Definately clay bar and polish first.

Any clay bar should work, haven't noticed much difference between brands, I use Mother's for cost and availability.


Polish is essential for removing swirl marks. Wax won't hide it, only coat over. I use turtle wax polishing compound and a lower speed polisher.


For wax, I use Meguaires NXT paste, applied with the power ball for paint and removed by hand. I've got a lot of vinyl and the rotary buffer is too large to get in where it needs to. I don't like carnube because it's more difficult to apply and polish off and doesn't last long in summer.

 

Whats the main difference between liquid and paste? Which one will last longer?

 

i hated that nxt tech wax...... didn't work as well as the gold class i didnt think. not sure which lasts longer, just know i prefer the liquid stuff over the paste. but its usually personal preference.

 

i just got M16....jesus christ i love that stuff.

yes you can still find it.

 

I use Swissvax Concorso, Zymol Concours, Dodo Juice Purple Haze and Blue Velvet, Wolfgang Fuzion Estate Wax, and Pinnacle Sauveran and love all of them. Honestly my car looks the best though when I use the Dodo Juice waxes.

 

I think you need to try a polish, those paint flaws are probably scratchs in the clear coat. A polish will gently rub of a thin layer of the clear coat and take the scratches with it. then apply a wax and you should be good.

Really two types of wax, sealants and carnuba. Sealants last longer but do not look quite as good, generally last 3 months or so. Carnuba looks great but can be quite expensive and only really lasts 3-4 weeks before you need to apply more. Pick your favorite brand but make the choice between these two types of wax first.

 

dodo juice FTW!!!

i also use Poorboys EX sealent and Nattys red carnuba

 

1) Where are you finding all of this stuff? I've never even heard of any of those.

2) Are you useing them because no one has heard of them so they must be better than the mainstream stuff?

Not saying they aren't necessasarily better, but IMO it's not so much the wax as the time, effort and technique of the person applying it. You might even get the same level of shine with plain old, green tin, white lid turtle wax.

I like the synthetic mainly because you don't have to buff all day to get the excess off, it seems to polish a lot easier.

I might try Auto Magic. I was lucky enough to go to a Toyota dealer training class for auto detailing and that's what is in use there.

http://www.automagic.biz/

 

while you are right that alot of shine is from the prep work....there is a differnce in quality and its a noticeable difference...

also those are very popular names in the detailing world...go to autopia and see how often thse names are used

 

OK.....

swissvax concorso - http://www.swissvax.com/E/US/KontaktBestform.htm

zymol concours - http://www.zymol.com/zymolconcoursglaze8oz.aspx

The rest from autogeek.net

Happy?

Im sorry that you have never heard of them. No offense, but some of us go beyond our local auto zone or wal-mart to get our car care products so don't get ____y just because you have never heard of it. Does it mean that they are better, not necessarily, HOWEVER, I HAVE used mainstream stuff and I feel that what I use is better.

I personally don't care what anyone says but less time with good products is much better than more time with crappy products but thats just my opinion.

 

collinte wax hands down!

noobs

 

It's cool man, I just like knowing the difference between paying for quality and paying for a label, and $175 for 8oz of wax is pushing deep into the luxury for luxury's sake territory. It's a 12,000 car with factory orange peel, no amount of wax will hide that, and the cash can go pretty far towards my next tune when the boost goes up and I switch from a MAF to MAP.

In my experience with the xB so far though, there have been people recommending a lot of overpriced stuff just for the name when you can get the same quality with something carried at NAPA, Autozone, Walmart, etc.

Things like RP and Amsoil when Mobil 1 works just fine; Rays lugs when Gorillaz do just as well; Platinum / indurium plugs when copper NGK V-Power worked fine in both my supercharger and turbo builds; Swaintech piston coatings when Thermaltech uses the same powder and dry lube skirts.

I am using Crower rods, Wiseco pistons and Toga bearings because some things really are worth spending on.

 

I bought the more expensive waxes to use on my TL and I really liked them so I started using them on my tC as well. They really weren't originally purchased to be used on the tC, like you said, it's kinda stupid to use a $200 wax on a $18,000 car. I see what you mean by quality though, some things are complete and total rip off's and only cost so much because of the name but thats why you do research. :D

 

Based on personal experience with Turtle Wax Ice, MeGuaiar's NXT and Gold Class, and Mothers California Gold, Mothers wins hands down.

 

Yeah, I could see using that on an Acura or the gorgeous pearl on a Lexus. When I finally step up to a BMW or something like that when the xB is paid off I'll keep it in mind. I'm loving the 135i, and the turbo 3.0 has a lot of potential.