Waxing new car ... Questions

you shoudn't need to use a cleaner or cleaner wax on a new car. Just wash it well with dish soap and wax with the wax of your choice.

nate

snipped-for-privacy@stonyx.com wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@g44g2000cwa.googlegroups.com:

Have you searched online? Take a look at

or if you have a specific product in mind.

Not sure if you want to clean/polish a new car. You might check with the service people at the dealership.

Yes, it is generally true that synthetics last longer. Some would argue pure carnauba yields a better look. This is a subject of much debate, especially with the sheer number of products out there.

The label should distinctly say carnauba or polymer/synthetic. Google?

Klasse (synthetic) is worth a look. I used the sealant glaze on an older car. You might have to order it online. Liquid will usually be easier to apply than paste. YMMV

I'd pick up a Porter Cable 7424 dual-action (i.e. "beginner safe") polisher. Follow it with a good glaze and then a wax of your choice (polymers clean up nicely). Maybe "Meguiar's Proper Machine Polishing Video" while you're at it. Helps speed up the process and produces a very nice wet-like shine when done.

I used some 3M Glazing Compound that helped to eliminate a lot of the factory orange peel surface defects. The Meguiar's Polymer wax (about $15) worked well and came off easier than most waxes (I believe it has some carnauba in it). The Meguiar's website has an online user customizable feature that will guide you through the use a the products.

Mack

**Do NOT or ever use dish soap. That aside, you probably don't need to wax your new car just yet though I would wax it in Oct or Nov just before winter. Also, don't use Armor All inside.

Cloths are important also. Use the softest of soft 100% cotton cloths and also microfiber cloths are nice as they grab the residue (i.e., doing that post-wax wipedown) instead of pushing it around.

kaboomie

First, never, ever, use dish soap as was recommended above. It will RUIN your paint.

Unless your car has been sitting in a storage yard for a long time it shouldn't need any sort of cleaner or compound to prep before waxing. Wash it using a soap designed specifically for washing cars.

A few years back Consumer Reports tested all kinds of car waxes. Nu Finish got the highest rating, it's also a lot less expensive than the more exotic brands. Nothing against Meguires, Mothers or others, just that a new car shouldn't need any special care products.

Curious ... why no Armor All?

Thanks, Harry

I agree in general, but what's the harm if you're going to wax immediately? It will clean more thoroughly than regular car wash.

agreed...

nate

Story I've heard is that it strips the plasticizers from the surfaces and replaces them with its own chemicals, and if you ever stop using it you'll end up with a hideous, cracked mess.

That said, I don't like it anyway - too shiny and attracts dirt. Personally I've had good luck with a wipedown with a mild Murphy's Oil Soap solution (seriously) and some Meguiar's vinyl and rubber protectant if you feel the need to use same.

You don't need to worry about this hopefully but my secret weapon for old, hard vinyl is hand cleaner with lanolin, rubbed into a toothbrush and left to sit, then buffed with a terry cloth towel. Seriously.

nate

**It'll trash the paint. I've seen it firsthand as a lady who lived below me at one time, used Joy on her Miata. I've never seen a car that was a couple of years old with a paint job so darn bad on it. Completely dull (it looked like bare matte finish paint...really weird) and scratched to hell. I've only seen paint like that on cars that've been in junkyards. Car wash liquid is cheap and, at this point, he probably doesn't need anything 'gritty' to clean his car.

kaboomicus

**Yes to the above and yes to too shiny. Bleah! **I use a dampened cloth to swipe down surfaces, let it dry. If I find, say a drop or two of soda sticky, then I might use the dampened paper towel that I used to clean the windows to clean up that spot. Then I used a swiffer thingie that my brother in law gave me to try and it was awesome! Just a light brush against surfaces picked up all the dust and dirt and it does a good job getting in vents and stuff like that.

I just looked it up online, it's a Swiffer duster.

kaboomie

I just realized, it's not Eage One Gold Class, it's Meguiar's Gold Class. Just wanted to point that out ... my mistake. I was thinking of Eagle One Black Magic, which apparently is supposed to be decent too ... any info on how long it lasts?

Btw, if it's polymer based, can I automatically assume that it will last longer than a carnauba wax based wax?

Thanks, Harry

Yep, swiffers for the bi-weekly dusting, plain warm water and a sponge for the mild cleaning and Mr. Clean magic eraser for the tough scuffs. No soaps!!! I have a 10-year old Caravan and the dash looks brand new still (and it is not garaged at home or at work either). Never had soap or anything else on it on it but plain water.

At least the dish soaps of the 1960's and 1970's sure did...it dulls the finish fairly quickly. I haven't used dish soap for 25 years...been afraid to.

Regular household soap will remove all existing wax on your vehicle. I would use household soap only if you plan on waxing the vehicle afterwards. I use Nanowax on both of my cars. It works very good.

Well you have access to the Internet, obviously, so the product I use and recommend is available to you there. Some may consider this heresy, but I use a product called Perma Shield. It is a polymer Teflon formula. It gives a glassy VERY high shine and is as easy to use a regular wax, easier, actually, and lasts for a very long time.

I recently sold a 1993 Nissan Pickup that was a true red, which, as I sure you know, is a color that normally oxidizes worse than any other. That truck was never garaged a single day, in a hot, bright inland Southern California climate. I would put a coat of Perma Shield on the truck maybe once a year. When I sold it the finish looked like new. Normally when you wax a red vehicle, even one taken care of fairly well, you will see some red color on the cloth as it takes off some oxidized paint. On that Nissan the was simply no red, there was NO apparent oxidation.

Oh well, I am raving on, sorry. This is one product I would do a commercial for if asked. And I have NO connection to the company.

If interested you can go to the Perma Shield site at

Good luck with your new car. I am driving a 2004 Sonata LX and could not be happier with it.

I was only suggesting it as a one time cleanup, not a regular practice. Haven't done it myself, although if I'm going to do bodywork on a car I use dish soap for the first wash to get all the wax off so it doesn't load up my sandpaper. Maybe a clay bar would be better for a new car then...?

nate

James C. Reeves wrote:

**Afternoon, Nate :) I think a clay bar would be good. The clear coat is actually an extraordinarily thin layer, a detailer described it as: Imagine Saran Wrap stretched incredibly tightly over your thumb nail. I don't think cars of today can handle dish soap. Even though I don't think Harry needs to clay bar as of yet (he should've gotten the car already detailed), a clay bar is a great idea. I had forgotten about that, thanks Nate.

kaboomie

Clay Bar is only to be used for cleaning dirt that's imbedded in the paint. It's very time consuming and not needed for a brand new vehicle

Not necessarily. My new car (then Saturn) had what they call "Rail Dust" in the paint. The car had some sort of protective film (Cosmoline?) on it, but it wasn't enough. The dust kicked up by the train actually imbedded little metal particles that looked like rust spots in the paint. If left too long, they would have yellowed the paint around the imbedded particles (white car). Dealer had to clay and glaze the whole car. No doubt junk falls in the cars while on the truck car-haulers as well. This is noted in some of GM's SRs to the dealers as well.

B~