Did you recently take on (or consider) a loan of 84 months or longer on a car purchase?
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Store Bought Waxes Part II (No Zaino Posts)
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I come from a quasi-military family (parents were defense contractors so we lived on or near a few bases). I passed on the Air Force when I was told that at 6'4" I couldn't be a fighter pilot but could fly C-141's and the like. I then got my jollies detailing private aircraft which fed two interests at once.
See? I brought the topic back around to wax.
Please give me some advice on waxing a black car. What are the best applicators for the wax? Are the round terry cloth disks that you buy at the auto store ok, or a soft white tee-shirt? What about taking the wax off? I've been using a chamois for drying with good results. As for wax, I bought a bottle of Zymol after reading Consumer Report (and before I started reading this message board) because it got good rating for swirl marks. I want the paint to look nice, but I want to keep it simple. The weather is suppose to warm up early next week, so I'm planning on waxing then. Any suggestions before then will be greatly appreciated! Thanks!
Buy yourself an orbital buffer; a good one not one of those that plugs into the cig lighter. Spend $60-75. Get 5 or 6 cotton terry bonnets for the buffer. Use that Zymol or another top quality one-step like Meguiars Medallion. Wax your car when you start seeing spider-webbing (those micro scratches), probably every 8 weeks or so. The buffer will make the job go quickly and easily. The wax you use will remove and fill the scratches and bring out the gloss. To remove wax use cheesecloth or maybe buy some flannel at a fabric store. I use cotton diapers.
I did this for years and got lots of compliments. Now, I also used to try many different products and techniques but when I wanted the car to look sharp and I wasn't going to a car show, out came the buffer and the Medallion.
Black is the hardest color to maintain. But it looks the best when cared for. Don't ignore the other details like cleaning the wheels and tires. With summer coming, keep the nose/front end waxed and clean so bugs don't stick.
If you need more help, feel free to ask us. We're here to help.
I'm sorry, but I find your criticism of the poster merely directing someone to the "other forum" too politically correct. Edmunds owns these forums and for the regular participants to be so narrow about what they feel others may post to the point of not allowing generally related information to flow, is a use I don't believe they intended. As soon as THIS forum mentions products only or mostly available by mail, from catalogs, or through the Internet, the "Store Bought" restriction is breached. I agree that some, even many, of the long-time "Z" enthusiasts crossed the line to uncivil "fan"aticism, but let's be realistic, new and short-term participants don't know the history and it's unfair to zap 'em. I find this especially true with the apparent removal of the restriction on "stacking" of messages to only about 500, so that new, more appropriately and fine-tuned titled forums would follow the old ones.
For a final going over, wouldn't flannel, which I believe is also cotton be ok? It is softer than a cotton towel.
Louie
Unless you are prepping your car for shows most any soft towel will do. After I've cleaned my car I wash my towels; no fabric softener, no bleach, no cling free dryer things as all will leave a residue on the towels which will end up on your car.
For wax application you can use those little round applicators but I prefer something larger like a 3x5 sponge or an applicator that is covered in cotton terry cloth. Your local auto parts store prolly sells a round applicator that has a pocket for your hand - that thing is great.
www.carcareonline.com
Continue to pick the brains of the forum experts. Like you, I was a novice at car care. I used whatever was cheapest to wax my car which I did infrequently. When I bought my black 2000 Eldorado I decided to make the effort to keep it looking great at all times. My wife thinks I'm obsessed with keeping the car sparkling.
You may have to try several waxes before you find one that appeals to you or you might like the first wax that you try. It's all up to you. Maintaining your vehicle should be a joy and not a chore. Enjoy!
rck
I apologize that I didn't mention Zaino in this post.
Al
I'm not sure there is such a thing as the best wax or polymer. Meguiar's are good products though.
I love all of Meguiars products. I also use the spray Turtle Wax in the green bottle. I use this product only to maintain my current wax coat, not as my sole wax application. This product is completely safe for all new car finishes.
I am also a finatic about washing and waxing my car. My wife REALLY thinks I am obsessive compulsive about cleaning my car. Last week we drove to Florida(from Atlanta) and during our 5 day vacation I HAD to wash my car. My wife sat in the car looking at me like I was crazy.
Al
I've been awaiting the Pinnacle annual spring sale. It finally started on April 16th. I ordered more Crystal Mist and Souveran Wax.
www.pinnacle.com
Some of you have tried and like Turtle Wax spray wax. I'll give it a try also. If it's as good as Crystal Mist I'll permanently switch over.
You should try the Turtle Wax spray. It is "carnuba enriched) according to the bottle.
FYI, there were a number of posts describing the differences between Final Inspection and Quik Detailer in this thread. Anyone interested should scroll back some.
My question: Has anyone used the #26 over top of the Medallion and did it last or look better? Also does the paste #26 last longer than the liquid?? I asked the Tech rep about the first question but he was not helpful here.
Thanks
Zymol was on sale at costco. $14.50 for 2 bottles. Had to try it. I like that's it's all natural and doesn't have petroleium products in it. It went on really easy, and came off easily, but didn't leave the surface as glassy to the touch as some other products have ( most notably meguiar's gold class ) , but it looked pretty good. The best part is that it didn't stain the rubber or plastic trim, and it came out of cracks and joints easily--i think the car would take 1/2 as long to wax using this stuff. On the downside, i don't know how long it lasts, but it would be practical for me to do the cars more frequently with this, i think. At $20+ per bottle, i wouldn't get it, but for $7.50 i will.
dave
Sometimes though I think that the protection factor is overdone. That truck is out in the weather all the time (never seen a garage) maybe 30 days total under a carport. It has been waxed maybe 4 or 5 times in its 7 year live. That hood looks like a sea of glass. I thought the Medallion gave a slightly better look. The #7 was somewhat hard to work with. But I guess I was asking too much of it. I'm not a real Toyota fan, but must have one hell of a paint job.
Interesting comments about #26 vs. Medallion. Medallion is touted as the longest lasting product Meguiars offers. I've used since before Day One and feel its the best one-step product I've ever tried.
#26 is a product that Meguiars has thrown tons of knowledge into. Its a mix of carnauba and polymers and designed to give a great shine and decent durability with being easy to use. It really works best with #7 or #9 before it. IMO, I don't think you'll find a gloss difference between Medallion and #26 but give em a try.
Speaking of #7, its sorta designed to be hard to work with. It has fillers, oils, and other stuff that gets absorbed into the paint, removing scratches, swirls, and leaves a fabulous gloss. The trick to glaze is to apply it evenly, work it in, use a towel to knock off 70% of the product, then use another towel to polish the section you are working on. Don't worry about excess residue. When you follow with the #26 the remainder of the #7 will come off.
Sounds like you're having fun. Let us all know how things work out for you.
Al
Personally, I'd recommend against it. The wipers will push the wax around and smear and streak and do weird things.
Instead use Rain-X. I've used it for years and its great. I don't even use the wipers when driving at night in the rain. And Rain-X is a thin coating so it won't potentially cause problems with clouding or streaking that a polymer sealant might cause.