[Closed] Car wax/car polish

My ex boss is into showing his cars - from ebay he bought the scrapings out of a tiny bottle of wax that originally cost around £1k.... Can't recall the make though.

I use Autoglym bodywork shampoo conditioner and occasionally give it a go over with their super resin polish. Brings my car up a treat and it’s certainly easy to wash.

I always use a chamois to dry the car after washing which seems to prevent spotting and streaking.

Someone else will be along with another recommendation in a moment I’m sure. It’s a minefield.

Meguires

Clay bar freshly cleaned car, followed by another wash then Carlack nano sealant followed by Collinite 476 wax. Not hideously expensive but long lasting durable results (approx4 months). I've tried Colloinit 915 but whilst I initially shinier doesn't last as long (IMO).

Our X trail gets lots of compliments about its shininess.

+1 for meguiars.
Have a look at the vertar website - they're a specialist retailer of car care products.

I've tried loads of types in the past, Autoglym, the lot. Meguiars gold class is the best in my experience. The wax gives a lovely finish and easy to apply. If you're not bothered to much about the quality of finish and prefer long lasting effect, Armorall shield is hard to beat. Finally, remember that wax and polish are two completely different products. You probably know that already but some people use the words synonymously. These are based on my experience but I'm sure that others will suggest equally good products.

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I always use a chamois to dry the car

Buy a microfibre drying towel. Your paintwork will thank you for it.

(And its nicer and easier to use)

+1 for microfibre

I'm in no way affiliated to them but they have a good selection of products and I get speed delivery so recommend cleanyourcar.co.uk

Apologies to Mods if this isn't allowed

Ming the Merciless - Member
Clay bar freshly cleaned car, followed by another wash then Carlack nano sealant followed by Collinite 476 wax. Not hideously expensive but long lasting durable results (approx4 months). I've tried Colloinit 915 but whilst I initially shinier doesn't last as long (IMO).

Sorry mate, but can you explain in English please.. for us hard of hearing, ta.

I use the Autoglym stuff and a microfibre cloth wipe afterwards. I wax the speedy car twice a year, and do the hood reproof too.
The daily workhorse cleaned once a week, maybe every two and microfibre wipe afterwards, never waxed this vehicle.

Talking of hood reproofing, anyone suggest a decent "back to black" and a reproofer., ta.

bigG - Member
I use Autoglym bodywork shampoo conditioner and occasionally give it a go over with their super resin polish. Brings my car up a treat and it’s certainly easy to wash.

I always use a chamois to dry the car after washing which seems to prevent spotting and streaking.

Someone else will be along with another recommendation in a moment I’m sure. It’s a minefield.

Remind me not to buy a car from you.

Meguiars quick wax is my current fave, mainly cause it's quick & easy to use in a squirty bottle. OK its maybe not the best available wax finish but it wins hands down because its so easy to use (microfibre definatley).

@bikebouy; vertar website - 2 mentions from me on this thread but i have no connection with them. They just have a wide range of good stuff.

Intresting thread, thanks for the tips.

@bikebouy - clay bars are exactly that, small clay bars which you use to remove road grime grit which standard washing doesn't do. Wash car, clay bar, wash/rinse car, apply wax is what the poster was suggesting I think

Pigface these are my recommendations....

Wash : Chemical guys maxi suds http ://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/washing-and-drying/car-wash-shampoos/chemical-guys-maxi-suds-ii/prod_165.html

Polish : Meguiars M205 .........
http://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/car-polish-compounds/meguiars-205-ultra-finishing-polish-8oz/prod_823.html

sealant : Finish kare p1000 sealant http://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/sealants/finishkare-1000p-hi-temp-sealant/prod_589.html

Or Wax : R222 wax ...... http://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/wax/r222-carnauba-wax/prod_357.html

Sure there are better or cheaper products out there but I've been "detailing" cars for years and these have been my go to bit for ages. Easy to use and give great results.

*likes, ta

Clay bars remove stuck on tar and insects.

Wash Car (rub hand over clean door sills noting how bobbly they still feel)

Get clay bar from warm place you've left it. Follow manufacturers instructions, but generally start on bonnet and roof before moving to wings and doors (marvel at the amount of crap the clay bar is pulling off the "clean car").

Wash car again (dry with microfibre towel)

Now rub lower doors and sills and they should be glassy to touch

Apply Carlack or similar sealant according to manufacturers instructions.

Apply Collinite wax according to instructions

Marvel at gleaming car!

Rage as Alien blood pooing seagulls strip through wax, polish and rubbish Japanese clear coat!

Use the 2 bucket method to wash your cardo everything you can to avoid swirls.
Detailing world forum is a good starting point.

Just remember that wax doesnt make your car shiny thats the job of the polish, the wax is there to protect your shinyness. You cant go wrong with autoglym super resin polish and their hd wax, both pretty cheap and very easy to use.

No mention of my favourite wax turtle stuff or triple wax please tell me if it's bad i wont be offended are they the tresemme of car wax big bottle cheap as chips

I've had great results with Autoglym Super Resin Polish and Victoria Concours wax, just hand applied with [url= http://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/accessories/wax-polish-applicators/shinemate-handi-grip-applicator-kit/prod_1475.html ]one of these[/url] which makes it a lot less tedious.

I use this

https://auto-glanz.co.uk/synthseal.html

And top up the coating with a spray wax when drying

http://www.meguiars.co.uk/shop/synthetic-express-spray-wax

Swisvax but it ain't cheap

polish Autoglym super resin polish followed by Autoglym HD wax
Or Prima amigo which is great for dark colours, but needs reapplying every 6 washes its more of a glaze rather than a polish.
Meguiars ultimate liquid wax is quite good also.

[url= http://www.vertar.com/zymol/zymol-royale-glaze/ ]Zymol Royale?[/url] 😯

I tend to whack the Skoda through a £2.99 roller carwash programme 2 or 3 times a year and follow it up with a quick hoover round inside whether it needs it or not.

Nobody has ever told me that it looks shiny (probably because it's a sort of silvery grey colour that looks the same whatever you do to it.....)

Mine are all Simoniz from Wilkinson ... wax, polish, tyre cleaners etc ...

£7.50 - cheap, reliable, traditional waxing with good reviews. 😀

[url= http://www.wilko.com/car-cleaning/simoniz-original-carnauba-wax-in-tin/invt/0344878 ]Simoniz Original Carnauba Wax in Tin[/url]

[img] [/img]

Obviously me car ain't expensive but it cheers me up with good waxing. 😆

@renton very helpful, any rotary polisher recommendations ? (That website is browsing gold 🙂 )

Frankly, I'm astonished you lot have the time to polish your wheels man.

How long does it take, on average, to wash/wax/polish and how many times every month ?? 😯

any rotary polisher recommendations

Learn how to use one properly before going anywhere near your car with it.

Seriously, it's not hard to go through the paint if you don't know what you are doing.

bikebouy - Member
Frankly, I'm astonished you lot have the time to polish your wheels man.

How long does it take, on average, to wash/wax/polish and how many times every month ??

😀

nealglover - Member
Learn how to use one properly before going anywhere near your car with it.
Seriously, it's not hard to go through the paint if you don't know what you are doing.

Microfibre towels and quick detailing spray are good first steps. An occasional polish will make it look nicer.

Personally its:
Wet the car all over.
Spray wheels
Foam soap spray
Wash with mitt starting at the roof
rinse mitt with fresh water
Jetwash
Dry with microfibre
Polish
Glass polish
Wheel polish
Wax finish
Leave and have a cup of tea
Do the inside

TBH thats a once a year thing.

Phew 😀

I thought you'd all be out there tonight, like now, polishing the fine dust of the tailgate after parking near a bush where a birds just settled in for the night and farted.

Night night.

bikebouy - Member
... parking near a bush where a birds just settled in for the night and farted.

Taking about birds, I have to park my car far away or I would end up being an expert in car cash ...

I used to park under a tree when every morning the amount of bird shite is so horrible I was embarrassed to drive it.

Oh ya ... I use about 16 litre of water to wash my car if you want to be precise. 😆 One 8 litre hand pump type pressure washer plus 4 (2 litre refill) smaller hand pump pressure washer. 😀

Also you can use the smaller hand pump pressure washer to form the car.

I do the clay bar > polish > wax thing once a year.. takes a bloody age! Last time I used bilt hamber clay bar as you can just use water as a lubricant but it wasn't as good as the meguires clay bar and special lubricant IMO. I've always followed up wth autoglym super resin polish and then sealed with autoglym liquid wax (not HD the cheaper one) with great results.

The Autoglym aqua wax is worth a go for regular washing. Just spray on after rinsing while still wet and dry as per normal with a microfibre cloth.

First time I clay barred a 5 year old 3 series I couldn't believe how well it came up. The whole car was like a mirror. Even the owld lady across the road noticed it and said I had the shiniest car in town! 🙂

I've used the Meguiars three stage in the past and the results are impressive. The van however just got Autoglym super resin. It's still good

If you are going to do it properly:
1. Pressure wash with a neutral tfr or a snow down to get as much dirt off with as little contact as possible to minimise marring
2. Wash, use a decent wool or micro fibre mitt, not sponge, they pull the dirt away from the paint better not just push it about. Use the 2 bucket method, a clean bucket of shampoo and a rinse bucket to rinse the mitt of dirt as it comes off the car, again it minimises dirt being pushed about and marring the paint
3. Rinse, soft water if possible.
4. Dry, micro fibre towel, pat if really obsessed. A drying aid is good here, and adds protection. AG aqua wax for example, or watered down sonax bad which is actually a quick detailer. Or dry then protect with qd.
That's the regular maintenance, takes about an hour for car the size of an octy, including wheels.

5. Before paint restoration or protection we do 1 and 2 but then move to decontamination, think of this as a deep cleaning skin scrub for your paint, it removes stubborn stuck and sintered dirt that will cause more marring if you move on to wax or polish, and work against the good bonding of any LSP (last stage protection - sealant or wax)
5.1 deiron chemically with iron x, dragons breath or such. Spray on, let dwell for 5 minutes, agitate with wet wash mitt, add more to bad areas (easy to see from the purple streaks running down the car) wash off thoroughly with shampoo.
5.2 detar, ag tar remover or such and dab on, wipe off
5.3 clay. A mitt is easier, farecla G3 is great. Plenty of live from a clay lube, qd spray or extra soapy water. I use a wash mitt on one hand to lube a bit, then clay with the other, move on.
5.4 rinse. Your car is now spotless and ready for restoration (get a da polisher, selection of decent pads and a polish or 2). Or LSP which will protect your hard work from UV, grit, fallout etc, and add shine.
I prefer a sealant as it's more durable but less shiny, but you can wax over for a shine. Always seal then wax not the other way, sealant doesn't adhere to wax.

There are lots of good products, some are better for different colours, and are a trade of shine Vs durability and price. I like ag egp to seal, and pourboys natty paste wax for a shine.
For final quick extra, a qd I like sonax bad but there are loads of great ones.

@renton very helpful, any rotary polisher recommendations ? (That website is browsing gold )

I use a das6 as it is a random orbital machine which limits the heat put into the paint and therefore decreases the chances of burning it.

http://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/polishing-machines/das-6-v2-dual-action-polisher/das-6-v2-dual-action-polisher/prod_519.html

Cheers.

Another vote for Collinite 476 wax as it's pretty durable. Wash the car then clay, wash again, polish with autoglym super resin polish then a coat of collinite 476. Takes ages to do it properly but the results are worth it 🙂

Booo, my favourite Detailing World thread is ruined by Photobucket: http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=38692&highlight=dyson+detail 🙁

For once-yearly:
Wash wheels first (Autosmart Red 7 PH-neutral wheel cleaner)
Wash (Bilt Hamber Auto Wash – best shampoo ever, super-concentrated and only need 5ml in a big bucket)
De-tar (Autosmart Tardis)
Wash each panel after detarring as I go along
Clay (Meguiars Quik Clay plus random lube)
Wash
Polish (Autoglym Super Resin Polish if applying by hand, or I use various grades of Chemical Guys Hybrid polish applied by dual-action machine if paintwork needs it)
Sealant (Poorboys Black Hole or White Diamond depending on car colour)
Wax (Collinite #476) x 2 layers if I can

But regular washing I just use the usual 2 buckets (one shampoo, one to rinse the wash mitt in case anyone’s unsure what the 2-bucket method is), dry with a microfiber, occasionally spray on some Autoglym Aqua Wax to top up the wax already on there, and that’s enough. And grit guards in the bottom of the buckets to catch anything off the wash mitt when you rinse it in bucket.

Always best to try and get tar off BEFORE using a clay bar, hence the Tardis stuff. You can end up dragging the tar/bits across the paintwork if you try and get them off with a clay bar – tar remover gets the big stuff off first.

Another vote for Collinite #476 – I’ve tried a few other/newer supposedly better waxes but can’t beat it for price, durability and ease of use.

And 2nd renton’s suggestion of DAS6 dual-action polisher. I’m not brave enough to use a rotary machine for fear of burning through paintwork. I’ve had a go of one where I was allowed to deliberately burn through the paint (spare panel!) and it was incredibly easy to do.

It is shockingly easy to go through the paint with a fast rotary machine.
More so if you don't have a paint thickness gauge so you can see what the coating is like before you start.

Everyone's different, but here's my usual routine:

-A decent pressure washer to start, very happy with my Nilfisk.
-Two bucket washing, with a wash mitt and AngelWax shampoo.
-AngelWax Bilberry wheel cleaner is pretty good too.
-Bilt Hamber clay bar.
-Wash again, dry with microfibre towel.
-A thin coat of Meguiars tyre gel is nice too.
-Autoglym Super Resin polish.
-Collinite wax. Two coats if I have time. Not the easiest to use, but lasts a good few months.

Cripes, you lot amaze me.

...

My car needs a bit of a clean ... p'raps one of you could pop round, give it a spruce up.

Ta.

😆

Have a look at G-technic products.
The C2V3 is excellent as a finish coat and is pretty durable.
I use mainly Auto finesse triple as a polish followed by dodo juice supernatural hybrid wax and topped with c2v3.

Take a look at Ultimate finish website as there is much to go at there and they are good to deal with.

Bloomin 'eck, I would LOVE to do all that to my car but I already (so I'm told) have a reputation in my street as being the bloke who is always washing his car and to be honest I'd rather spend my time riding my bike then washing it with milk of virgin alpaca and drying it with Bulgarian rose petals.

Argos do a fair da for little money. it's not got the power for heavy correction but neither does the standard das6. Lead is a bit short but workable, backing plate is too big but even with a smaller plate and some pads it's a fair intro tool.

youtube "car detailing" its another world!

bikebouy - Member
Cripes, you lot amaze me.

You're not alone in being amazed - it's a whole different world that I've never been a part of.

Another Collinite vote here, Ideally topped with a coat of Jetseal 109.

8 industrious and enterprising Polish gentlemen take care of all my car "detailing" needs for 4 quid.

It takes them about 5 minutes every month.

bikebouy - Member
Cripes, you lot amaze me.

Prepare to be amazed further (and utterly befuddled at the same time): http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/index.php

wilburt - Member
youtube "car detailing" its another world!

All this time I could have made washing up seem more glamorous. From now on I shall be 'detailing' the dishes. 😀

[i] it's a whole different world that I've never been a part of.[/i]

Same here - and the one bloke in my street who's like that I sneer at everytime I go into my garage to buff and lube my bikes.

The Detailing World guys are a different breed. I'm just not enough of a perfectionist for that sort of thing.

It is satisfying to do aa nice job and transform a car though. My old Merc with its solid Barolo red was great for it.

From

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To

[img] [/img]

A quick read of that detailing forum shows they actually answer questions as opposed to telling the op they are asking the wrong question or wanting to achieve the wrong outcome.

Strange.

^ 🙂 Harsh but fair.

Awesome shine on that Merc, too.

A quick read of that detailing forum shows they actually answer questions as opposed to telling the op they are asking the wrong question or wanting to achieve the wrong outcome.

Sounds boring, I'll leave it.

I often think about really looking after my car, but I just CBA, I've had my current car for 2 months, I've cleaned it once with the products they gave me at the dealers, and it's been through the IMO at the weekend. I finished the wheels off a home so it looked finished though, I'm not a complete slob 😆

Talking of hood reproofing, anyone suggest a decent "back to black" and a reproofer

Renovo - bit pricey but superb results: [url= http://www.renovointernational.com/ ]http://www.renovointernational.com/[/url]

woodster - Member
My old Merc with its solid Barolo red was great for it.

Nice Merc, I want your Merc but I cannot afford one ... 😆

I have a company car that covers 25k a year. I'm time poor but do like a clean car, especially as my car is a dark midnight blue so is much the same as a black car for keeping clean.
After trying Meguiars, autoglym,Purple haze,etc I have now settled on sonax products. I use sonax protect and shine once or twice a year then use a quick spritz of sonax xtreme detailer after each wash.
Beads water beautifully and stays much cleaner between washes.
A preclean with the pressure washer and a snow foam , normally gets the car 90% clean then a shampoo wash with a mitt and few squirts of sonax before it dries, makes it an easy wash routine.
Probably not as nice a finish as purple haze but when the car is driven 2500 miles a month I trade a little of ultimate finish for durability and ease of use.

Top info, thanks all.

Does Zymol wax have a "use by date" ? I have found an unopened jar but it's 10 years old. Could give it a whirl on the wife's car first 😉

Quick question for those that know: if taking delivery of a new car, what's the best way of treating it to keep it looking shiny? Or do clay bars/polishes actually improve the factory finish?

Do the full decon, including clay ( which damages finish but preps it for correction and protection) then protect with LSP of your choice.

including clay ( which damages finish but preps it for correction

Clay bar won't damage the finish unless you are doing it wrong ?

Any rubbing off the paint can mar it. The clay picks up sintered contamination and you drag it across the paint, it's very fine if you lube properly, but it can mar. However yes, if the paint hasn't been cared for it will already be married to s***, so simply pulling the dirt off will make an improvement.

In an affluent town there is money to be made detailing cars.

http://www.polishedbliss.co.uk/acatalog/detailing-services-service-options.html

That said if you buy a car that costs in excess of a million pounds I guess spending near £2000 on a wash isn't that mental.

a11y - Member
Prepare to be amazed further (and utterly befuddled at the same time): http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/index.php
/p>

POSTED 9 HOURS AGO # REPORT-POST

😯

So I'm just back in from work and a bit frazzled, so I clicked the link and settled down with a large mug of sweet tea.. and neigh on spat the first mouthful out 😆

Astonishing is a simple word for the commitment these folks have.. I'm amazed. And I've knicked a few tips too, so thanks chaps 😀