Advice on Waxing

[Mr. Wyndham]

I'm lookin' to wax my car, and I've heard about some wax+wash that supposed to clean the car real good (even after a wash), and prepare it for a real waxing. I'm just looking for your average waxing, nothing too extravagant, after all...it is just a Cobalt.

Infortunately I have 0 experience with this stuff.

So can anyone name some good products that you'd recommend I use?

[TheMadHatter99]

I only use Meguiar's. I think that product line, as a whole, offers the best quality and value.

Don't know about the wash+wax...I like doing both separately.

[The_Blur]

I love Meguiar's. I used it on my Cobalt to make it look gorgeous. Make sure to keep your wax off your plastic. I got some on my Cobalt's grill and it had a bunch of nasty white spots for the longest time.

[blindingillusion]

I have a question or two as well. I just got my cobalt. The manufacture date is 3/2008. I am pretty sure the paint is fairly young to wax but is there anything I can do at this stage to protect my finish a little bit.

Also, you say you guys like meguiar's. I believe I will probably go with that for my balt, but when it comes to my camaro I am going hard core zaino. I have put a few cars through the zaino process and they are just so damn gorgeous after wards.

[wild_weasel]

Turtle Wax makes a product called ICE which is a liquid synthetic wax/polish that even works on plastic too (kinda like Armor All). The door handles on my Liberty are plastic so using the old fashioned stuff put marks on them. The Ice stuff is easier to buff, looks awesome, and is even good on the plastic. The only downside is since its clear its hard to see if you've missed spots.

[Silverado]

I'll add this....get an orbital.

Save your arms/shoulders/elbows and get your self an orbital buffer. They are inexpensive and anyone can use it. They don't spin fast enough to ever burn the paint, but they sure take off the wax real nice. Use a decent wax, let it dry (not in the direct sunlight if possible, if not possible, work in smaller sections so the wax doesn't get too dry), and use the orbital to polish it up. Works like a charm. Then use a real soft cloth to wipe it down after using the orbital...gets all the "dust" off and you can get in the couple spots you can't reach with the orbital. If you want to go one extra step here, get some of the "quick detailer" and spray it on then wipe it off...it mostly just helps with that final wipe down.

Another helpful hint....if you have just washed the car, take some foaming glass cleaner....only the foaming kind does this....spray it on the car and use a cloth to wipe it down...one body panel at a time...the foaming glass cleaner removes all the old wax and any other road oil left after washing, without harming any clearcoat/paint layers. If you have any of those tar spots or bird dropping spots, use should use a clay bar and activator to remove them then use the foaming glass cleaner.

As far as the wax, Meguiars is good, that's what I use too. During the summer, I usually just use a spray wax. It doesn't protect as long as a paste or liquid wax, but I clean my vehicles far more often and more thoroughly during the nicer weather. Before winter, I'll use a paste wax since I'll probably only get to do it again once during the crappy weather months.

[OctaneZ28]

I've used everything under the sun for as waxes and polishes, and nothing gives better results than Zaino.
There are other products that give an equal shine, but nothing comes even close to matching how long Zaino lasts.

[DGthe3]

Wax on, right hand. Wax off, left hand. Wax on, wax off. Breathe in through nose, out the mouth. Wax on, wax off. Don't forget to breathe, very important

[z28camaro2471]

When you're done, make sure you give it a good "once over" in the sunlight. Sunlight reveals alot more than artificial light.

Just don't wax it in the sun, unless you use that new "ICE" stuff, even then, I feel more comfortable in the garage or shade.

[TheMadHatter99]

Another note:

I worked at a car wash/detail center all through high school and one of the biggest rip-off products out there is Armor-All. DO NOT Armor-All your tires or any exterior black plastic (I'm not referring to their interior protection products, just the products that make things shiny). It works by pulling additional hydrocarbons to the surface to make the rubber/plastic glisten, but over time all it does is dry the material out so that your tires will crack or your plastic will fade.

As far as orbitals, they're nice but I personally don't think they yield as good results as a hand wax. I'd also opt for a liquid over paste. I'm using a liquid Mequiar's right now that makes my Stang look showroom-new.

[Jak]

You beat me to it.

Originally Posted by DGthe3

Wax on, right hand. Wax off, left hand. Wax on, wax off. Breathe in through nose, out the mouth. Wax on, wax off. Don't forget to breathe, very important

[Rallysport]

Silverado is right. A quality wax job starts with a clean surface, and a clay bar should be used first. I also use Meguiar's. I use their NXT tech wax, it polishes off easy and looks awesome. Besides the quality products, I actually met barry Meguiar at Barrett-Jackson in January and he is one heck of a nice guy. Just like talking to your next-door neighbor, and he really cares about the car biz, the hobby, and the people involved in it.

[Mr. Wyndham]

Thanks guys...First thing that came to mind was how everyone always goes on about Zaino...but I think I'm going to leave that for my future Camaro . It's good to know that it lasts a while. But I'll be picking up some Mequire's for now, all I wanted for the Cobalt is an average wax-job, anyways. Now for two somewhat silly questions.

1) I can still wash the car after I put the wax on, without having to re-wax it right afterwards, right?

2) My Dad's got a '79 Camaro...However, I think it's safe to say that this poor thing has never been waxed all its life. The clearcoat is all but gone (if there ever was any to begin with ) so the car doesn't 'shine'...in fact, it's pretty dull. Can I wax it without harming anything?

(It might be important to note that there is one pinhead's worth of rust in one of the seams btw. body panels.)

Thanks again, all!

[Jeff]

After using Meguiars I have never used another product in my life.