(That should say “easiest to apply”) I need to wax our new (to us) car. I want the job to be easy and effective. What’s the easiest car wax to apply that really holds up? (Is this the correct forum for this question?)
There are car wash/wax all-in-one products on the market. It doesn’t get any easier than that, but it likely won’t last all that long. A decent product for a quick wax is a Griot’s Garage spray product called Speed Shine. I use this quite often.
If you really want to do a good job, though, use car clay first to remove embedded dirt, then wax with Maguiar’s or other quality wax.
I use Honda Spray Polish. You can find this at a lot of motorcycle dealerships, and also online. Wash your car, spray it on your cloth, wipe down an area until it shines. It’s still work, but it’s better than conventional paste wax where you have to buff it on and then buff it all off.
Turtle Wax’s Nanotech wax. You spritz it on and wipe the car/truck dry. The downside of these is they don’t last a while like paste waxes. I get maybe two weeks out of it.
It’s 2015. Why the heck would anybody be spoiling a modern car finish by waxing it like the 1960’s?
Car wax is obsolete!
Wax spoils a car’s finish? How so?
Sorry, that is incorrect. You do need to do it right and with the proper products and materials (and not a ten-year old can of dried-out Turtle Wax and an old bath towel), but waxes and sealants (and polishes, if needed) certainly play a vital role in protecting modern car finishes.
Modern finishes may hold up better under neglect than they used to, but that doesn’t mean you are doing your paint any favors by not protecting it.
It keeps bugs and crud from chemically attacking the paint so quickly. Wax also makes it much easier to remove those things when washing.
http://nufinish.com/products/car-polish Not a car enthusiast, but I’ve used this stuff (the liquid) for 25+ years. It goes on easy, wipes off a lot easier than carnauba waxes, and it seems to last 6 months or more, based on water beading. On today’s clear coats, a year between treatments and it still looks nice.
Car wax is a generic term now for a wide range of products that can seal your finish (because you’re probably working on top of clear coat – not paint), and these will ideally be chemicals that bind to the clear coat and provide UV protection and a degree of slipperiness and gloss. Although, the gloss part is probably best achieved by applying whatever chemcial sealant you choose (‘car wax’) while finish glossing the whole puppy up with a spray detailer now and then.
Most modern products are going to go on/off easily. Find one with UV protection, and use the right, soft towels. Get a spray detailer and call it a day.
No one (well, surely someone is) is waxing their paint anymore. We’re sealing our finishes.
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That’s what I use on my (new to me anyway) 2010 Nissan Versa. I want him (his name is Hikaru, btw) to look pretty as long as possible.
Before I got better I used to waste a lot of time on a couple car detailing message boards. Unless something has radically changed in the last two years, there’s still a strong wax contingent out there. Often in conjunction with a sealant, but sometimes instead of.
Myself, I’m a P21S/S100 man.
Oh, I know of the wax and pure carnuba guys. They’re the same ones changing their synthetic oil at 3000 miles. It makes no sense; it’s not 1965 anymore, but people are people and all that.
Modern sealant that binds to the finish and spray detailer for the true wax effect is just where it’s at.
I like the P21S line but it’s a pain to find a dealer where I live. I’ve had a lot of success with Crystal Glo. It has the added benefit of keeping ll the black plastic black as well.
Anything you specifically recommend? I’m looking for ease of application and durability for my daily driver (in sunny TX where UV is an issue, salt/snow is not) - after doing a lot of research I am looking at Prima Hydro Max, but there are SO many options out there…
I use NuFinish and 3M Scotchgard Marine (yes, on cars) …and whatever spray detailer is on sale.
I believe NuFinish has topped Consumer Reports tests, but I was using long before I learned about that.
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+1 on the NuFinish stuff.
I’d never heard of nor used a spray detailer. After Googling, they’re for quick touch-ups on the entire exterior, just spray and wipe?
Spray and wipe the quick detailer.
I think they are the solution to having a sealant that binds to the clear coat and the neverending desire to shine that sumbitch up. I can’t say they are like the old ‘spray and wax’ products, because I thinked they sucked.
Especially on darker colors… I think the detalier sprays are just a must.
I have always used NuFinish on a wide array of common and expensive autos, and also use 3M Marine, but mostly on my lighter colored cars, such as silver or white.
I am definitely of the low effort yielding high results kind of person. I am not obsessed and don’t believe it’s needed. I have a 30-year old car with stunning paint, and it’s because I sealed the clear coat with a modern product with UV filters since day one. And wash cars with car wash products, not household soaps.
NuFinish is a great product on all colors. I think 3M marine is more slippery and teflon-like, but my black car does not like it. I ran out of NuFinish, used the 3m on the new-to-me black car and the spray detailer took out any minor haze. For the black car, the spray detailer is for black cars and comes out black.
Read about clay bars, too. I don’t use them, but they are supposed to get stuff off the surface that a washing won’t.