PACShrink

Just wondering what the 981 crowd likes to use when waxing. Maybe I am one of the few that still enjoys washing and waxing my car, I am sure there are others out there. I am not 'old' but, I consider myself of the 'old school' type. I was not willing to buy a 981 that was not a 6 speed manual. So what is your vote?

-Turtle wax
-Meguiar's
-Armor All
-Rejex
-Rain-x
-Lucas Oil
-Girot's Garage
-Mothers
-Chemical Guys
-Shine Armor
-Pro Elite
-Formula 1
I have been using for years and it seems to keep the bugs from sticking on the grill.

Schwinn

Wolfgang products. Their All In One is excellent to do after a basic paint correction process (I used Griot's clay for the correction, per recommendation from my friend). Then the AIO with a buffer does a minor polish and applies sealant at the same time. IMO, sealant is the way to go, as it lasts longer than wax. My friend swears by this combination, especially on his black Mercedes cars. It worked great on my 987.2 as well. What's best is that after doing this, pretty much everything comes off very easily. He had a group of turkeys come by, and they saw themselves in the reflection and pecked the car (trying to peck the reflection). Of course, this left marks all over the side of the car... which all washed off with a basic wash.

He often goes into work and people ask if he just had the car detailed - he didn't. He just washes it quickly, and that's all that's needed. Impressive. That's why I went that way, because I'm all about the low maintenance (you don't want to see what my car looks like right now, because it's cold outside here in CT!)

If you want, you can then continue to apply just sealant once every 6-12 months. You can also apply a wax on top if you feel like it, as it will help bring out the shine further... but I'm all about low maintenance, so I haven't bothered. I think he used a Wolfgang product for that as well. Wolfgang stuff goes on easy and works VERY well. We both buy from Autogeek.net, but I also use Amazon as AG has a store there too.

EDIT: Another tip, AutoGeek has some good tutorials and guides for detailing. Some are even product specific. It's a great resource to learn more about the processes!

IndigoInkTaco

I'm a big fan of Jescar. Super easy application, lasts a long time, insanely slick to the touch and it's wipe on/wipe off.

Randy_B

I use Wolfgang sealant and Meguiars 105/205 polishes.

brian944T

This may be just a little off topic but for those of us with a Boxster, what do you use to clean and protect the convertible top?

thecajunboy

P21S CONCOURS-LOOK CARNAUBA WAX

gedwin

CARPRO Essence to true up the shine and remove light swirls. Then coat with CARPRO Reload. Black 981.

subshooter

I stopped waxing my car. I only use a normal hand wash followed up by ceramic coating. So much better and easier to apply.

Ernest72

me too. Even Adam’s spray ceramic coating works really well. I still have wax and do it from time to time. I like Sonax products and collinate 845. That stuff makes the car real slick.

CaymanCarver

2015 Base 981 w/PDK Black here.. Apologies in advance for the novel..

I only use waxes & polishes for the color correction and swirl removal step. Which was done immediately after I brought her home in 2019.
Meguiars Mirror Glaze 105 ( Ultra-Cut Compound) > Meguiars Mirror Glaze 205 (Ultra-Finishing Polish) > Meguiars SratchX 2.0 (if needed)
All available at Harbor Freight!

After the color correction, I've settled on the following detail-maintenance process:
1. Power wash rinse
Light rinse to knock off all the dust and any other particles stuck on the car and wheels.
Then check for stuck-on road grime to determine if a scrub with a wash mitt is needed in the shampoo step.


2. Power wash with Adams Car Shampoo & Foam Cannon. ( )
Adams Car Shampoo is amazing and really helps to establish a deep clean & shine n' ends with more of a wet look than other shampoo's I've tried.
If a scrub is necessary, a light linear scrub (no circular motion). I skip doing the scrub most of the time.
Give it a good rinse but no need to knock yourself out, there's always some shampoo residue left over. (n' this is what led to the next step/special trick)
Dry the car however you like. I use a fake shammy thing called The Absorber and am careful to pull it in straight lines (no circular motion).
Then I let it air dry for about an hour or more.

3. P&S Beadmaker Detail Spray ( )
Use good/clean microfiber towels and apply over the entire car. One towel to apply the product and the other towel to clean and buff.
In the past I've always used a Detail Spray as an "in between washes" kind of a treatment to keep the shine going.
But this step removes any left over residue from the Adams Car Shampoo and appears to clear/clean the surface of anything left over.
At this point the finish will look great!
But we're not done yet. Let it set/cure for about 30min to an hour.

4. P&S Beadmaker Paint Protectant & Sealant ( )
Use another set good/clean microfiber towels and apply over the entire car. One towel to apply the product and the other towel to clean and buff.
Apply this stuff over the entire car including the windows, all the trim and weather stripping bits. Buff it out real good.
Let it cure for about 4 to 6 hours. I usually let it set overnight.

After a couple/few of these wash cycles the depth and level of shine will be AMAZING.
I'm probably over using the P&S Beadmaker Paint Protectant & Sealant, but don't care. Looks fantastic and it can't hurt.
Beadmaker is great on windows and every bit as effective as Rain-X.

Also, this has helped to simplify the collection of detail products needed.
I had a couple of cupboards full of a bunch of different products that really didn't help all that much. All that stuff is gone now.

N' honestly, I don't spend a lot of time on detailing the car. She's more on the petite side.

SnowmanMafia

Question: I paint corrected and ceramic coated my car myself and have never used a wax on top of it (same with my previous car). Are people waxing on top of that?

Ernest72

more protection is good but you don’t need to. Wax can make it shine really nice but not necessary. Maybe just a wipe with spray detainer.

SnowmanMafia

Yeah I use Ammo NYC stuff so I use their top coat spray after every couple washes.

thecajunboy

That seems like an awful amount of contact for a black car. I don't understand why you're doing things in this order. I go with the foam first thing, sprayed on while the car is still dry. I thought the foam is there to provide lubrication for the dust/debris to slide off easier. Then follow with a power rinse and another foam soak and rinse. It's usually good to go from there if you don't plan on touching it. There's always a slight film left behind and I'm really **** about drying a car with that on it, so at this point its a touch wash with quality mitt and uber foam from the foam cannon. No soap bucket, just a huge rinse bucket. Spray foam on the car panel, then all over the mitt, wipe gently, then rinse the panel and dip the mitt in the rinse bucket, repeat until done. Follow-up is drying with the best drying towels I can find. I have the heated air dryer but the water supply is too hard and leaves the tiniest little traces on the car, so I'm not using that until I get a water softener.

Ernest72

If your car has a ceramic coat or even just a good sealant, and is mildly dirty. I just go to the self car wash and power wash and then let it air dry by driving home. Then after it’s dry I do a spray detail wipe with Sonax and the car is like new. The reason I don’t power wash at home is that my water is hard, so you inevitably get spots. I have tried some small filters and they help but still I see spots.