I was asked to detail how to do this by someone recently and having done it to all my cars and just done it this weekend to the TDV8, I took a couple of pictures to help.

A good way to test if your car needs this doing (TBH, its more than likely going to unless you do this every 6 months) is to get a thin plastic sandwich bag on your hand and glide your fingertips over the paint from inside the bag. You can feel all the tiny bumps.

It's actually a very easy thing to do, you can buy the clay bar from Halfords, I always buy Meguiars as I know it and trust it but I'm sure AutoGlym etc are just as good.




So, here's how.

1. Wash the car, dry it and let it drip dry too (open dooors etc and let it all out)

2. Warm the clay in your hands, roll it around, then make a ball, then squash it into a flat piece about golf ball size.




3. Spray the lubricant spray that comes with the Clay onto the panel, a small area at a time (With Meguiars its the Quick Detailer spray)

4. Wipe the clay over the lubricated area, back and forth, up, down, round and round. You will feel and hear it picking up all the bonded contaminants in the paint (Tree sap, insect poo, squashed fly residue, tar etc)

Click image to enlarge

Click image to enlarge

Right, I'm off to Halfords today...

Excellent post.

+ 1 on the Lube, if you don'y use enough you will scuff the paint badly.

And you MUST put a layer of protection on after claying as it completely strips the surface of all contaminents including old wax. So even if you're not going to polish, you should put a decent coat (or 2) of wax on. If you don't your paint will go dull and oxidize really quickly. 

Good point Dan, yes, the paint is effectively naked and needs protecting, otherwise all the hard work will be pointless. Discovery 4 HSE
1998 110 TUM HS FFR Hard Top XD WOLF
1982 Series 3 Hard Top

*Gone:L462 D5 HSE LUX, L663 Defender 110 HSE, Discovery 3 HSE, 2014MY Range Rover Sport 5.0 Supercharged AB Dynamic; L405 Exec Vogue SE 4.4, 5.0 Supercharged Autobiography, Defender TDCi XS CSW, Defender TD5 HT, Vogue SE TDV8, Vogue TD6, RRSport SC 4.2V8, Classic 3.9 Vogue Auto, Land Rover Series 3 SWB

At what point do you throw away the clay? Is it when its dirty like in the pics? 2010 MY Vogue SE TDV8 3.6 Stornoway Grey- fully loaded

When you buy the clay you get 2 little slabs (Well if you buy Meguiars you do anyway).

I tore one of these in half and it did my entire car and is still good to use. When its as bad as that second picture you may as well bin it.

Keep turning the clay as you use it, constantly refreshing the surface you will wipe on the car. When it gets to the point that you can't seem to get it clean, throw it away or save it for really bad areas like alloys.

It all depends on how bad the paint condition is in the first place. Get close to the panels looking for tar as this is what will trash the clay quickest. Mine was so bad that I had to rub down every panel with petrol, otherwise I'd have gone through 10 clay bars!

You really can NOT go wrong as long as you use plenty of the lube spray, its the best way to prepare the paint for more work.

It's also weirdly satisfying to see how much crap comes out when you thought your car was clean to start with! Discovery 4 HSE
1998 110 TUM HS FFR Hard Top XD WOLF
1982 Series 3 Hard Top

*Gone:L462 D5 HSE LUX, L663 Defender 110 HSE, Discovery 3 HSE, 2014MY Range Rover Sport 5.0 Supercharged AB Dynamic; L405 Exec Vogue SE 4.4, 5.0 Supercharged Autobiography, Defender TDCi XS CSW, Defender TD5 HT, Vogue SE TDV8, Vogue TD6, RRSport SC 4.2V8, Classic 3.9 Vogue Auto, Land Rover Series 3 SWB

Excellent tutorial RRUK  2000 BMW M5, Avus Blue/LeMans Leather Interior
2006 Range Rover Westminster Java Black

noddy wrote:

At what point do you throw away the clay? Is it when its dirty like in the pics?

Yes, I threw that one away! Discovery 4 HSE
1998 110 TUM HS FFR Hard Top XD WOLF
1982 Series 3 Hard Top

*Gone:L462 D5 HSE LUX, L663 Defender 110 HSE, Discovery 3 HSE, 2014MY Range Rover Sport 5.0 Supercharged AB Dynamic; L405 Exec Vogue SE 4.4, 5.0 Supercharged Autobiography, Defender TDCi XS CSW, Defender TD5 HT, Vogue SE TDV8, Vogue TD6, RRSport SC 4.2V8, Classic 3.9 Vogue Auto, Land Rover Series 3 SWB

+1 for the Meg kit, I did my Audi A6 with it, then a quick pass with the machine polisher, then wax, it came up like new.

I've wanted to give the Range Rovers paintwork a good going over, but it's just too damn big

I think I'll rope me mate into giving me a hand. 2006 Mercedes CLS
1991 Retro-style Mini
But really finding it hard to fight the urge for a S/C...

My neext door neighbour decided to spray paint his fence with fence treatment and the wind blew the residue over the drivers side of my car. Do you think clay will remove it? It comes off easy and he did offer to put it right. There's only a few specks so I told him not to worry about it. 2010 MY Vogue SE TDV8 3.6 Stornoway Grey- fully loaded

I think it probably would remove it and for the price of a clay kit it's woth a try. I can't think the fence treatment will be good for the paint so the sooner the better I would think  2021 P400 Silicon Silver AB
Gone 2011 Bournville TDV8 VSE
Gone 2008 Black Canadian HSE LUX

There was a thing about that topic on the Jeremy Vine show the other week. I'd say you'd be best seeing if something can disolve it or dilute it, something spirit based I would guess. Clay may help if it sticks on. Discovery 4 HSE
1998 110 TUM HS FFR Hard Top XD WOLF
1982 Series 3 Hard Top

*Gone:L462 D5 HSE LUX, L663 Defender 110 HSE, Discovery 3 HSE, 2014MY Range Rover Sport 5.0 Supercharged AB Dynamic; L405 Exec Vogue SE 4.4, 5.0 Supercharged Autobiography, Defender TDCi XS CSW, Defender TD5 HT, Vogue SE TDV8, Vogue TD6, RRSport SC 4.2V8, Classic 3.9 Vogue Auto, Land Rover Series 3 SWB

So has anyone done this yet? Discovery 4 HSE
1998 110 TUM HS FFR Hard Top XD WOLF
1982 Series 3 Hard Top

*Gone:L462 D5 HSE LUX, L663 Defender 110 HSE, Discovery 3 HSE, 2014MY Range Rover Sport 5.0 Supercharged AB Dynamic; L405 Exec Vogue SE 4.4, 5.0 Supercharged Autobiography, Defender TDCi XS CSW, Defender TD5 HT, Vogue SE TDV8, Vogue TD6, RRSport SC 4.2V8, Classic 3.9 Vogue Auto, Land Rover Series 3 SWB

RRUK wrote:

So has anyone done this yet?

No - Despite selling the trim paint, my local Halfords doesn't stock the Meguiars Clay bar (or any others) - typical