I drove down from North Dakota to Phoenix Arizona last winter and havent totally removed all the sand out of the paint on the rear hatch. I'll admit I tried some less conventional ways to work the sand out and the clearcoat looks a little abused. Will a clay bar take care of that problem?

Thanks!

 

Now that is an interesting question... I live in the Midwest so no sand here, however I would think claybar would take care of it. I would assume your going to need to polish the paint afterwords though. We don't have sand in the Midwest but we do have prehistoric sized bugs that really suck to take off the paint.

 

The sand was terrible. I drove down during the beginning of January so the grit was terrible. Any certain method for using a clay bar? I've never used one, wondering if there is a certain way of removing deformities in the paint.

 

You need to make sure the car is washed first. No real need to dry it if you're going in with a clay bar. Most auto parts stores, Walmart, Target all sell a kit that comes with a clay bar and a bottle of quick detailer, which is used as a lubricant. Runs about $16.

Spray a small area of paint (2 sq feet) with the QL, tear a hunk of clay off the bar and flatten it to the size of maybe a 50 cent piece, spray it and work it across the paint. Check the clay periodically and as it gets dirty, fold it into itself and get a fresh surface area. Keep the clay and paint lubed. When the clay glides across the paint with no drag, check the paint with your fingertips. It should feel like clean glass. It's a pretty simple process.

Be careful with how you handle the clay. If you drop it, do not use it on the paint. It would be ok to use on glass.

 

Personally I would not use clay bar to take sand out. I would think the sand embedded in the clay will act like sand paper. I happened to pick up a small piece of grit with a clay bar once and proceeded to add new scratches to my finish that required lots of buffing to remove later. I'd consult a detailer to see what they would suggest and then go very easy until you see the results.

 

I agree with this. Clay is already abrasive, trying to remove sand...and frankly I can't understand how you got sand embedded in your paint..clay would probably make it worse if you don't plan on polishing afterwards. What makes you think you have sand in your paint??

If I drove through a sand storm this is what would happen:

Paint and windshield would get sand blasted. That means the paint and glass suffers from millions of particles of sand hitting the paint creating tiny pock marks.

Once the paint is washed, there are no particles of sand remaining.

If the sand is stuck inside the handles or tight areas, use either air or water to blast it out.

Richard

 

The sand stuck in my clear coat won't come off unless I use a quite abrasive method of cleaning. You obviously have never driven through whiteouts for hours on end while being followed around by giant orange 10 tons full of sand. The highways were all coated in sand..there is sand all over and in my clearcoat. Washing definitely didn't do the trick. Thanks for the TIP. Air doesn't do anything either...I'm just going to take my chances with the clay bar. Shoot it might be a good thing since I obviously don't have sand in my paint? Just a new form of metallic that's all. Delusions!

 

You are right, I have never driven through whiteouts for hours on end. I still don't believe that what you are describing is accurate. Show me a picture of your paint with this embedded sand. I'm sure others would get a kick out of seeing what you are describing as well. Also if you want help from others, you might try being a little less sarcastic.

 

Well I'm 8500 kms away in South Korea at the moment but as soon as I arrive in Phoenix I'll take some pics. I have a tendency to be a butt hurt Betty at times my apologies. I removed a good majority of the sand but of course its still embedded in the smaller places on my bumper etc. Where the "vents" are on the bottom is especially bad.