Customer Reviews

Mothers 07240 California Gold Clay Bar Paint Saving System

5 star:		(101)
4 star:		(20)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I've used clay bar kits from four different manufacturers. All did the job fine (though some old Meguiar's clay bar caused some minor scratches in one car's paint). That said, this Mother's California Gold Clay Bar kit is a GREAT clay bar kit and it's very well priced.

As long as Mother's continues to make this kit I will continue to buy it.

I first bought the Mother's Clay Bar system a year ago. It sat on the shelf until I tried it on my two year old Honda CR-V.
It took less than 45 minutes to treat and wax my whole car and the vehicle now looks better than when I bought it. You can actually hear those little rust causing impurities coming off the finish. Stop destroying your clear coat or settling for less than a perfectly smooth finish get this product! I do not own stock in, or work for, Mother's Car Care prducts.

After reading numerous raving reviews here at Amazon.com and at several other sites, and learning that auto clay was safe for clear coat paints because it works through a non-abrasive process, I decided to give it a try -- and boy, was I glad I did!

My car was covered with a stubborn deposit of dirt and grime that simply would not come off with a car wash. It seemed that the dirt and grime had gotten lodged in the paint and wouldn't budge no matter how hard I tried washing the car. After every car wash, I would run my fingers through the paint and it would still feel gritty.

That was when I learned about Mothers 07240 California Gold Clay Bar Paint Saving System Kit. The results were astounding! After using it, the paint no longer felt gritty but glassy-smooth. The paint was no longer dulled by contaminants and the car looked like it had a new coat of paint! I was immensely pleased with the results.

Unlike a lot of car polish or polishing compounds that use abrasion to strip away surface contaminants, auto clay simply picks up surface contaminants and locks them into the clay. The clay looks and feels exactly like plasticine (Play-doh®) and it is used along with the included "lubricant" spray (actually, an auto soap that provide lots of suds -- like Meguiar's Gold Class -- will work equally well.)

Mind you, car polish still has its place in paint restoration because claying will not remove scratches; only a car polish or a polishing compound (harsher) can do that. And remember, always follow the claying with an application of wax to shield your paint from new contaminants. Also, clay your car every so often and you will keep the paint looking like new!

I am giving Mothers 07240 California Gold Clay Bar Paint Saving System Kit my highest recommendation. Go on, try it and see for yourself firsthand the difference it makes in your car paint. It's worth every penny and I'm sure you'll be glad you did!

I have a 1998 Ram pickup that spends its entire life outside, parked near trees. I hadn't done much with paint care for more than a couple years and one side was covered in small, hard, brown tree sap spots. Reading the reviews on Amazon (and other websites) for clay bars and their use in cleaning up paint surfaces, I thought I'd try this Mother's kit to revitalize my paint job. I was sceptical about its abilities to do anything other than a final "fine cleaning". I was right.

The clay bar could not remove any of the hard tree sap marks. It does not remove scratches (and can actually apply some if you do not keep the clay lubricated. It does make the paint seem smoother to the touch, but I cannot tell the difference between a final normally waxed and polished surface and a clayed waxed and polished surface. The surface feel of unpolished paint Vs clayed paint does exhibit a noticeable benefit from claying, as the makers claim. However, applying a good polish achieves the same results on a washed and clean paint surface, in my opinion. Even on my truck, after cleaning it first, the clay stayed pretty clean and only after doing the whole vehicle paint surface did the clay feel faintly gritty and appear slightly darker in color - ready for trashing.

To remove the sap, I resorted to a rag soaked in mineral spirits and plenty of elbow grease. To eliminate any light scratches, I used T-Cut. Then I clayed it, followed by polishing with Turtle Wax. After a day of that, my shoulders ached bad, but the truck paintwork looks good; well, as good as an 11 year old, well-used, stone-chipped and scratched truck can. The clearcoat has actually held up exceedingly well over the years.

I haven't tried clay on our 3 year old, garaged minivan yet. It will be interesting to see if it removes minor swirl marks. I don't expect it to make the paint look any shinier after polishing. It looks great as it is.

I did buy an extra bottle of detailing spray (I bought the kit locally at Autozone) in case one wasn't enough. But one was enough for one clay bar / one vehicle treatment. Since there are two clay bars in the kit, then the extra bottle will be used with the second bar.

I found the claying to be easy and quite quick. I split the bar in two, then pressed it flat into a disc about 2" in diameter. Then I sprayed the surface and rubbed the clay back and forth over the paint in my palm. Knead it regularly back into the 2" disc, as it gets thinner and splits. It was actually very straightforward and no big deal. Avoid rubber parts, like the windshield surround, as the clay picked up black "soot" from those. Make sure you polish it dry as the spray leaves streaks if you don't remove it with the supplied towel

I suggest clay bars are really for the guys and gals that want the ultimate care for their newer vehicles. It may not be noticed by anyone else, but it's the satisfaction of a job well done that always matters to the perfectionist! I know 'cos I am one!

Sept 26 2009 UPDATE: This evening, I tried claying half the hood of my minivan then waxing it all to see if I could tell any difference. The clearcoat on the van is in great condition. I washed the hood and dried it. Then I clayed the left half (LH as seated in the van). I did notice that even with plenty of spray lubricant there were a few faint straight line, light scratches visible in the clearcoat after I wiped the surface dry that weren't there before claying. I could not feel any real difference in the surface smoothness from the clayed to the unclayed side. The clay appeared to have no visible dirt in it. I then Turtle Wax'd the whole hood. After that, the straight line scratches were gone and there was no VISUAL difference from clayed to unclayed even with the reflected overhead flourescent light from my garage as a guide. I then applied my dry finger tips to the hood; left hand on the unclayed side and right hand on the clayed side. Applying a light pressure and sliding back and forth, I think I detected a slight reduction in friction as the fingers change direction on the clayed side. Even swapping hands over, the result seemed the same, ruling out differences in my finger tips! However, the effect was so slight that it was almost imperceptible.
CONCLUSION: Claying may help with a contaminated paint surface to remove those last little imperfections and revive the paint, but with a clean and regularly-waxed paint surface, claying probably isn't worth the cost nor the effort.

This product removed overspray in about two hours and saved me a ton of money. I was lucky to find out about this system and highly recommend it. It's easy to use, just wash and dry your car, and then in 2 feet blocks spray the lubricant and gently rub the clay bar on your car, wiping off excess lubricant and finishing with the wax included in the kit. My car looks like it did when it came off the lot! Couldn't be happier.

This is a great clay bar system for your car. The spray included is great for not only applying the clay bar, but also quick coats of wax against nature (ie, bird droppings). Keep the spray with a micro-fiber cloth in your car to address any annoying bird dropping and to help save your paint.

About the clay bar process: I have used this product twice thus far and I stand by its recommendation. The paint is left extremely smooth and produces a BRILLIANT gloss reflection when a high quality wax job is added. I own a 2005 2-door nighthawk black pearl Honda Accord that is readily exposed to all elements and, until recently, was not a daily driver. The car is not stored in a garage and efforts to use a car cover have been thwarted with sporadic use. That being said, I detail my car after heavy seasons of abuse and especially wash my car as needed and wax top surfaces once a month. Clay barring your car is ESSENTIAL to maintaining the life of the paint job. It should be done perhaps once every 3-6 months depending on how harsh your climate is. It is not as laborious as one may expect but to properly detail your car (Wash, Clay bar, Wax/Sealant process), requires an investment in time. Take the time to do small sections at a time. The patience one puts forth will reap a great amount of benefit later. More importantly, focus more on not dropping the clay bar as it will be rendered completely useless if it touches the ground.

For full effectiveness on paint jobs that do not require cleaner wax/compound treatment:

1) Wash your car with a high quality wash product (preferably safe to the environment)

2) Dry the car with a chamois (Tip: I re-mist my car with a multi-pressure nozzle prior to chamois use on moderately hot days)

3) Apply the Showtime Spray wax to small areas (3ft x 3ft roughly) and lightly apply clay bar to the area, kneading it every so often, and wiping the area completely with a dry micro-fiber cloth

4) Apply your favorite performance wax/sealant (Tip: make sure your car is parked in the shade or indirectly parked in the sunlight)

Tip: The detailing spay is used as a lubricant but also serves well on external glass and paint. Rain will bead easily and windshield wipers tend to glide more effectively across your windshield. You will not even need to use them as much. As a former employed detailer of Lexus specific vehicles, I highly recommend the use of this product.

After putting many off-road miles on my new SUV, it was time to get a good car wash. After passing through an automatic car wash and then going to ado-it-yourself place, my car was finally ready to be pampered with the clay system. This produced worked better than advertised and here is the process that I used to clean the car and bring it back to a showroom condition.

1. Wash the car and dry it with a microfiber towel.
2. Use the system as described on the package.
3. Use Nu-Finish Scratch Doctor to remove any of the scratches. You may need to repeat this several times.
4. Use Amorall plastic protector (or any other plastic protector) on door handles and other plastic cars to protect them from wax.
5. Wax the car.

This worked like a charm. My only problem is the size of the clay bar. I think it is too small and I would not mind buying a bigger clay bar. 10 out of 10. Mother's products are truly the best!

The Mother's clay bar system is unbelievably effective. I've had some serious imperfections in the white paint of my 2004 Suburban for over a year. One problem was a spot of red paint on one of the rear side doors caused by someone "dinging" my door. No dent, just a scuff of red paint. Using the clay bar I was able to remove the red paint in about 10 minutes. I really didn't think there would be an easy or affordable way to remove this paint, and I was very excited to watch it disappear as I gently rubbed the clay bar back and forth.

The other problem was tree sap spots all over my hood and roof that were a result of leaving my car parked under a tree while on vacation for 10 days last summer. These spots would not budge with normal washing or with fingernail scratching. After a couple of hours with the clay bar, every spot is gone. It takes some elbow grease and some time, but it works.

The minor imperfections like road tar, bug remnants, etc. disappear in seconds with the clay bar. This is stuff that just won't come off with soap and water, and it comes off extremely quickly and easily with the clay bar.

This system only comes with a single clay bar and it's rather small. Based on the size of the box and on the size of the picture of the clay bar on the box I thought it would be a bigger piece of clay. It's more than enough as is, it's just surprisingly small. If you drop the clay you're supposed to discard it if it gets contaminated by dirt, rocks, etc. so my recommendation would be to tear the bar in half and just use half of the bar at a time.

I'm guessing most clay bars and/or clay bar systems work just as well as this one, but this is the one I've used and it works great.

The finish on my black 1994 Stealth had become dull and rough to the touch, with visible oxidization on all horizontal panels. Applying cleaner/wax made little difference. Convinced that the paint was shot and that only a respray would correct the problem, I tried this product as a last-ditch effort, and IT WORKED! It was easy to apply and I followed it up with a three-step cleaner, polish and wax to restore the body's original shine. Close inspection reveals water spots and imperfections, but one would not guess that the paint is 11 years old!

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Problem: Your car is in good shape. You wash it, perhaps even use a cleaner/wax to remove oxidation. Yet, when you run your fingers or fingernails across the surface it still feels gritty.

What this product does: It will remove microscopic surface contaminants that have embedded themselves in the clear coat, such as brake and metal dust, or sit on the surface, such as overspray, sap or industrial pollution.

What it does not do: Remove scratches, swirls, anything that has etched or stained the surface such as acid rain, hard water, or bird droppings that sat too long! There's a reason it's called "detailing clay". There are other products to help with these issues.

How it works: Spray the showtime "lubricant" on a small area of the car's surface. Take the clay (sticky and the size of a hotel soap bar) and rub like crazy on the wet area. You will see quite a bit of "yuck" on the surface of the clay. Just re-knead it and start on a new section. Two words here - elbow grease!

The results: The paint on your car will feel like glass! At this point, use a good cleaner wax such as the supplied sample of Mother's carnuba cleaner wax to remove fine oxidation if necessary, followed by a good coat or three of pure carnuba wax. Your car *will* pass the towel test (drop a towel on the hood and watch it slide off!)