Looking to “re-coat” my car over the Christmas Hols.

Bought new and had one of the dealers “nano-wax” things put on it, that was 18mths ago now.

So I’m looking to coat the car myself, went into Halfords (most local) and got blinded by the sheer number of “treatments”

I’m not looking to Wax & Shine, I’m looking to wash/dry coat it to get through the winter.

Its Black BTW.. which is a bloody pain TBH.

Check out one of the Detailing forums for proper advise.

http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/

Anything made by Bilt Hamber seems to work really well ime, don’t know if they do owt that works for your application, but worth a look:

https://www.bilthamber.com

Collinite wax is brilliant also, but not what you’re after, I think.

Bit of a detailing geek

It’s difficult to recreate the dealer paint treatment at home but if you are prepared to put in a bit of effort you can get a pretty good result

If the car is relatively new then you shouldn’t need any paint correction. You need to clean the car. Remove any contamination from the paint with a clay bar and then apply a decent paste wax.

The Bilt Hamber stuff mentioned is excellent. Double Speed Wax is supposed to last 6 months if applied correctly and isn’t too expensive

You can top up the treatment with a spray wax when you wash the car

I’d suggest a clay mitt is easier then the bar, G3 farecla is good.  I’d also suggest a chemical iron fallout remover such as iron X and a tar remover before the clay. Get the prep right and the wax/sealant adheres.

Loads of decent and not expensive sealants and waxes about these days.

Top up with a quick detailer is a good call.  I use sonax BSD as a drying aid with most washes.  Could go through a winter easily of washing monthly.

I had a new car detail and ceramic coating on my car. I quite pleased with it and it seems to last quite well. Fr the amount of effort I’ve put into cleaning and waxing my cars in the past it is worth the expense. Google to find your local approved company.

For ease of use take a look at Gtechniq C2V3.

its a spray that you can apply whilst the car is wet and just dry it off as normal.

It gives a lovely finish and will last around 6-8 months. Its so cheap though I use it after every wash.

For ease of use take a look at Gtechniq C2V3.

its a spray that you can apply whilst the car is wet and just dry it off as normal.

It gives a lovely finish and will last around 6-8 months. Its so cheap though I use it after every wash.

I used some of that this week and was really dissapointed with it compared to the 3 month old collonite that was on the car previously.

It does look really nice as it has loads of gloss enhancers in it but from a protection perspective it’s not better and a lot more expensive.

there are a few good websites for ordering the bits, with more choice and better stuff than Halfords and good on price too.  cleanyourcar is good.  Or if you happen to be in South london I bulk bought a few bits as its cheap…but a gallon of goos and potions lasts for ever, so I’d split some happily!

https://www.autoexpress.co.uk/accessories-tyres/63776/best-car-wax-and-car-polish

https://www.autoexpress.co.uk/accessories-tyres/91484/product-awards-2018-the-winners

https://www.autoexpress.co.uk/accessories-tyres/92640/best-spray-wax-detailer-2018

https://www.autoexpress.co.uk/accessories-tyres/86280/best-scratch-removers-and-colour-restorers-2018

https://www.carbuyer.co.uk/tips-and-advice/152506/best-car-wax-to-buy-2018

G-Techniq do great products.

I usually buy from Ultimate finish.

They do a professional only application too, might be worth investigating.

Autoglym is good, super resin polish.

I do have the G3 stuff for restoring paint – got rid of a nasty bird poo mark (made a mess of the clear coat paint) in no time.

SRP is okay, its an all in one with a combination of polishing, filling and waxing agents which means it does a good job in a wide range of conditions but its a bit old skool these days.  It stains plastic trim and tends to leave fine white powder in all your panel gaps when you buff it off. There is better stuff out there now.

G3 have been well know for their various cutting compounds for removing scratches and light defect but they now do a range of products from normal car wash through to dedicated paste waxes.

Thanks chaps.

Appreciate all your comments.

To put this in context, I clean my car once a week without fail and then run around the interior cleaning that too.. I’m not possessive with it but do like a nice clean car, in and out.

The original coat applied by the dealer was one of those “paint gloss protectors” Y’a know, the overpriced stuff.. but still it’s lasted rather well considering my wash/clean frequency. That was 18mths ago and I’m sure I’ve washed it off by now 🤣 So, I was looking for a sort of application I can do myself after washing it to get me through the winter, then maybe apply it again in late spring.

I will check out all your suggestions, thanks chaps

The local east European chaps in our Tesco’s have a “rainbow wash” option in their machine which lasted a fair while IIRC.  £3 for a complete car wash, bargain.

My local European Swat team don’t do anything like that, last time I took my roadster there they managed to pull the rear badges off it… That was 2years ago now, maybe they’ve had 14 personnel changes since then and it might be better.. Not that I’m going to go back.

Ive been using gyeon wetcoat for the last year or so. You spray it on then pressure wash it off.  Gives 2 or 3 months protection but it takes literally 2 mins to apply so you can happily apply it more often as you wish.

I can recommend the Autoglym Extra Gloss Protection over a cleaned and waxed car. It goes on easily with no pressure, dries hard in half an hour and then you just buff it off. Works great on my black car.

egp is a sealant, fairly good, i use it.  it bonds better to bare paint, then wax over, seal thenwax not wax then seal

autoglym aqua wax is a decent drying aid too …smells of bubblegum.  sonax is better though (i tested by doing half of the roof with each)

Are you guys all putting the cars in a garage over night? I ask this as I wash my Golf R with Autoglym products and I use the HD Wax and the issue I have is moisture then appearing on cold nights and icing up really really bad. Yet neighbours cars who never wash or wax their cars are virtually free of any ice and oil proper does my head in. If it doesn’t ice up it’s always fun having waves of water coming down the windscreen when I brake at the first junction. Oh the joys of not having a garage……….

I don’t have a garage, I too suffer the waterfall down the windscreen when I brake for the first time after starting off from cold.

Anyways, I bought some autoglym stuff and managed to cover the car yesterday PM. Haven’t really looked at the car in daylight yet, but I’m sure I polished it all of 🤪

I will wash and polish it again this weekend, as it says on the directions..

Thanks again.

Oh, that collonate stuff I ordered so hoping that comes tomorrow 👍

What you describe is ‘beading’. It shows the lsp is working. The wax repels water so it doesn’t wet the surface, it tends to stand in beads. These don’t dry quite so fast as a wetted surface I’ve noticed, so a protected car can be wet in the morning long after other cars are dry. It’s not something to worry about. When the beads get less tall it’s either car is dirty, or needs more wax.

Yes I garage my car though.

Beading, great way of identifying which cars to park next to.

true!

https://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/300610-get-your-beads-out/

there are some amazing (if geeky!0 shots of some incredible beads there. Even a few of mine iirc….

Something to aim for!

Beading, great way of identifying which cars to park next to.

Someone who takes the time to wax their car is less likely to ding yours?

Makes sense, I’d never though about it before