So it's time to wash and wax the Mistress again. It usually is a full afternoon for me (and about 8 beers). I like to be thorough. I do not, however, look forward to the wax job. The elbow grease method just takes to long. SO. As a psudo, impromptu, unofficial, make-believe poll, I would like to know how y'all tackle the job.

1. Is the elbow grease method the best?

2. Do you prefer some kind of electric gizmo?

3. What gizmo do you find works the best?

4. What is your wax of prefrence?

5. How often do you wax?

Thank you all, in advance, for your input. Any and all opinions are greatly appreciated.

 

Mine takes a lot more than 8

 

I always start with a light soapy handwash. Always use your hands, so you can feel the countours.
Then break out the clay bar every once in a while (its amazing).
Dry with a super fine micro fiber cloth.
Apply your favorite wax. I wax maybe 3 times a year.

 

Waxing is much easier with the right wax! If protection is secondary to appearance I would give S100 Carnauba a try. It's easy to apply, easy to remove, doesn't stain black parts and looks great. If you need serious protection you can either apply this once a month or maybe try Meguiars NXT which should last about 3 months in SoCal.

You can pick up S100 from any Harley Dealer. Oh and if you want to polish give their Shine Enhancing Paint Cleanser a try, works really well even by hand.

 

No wax at all. I use Rejex ( http://x-autoproducts.com/ ) which is incredible stuff. Last time I applied it was just before Sharktoberfest '05, and the water still beads up nicely except for a bout a 1'x2' area in the center of the roof. I still get compliments regularly -- guy in a BMW 740 about 3 weeks ago, when I was driving in the rain, rolled down his window, motioned me to roll down mine, and he told me "Looks like a million bucks". All I do in between is wash the car with mild soap. Ideally I would reapply the stuff every 6 months, but I have moved twice since April '05 and it just hasn't been a high priority.

Not having to wax the car regularly gives me more time to do other fun stuff, like drive the car, try to get into the revlimiter's panties, etc. -- a much better use of my time.

 

Emickelsen...arn't these kind of personal questions?

 

 

I'm with Dave. The last thing I want to do on the weekend is wash the car let alone wax it. I have it professionally detailed every other year. I recently found my new best friend - automatic touchless car wash. $7, drive in, wait 10 minutes, drive out.

 

Wash, Clay , polish, wax and wax again, All Meguiars. It's a love affair.

 

Joe you need to understand that it's a disease, some of us actually enjoy babying our cars. Don't get me wrong, I take my daily driver through the touch washes regularly and they do a great job. But I also intentionally bought silver cars so I wouldn't have to look at the unsightly scratches.

 

I just bought a Porter Cable 6" buffer/polisher. I can't wait to use it on my '88 as the paint is faded and there is some hazing on it too.

I'll be doing the wash, clay , polish, wax and wax again thing as soon as I find the time.

 

I know most people, especially with a nice car, enjoy the whole process. I work construction during the week so I try to keep my weekends filled with as little manual labor as possible. If I'm on vacation, then I wash the car myself.

 

I was trying to be conservative. I didn't want you guys to think i was some kind of drunk.

Amen brother!! I thought I was being a little wierd that way.

Sorry man, my bad.



I think I get the picture, and I couldn't agree more. It's all for the love baby. Oh, and a few beers on a sunny weekend. Oh, and a few hours away from the honey-do's. That's great stuff. Thanks for the input. I just wasn't sure if I would be ostrisized for the community for using a power tool on my paint (not that it's in all that great of condition anyway). Hey "NeverLateInMyNineTwoEight", let me know how that thing works out.

 

ya mean you don't go here? http://www.videovat.com/videos/3376/...-to-music.aspx

 

Could someone explain what you do with "Clay" when detailing your car? I've never waxed a car
before.

Sharkskin, that Rejex stuff sounds great.. What's the before and after prep if any? And how do I
apply it?

Also, my car has original paint with some clearcoat peeling in spots.. what's the best way to get this
looking good without a respray?

Thanks,
Rich