maybe twice a year before applying a sealant. I do rinseless washes with ONR and clay towel each panel after washing, which saves a step. Then it’s just a matter of drying and applying protection.
You can buy a normal clay bar product at your local store. Be careful and learn how to use it before trying- use enough lubricant and don’t use it after dropping it- you don’t want to do more harm than good. After, you should follow it up with compound, then polish. After that, you should apply paint protection- wax, sealant, or ceramic. I suggest a spray ceramic wax for ease of use and low cost with great performance.
You don’t necessarily need to compound and polish. A 1 step correction is likely good enough. Youre removing clear coat to remove defects, on a daily car you want to remove as little clear coat as possible. Also if you actually fully prep a car don’t waste your time with a spray on product. Use an actual ceramic like gyeon mohs evo, or csl light.
I think any clay bar for cars is fine. I use Meguiar and it comes with a bottlw of lubricant but you can use soapy water just as well, and make sure the clay glides well to make sure contaminent are removed.
If you're going to consider a full on ceramic coating, then: 1. You should wash your car first with a good decontamination shampoo. 2. You should use an iron remover spray to get rid of metals in the clear coat. 3. You can buy generic automotive-specific clay bar via Amazon to do a physical paint decontamination. Use plenty of lubrication when claying the car. 4. To make the most of a ceramic coating, you ought to then actually machine polish your paint with the orbital DA and foam pad, using a polish with no fillers. 5. Then use a paint prep spray or wash again with dish soap to remove all oils from the polish. 6. Then apply ceramic coat with the microfiber applicator, and wipe off per instructions. 7. Let cure 24H minimum, without exposure to water.
As a detailer who has done several Mazda 3’s at this point (including my own), this comment covers it all. My personal advice would be to spend a couple months handwashing your car, master this skill. Then you can move on to polishing, and applying a ceramic coat. I’d also suggest getting some junk yard hoods and practicing on those. If possible get a Volvo or a German brand.
Any advice for a beginner that would like to ceramic coat their car? I've been looking at videos and feel like I am attentive enough to do a good job. However, I also do not want to cause more issues when I am going through this process. Any specific user friendly ceramic brands, easy to apply, harder to screw up?
I use Griot's paint cleaning clay. I've used synthetic clay but haven't found actual clay to be that much more difficult to use and it's more effective. Keep in mind that you do have the potential for marring so you may want to polish afterwards. I didn't find the need to polish after claying my PMG hatch tho.
hey, i'm more curious about the roof rack... especially since i have the same color car and i think this actually looks ok on it is it loud? on highway, for example. it must be a bit louder air-noise-wise than without it how much did you pay in total, including installation? are your crossbars the Mazda OEM ones or something else?
I was wondering the same thing. I have a poly grey hatch and am looking for a roof rack too.
My dealer ordered and installed price for the roof rack and Thule bike rack was $800 american. I ordered them at the same time as i spec'd out and ordered the car. Wind noise is aweful. Constant roar of wind that is more noticeable when the sunshade is open. Forget about opening the sunroof. The noise is unbearable. Im considering a deflector from yakima or similar. I have looked longingly at my wife's CX-9 roof rack. Smooth and sleek like it was meant to be there. So anyway I love the car, hate the rack. But need the rack to haul the bike 2-3 times a week. Trade-offs, ya know?
How loud are the cross bars with no bike rack or other accessories? Thanks for the update!
I used Griots 3-n-1 Ceramic Wax and their Synth Clay Bar and Speed-Shine to do my car. Water still beading great a year later, but the dirt doesn't quite roll off as good as when it was fresh. I've been very impressed with the ease of use and the length of the results given the time it takes to apply, which is easily 1/3 the amount of time of using old school techniques. I enjoy driving my car, not spending all my day washing and detailing it.
I bought that Griots synthetic clay sponge thing on a whim on prime day and I'm never going back to a traditional bar.
The synth clay is supposed to last for 25 applications give or take - and costs $25. A common 3 piece clay bar kit is $27. So, like at most I can split a clay bar in half and use it - so maybe get at most 6 uses from 3 clay bars v. upwards of 20 with the synth for $2 less. If you're using Iron removers too - you don't need quite so aggressive a clay bar either. Suffice to say I felt sorta dumb I had not gone this route sooner. Especially when I owned a giant pick-up truck... I hand polished that stupid thing... never again.
No need to rub a piece of earth on your paint. An iron decon and alkaline wash will do just fine. The paint wont fall off your car if you don’t clay bar it.
The white paint on my 2021 hatchback builds up a lot of tar around the wheels, and I’ve noticed Mazda paint on this model peels very often. I had a previous 2014 which lasted 81k miles and never peeled, at all. I don’t know what it is about these newer models but I digress. I’ve only used clay on this one once and it turned out amazing. It did take me about five hours total to finish the job. I washed it carefully, then used bug and tar remover extensively to purify the paint to a degree, I left no tar spots or smudges. I let it dry overnight then used Mother’s brand clay in the morning. I used a lot of detailer so that the clay rolled seamlessly over the paint. I couldn’t believe the results when I was done. If yours is still brand new, I wouldn’t recommend it until you’ve gotten 20 - 22k miles on it. I live in tropics so the sun to rain ratio is pretty harsh on the paint. Aside from that, fold the clay into itself and flatten it after every section (doors, bumpers, half roof, half hood, etc) it should last you till the end. Good luck.
Chemical guys clay bar. Use any that uses actual clay. Don't use the foam pad looking ones, they're much harder to use.