Which Wax is The Best ??

[BlackietheYukon]

With all the products on the market today I got a couple of question and want some opinions. In the past I have used Meguires Wet Shine and have been fairly pleased with the wax. Now that I have a Black Truck I dont want to screw it up so I decided not to wax it myself. Ive seen too many black truck's with swirls riding down the road. I recently took the Yukon to get it waxed at a local detail shop that has done a good job in the past. When I got it back and noticed that the wax they used does not bead water at all and thus Im left wondering if I sould have gave them a bottle of Meguires instead of letting them use their commercial wax that they said was " way better than anything you can buy in the store." I want to hear ya'lls opinion on waxes on the market.

 

[sothpaw62]

Blackie,

Here are my recommendations to take care of your black Yukon:

1. Go to Target and purchase a pack of microfiber towels (eight per pack for about $7), a box of Meguiars Claybar (about $15) and the red bottle of Meguiars cleaner wax (about $7).

2. Thoroughly wash your vehicle using a 1/4 cup of Joy dishwashing liquid mixed with a full bucket of water. Joy dishwashing liquid will remove any contaminants or anything else that is on your paint....including any previous wax that was applied.

3. Following the directions on the Claybar using the spray bottle that comes in the box along with the actual claybar. Take your time on this part of the process. It's time consuming but you will be amazed when you see the contaminants that the claybar removes. It will be a clean beige color when you start but not when you are done. CAUTION: If you drop the claybar on the pavement, throw it away (the package should come with two claybars). These things pick up anything and you will severely scratch your paint if you accidentally pick up any pebbles or something off the ground. Also, remove any rings or jewelry on your hands/wrists. Sometimes the claybar will hit a dry spot and a ring will scratch your paint. Don't be afraid to use the spray liberally. When it dries, remove the claybar residue with a microfiber towel.

4. Following the directions on the cleaner wax. Do not over apply as it just is not necessary. Remove the wax with a separate microfiber towel (not the one you used removing the claybar).

Plan to spend about 4-6 hours in this process. Your black Yuke is going to look awesome. However, you've just purchased the prettiest color when it's clean and the ugliest color when it's dirty. I've owned two black vehicles in my life and I said "never again" when I sold both of 'em. Will I ever own another black vehicle? Yeah, but I know what it takes to keep it up to my standards and it's a LOT of work.

There is an excellent video on youtube.com on the claybar process. Here is the link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfEfLGL59GI

Good Luck....and post some photos for us!

Sothpaw62

 

[withac]

Since this is all about opinions, here's mine, I'm actually pretty close to Sothpaw.

He's right about step one, the Joy strips any old wax and other things.

I also agree about the clay bar only I mix up a spray bottle with some Meguiars car wash in it and use that as the lubricant. I save the detailer and use it on my rims.

If you want a deeper shine it's going to take more work than the cleaner wax. Start with Meguairs Deep Crystal Step 1 Paint Cleaner. Next use Deep Crystal Step 2 Pure Polish. I don't use the Step 3 Carnuba wax, I use either their Gold Class or Tech Wax. This will take more time but it will give you a depth to the black like you've never seen before. At that point you can use a showroom glaze if you want, I never have but it's been recommended, I think it was Meguiar's #7. If you have a random orbit buffer it will make the process a lot easier. If you go this process the quickest way to test the results is to do just 1/2 of your hood, take it out in the light, and look for halo's and haze on the unfinished side. Unless your paint is like new I'll bet you won't be happy after seeing the results untill you finish the whole ride. Good luck, and Sothpaw is right about black, it looks great when clean. Oh, this Meguiar's three step process give the best results on dark paint.

 

[Jsho13]

Last week I used clay on the yukon. Then I used the three step meguires stuff (paint cleaner, polish, and wax) and it turned out awesome. Took about 8 hours but well worth the time.

 

[Ed Blown Vert]

I always use Zaino on my Black Vehicles. My Camaro is a 99 and you cannot see any swirls.

 

[withac]

Last week I used clay on the yukon. Then I used the three step meguires stuff (paint cleaner, polish, and wax) and it turned out awesome. Took about 8 hours but well worth the time.

Did you use their Step 3 wax or one of the others?

 

[withac]

I always use Zaino on my Black Vehicles. My Camaro is a 99 and you cannot see any swirls.

I've heard good things about Zaino too but it is a bit spendier.

 

[Ed Blown Vert]

I've heard good things about Zaino too but it is a bit spendier.

Everyone says that, but it last a long time in shine and product.

 

[Jsho13]

Did you use their Step 3 wax or one of the others?

Yup I used their step three. The only thing I didn't use was the cleaner wax that came in the clay bar kit. I just clayed, paint cleaner, polish, wax.

 

[gmoney_2010]

I have used zaino once on my 2002 S10 that was waxed maybe once from the first owner(he was 80 some years old) and i bought it in 2007 and waxed it several times and then finally ordered the Zaino Ultimate show car kit and did that whole start from scratch process and it looked amazing!! i havent hand washed since then(about two months ago) just auto once and it still beads water like the day i put it on...

 

[Design]

Honestly more can be said to how the wax is applied than which one you use. I would start looking into a Porter Cable 7424 to apply the wax. There are some many great kits out there form Autogeek and others. The pre wax cleaning and cutting (polish, claybar) will make even lower end waxes look so much better.

Be careful though. I think that the smell of Mequiars and Poor Boys products have caused me to become a detail addict.

 

[Chads93GT]

Zaino isnt a wax. Its a polymer, therefore it doesnt evaporate from the sun, unlike wax, ie, meguires WAX. You will use 100x more meguires than you will ever use zaino.

More expensive? yes, but you get what you pay for.

 

[withac]

Zaino isnt a wax. Its a polymer, therefore it doesnt evaporate from the sun, unlike wax, ie, meguires WAX. You will use 100x more meguires than you will ever use zaino.

More expensive? yes, but you get what you pay for.

I'm sure the Zaino is a great product, I even considered using it, you won't however use more Meguiar's than Zaino. Regardless of what you use you will need to use something to clean and polish the paint. Once that is done, your last step is simply to protect the paint and shine, therefore, if you have the paint properly prepped, you will only need a small amount of any wax, Meguiar's or something else. In fact, the instructions say to apply a small amount. Also, because you have already cleaned the paint, it will go on super easy and buff off easily. If you wax your ride in the sun some of the chemicals in about any product are going to flash off, one of the first things you'll read on any site telling you how to wax your car is to do it in the shade with a cool surface. If your cars surface is cool the wax won't evaporate.