SSR and Clay Bar

[MattyJ]

Hey guys! I've got a dark blue Ford Fusion. When I bought it last year, I clayed, polished, sealed and waxed. Since then, I've applied a few coats of wax, but have also been bad and went to some automatic car washes ... After a year, I've got some minor swirling. I'm considering using SSR2 (by hand) to remove some swirling and I've considered claying the car while I'm at it.

First, is it worth it to clay it again? And second, should I clay then use SSR2 or vise-versa?

Thanks!

 

[BigLeegr]

You will likely benefit from a claying. You can see if you need it by washing the car then lightly rubbing your hand across the paint. If it doesn't feel glass-like smooth, you should clay. If you aren't quite sure, put your hand in a plastic sandwich bag then feel the paint. This will help "amplify" the contaminants.
I would say you should clay first. If you had a badly oxidized car, then you may want to polish first, but obviously that wouldn't be the case for you here.