car wax

[fab]

Any suggestion on what kind of exterior wax I should buy. The color of the vehicle is black.

[wetstuff]

I'm surprised I rarely see the menion on 'glaze' here...and the other P-forums?! The Mercedes guys drool all over KLASSE. I found it works great. This KLASSE stuff is so cool - I use it on my glasses. It fills all the little scratches and the solar flares are gone.

I also 'clay bar' the car after washing it. I save the Carnauba or Meg's #26 Yellow wax for the last. By then the shine is 2 foot deep already.


Jim

[spgribben007]

Wetstuff,

I have used cleaner waxes to get oxidized paint up and I've used caranuaba wax and other polishes, but I've never used a clay bar. What does it do to the finish and how do I apply it to the car.

spgribben007

[Perfectlap]

here's some info on Klasse:
I have an unfinished bottle of virtually every single wax available at the auto stores. My friend who worked for Mercedez turned me on to Klasse which isn't sold at Auto Stores. All the results are similar for all of the products I've used but Klasse is by far the easiest to apply and remove. Its acrlyic so it doesn't require any waiting/hazing time. The minute it goes onto the paint it can be wiped off. Its a two part treatment: first use KLasse All in One which cleans the paint and fills in scratches applied with foam applicator. Klasse Sealant Glaze is next applied with a damp microfiber applicator. This sealant glaze is potent and you should only use about a drop per panel, if doesn't come of easily you've applied to much.
Let it cure for a day and then you can keep layering.

This layering is used on show cars and is fantastic on Black cars. Click on my signature and you can see what 17 coats looks like. Once you've finished layering it will look great. Some freaks like me like to put the icing on in the form of a Carnauab wax P21S or S100 are the most popular amongst the Auto Show deatailers. Its my opinion that you shouldn't ever apply a wax directly to a paint surface that hasn't first be treated to sealant barrier like Klasse SG. You can quick detail in between washes with a Carnauaba spray or Acrlyic Spray (Sonus makes both).
In between seasons its good to strip it all off with a wash of Klasse All In One, just drop a few squirts into a bucket of warm water and spray in some water for suds, after washing twice Clay the surface panels to remove sediments (very important) Add another layer of AIO and begin the sealant layering with Klasse Sealant Glaze once again.
And almost as important spend some money on quality microfiber towels. Not all microfiber towels are the same. The one's in your local auto store are only for the interior of the car. Professional detailers who have to wax frequently seem to be using waffle weave microfiber towels in grey and white colors.
www.autogeek.net
www.autopia-carcare.com

[Brucelee]

Klasse All in One and Sealer are the best products I have ever used. Even on black, these can create miracles.

[Brucelee]

A clay bar is essential IF the finish has surface pollutants within it. You can tell this as you rub your hand across a clean surface. If will feel like there are bumps in it even though the finish is clean, then you need to clay bar.

The clay bar actually draws or pulls out the pollution from the paint into the bar. It is kind of wierd, you get all this crap on the bar that you could not see, but could feel, in the paint.

The essential first step (after washing) to a pristine finish.

After that, well it depends on what you are dealing with.

[spgribben007]

What about paint chips? I recently got an 2001 orient red and the previous owner decided to repair a paint chip and (my opinion) did a poor job. How do guys recommend getting his repair up so I can try to repair it with an Autosharp pen?

[Perfectlap]

take a qtip with a tiny drop of nail polish remover and see if the touch up paint he used wasn't followed up with a clear coat. If he did a poor job I'm sure he didn't use a two part touch up paint and the acetone should lift the paint out of the chip hole. Then get out some pencils
here's the professional method
http://www.bettercarcare.com/articles.php?articleId=27

[IceBox]

Should you not use a paint cleaner or pre-wax first if you're gonna use a sealant next? Then wax?

[Perfectlap]

it depends on the age of the paint. If its a newer car that is garage kept a paint cleaner might be overkill. And remember you only want to rub on the paint a little as necessary year round. People forget how soft the German clear coats are. They are actually banned here in the USA because of their chemicals. So if you have your car repaired by a Body Shop they are not using the same materials. The base coat might be the same.

If the car is kept outside and is a few years old you should use a paint cleaner like P21S or 1Z (looks like a speedstick deodarant).
Don't know about other brands but you can't use Klasse Sealant Glaze without first using their cleaner/polish: Klasse All in One. They are formulated to bond together or something.
Many people use Meguiar's ScratchX before proceeding to the cleaner and sealant. Works well but requires lots of elbow grease. (speed, never pressure).
A great job for the Porter Cable orbital polisher.

[Brucelee]

If you are using Klasse, it depends on where you start.

Cars in poor condition may need a clay bar, then a fine grit compound, then Klasse All in one followed by Sealant.

However, I get many cars here that simply need Klasse All in One and then sealant. The Klasse All in one has a very remarkable cleaner in it that will deep clean and actually take out many imperfections that normally need a compound.

After a job like that, a garage kept car can go 6 months without needing another hit of Klasse.

[donv]

Zaino is another product like Klasse. I've used that and only that on my Boxster since day 1, and it looks great! Surface prep w/P21S paint cleanser and clay bar; 3M swirl mark remover for scratches; but all the rest is Zaino products. Lasts forever for a garaged car, half year for my daily driver that sleeps outside.

[jwocky]

Is there any truth that natural waxes like Carnuba will give a deeper shine than products like Klasse? I've got a black car and a healthy dose of swirl marks (especially on bright sunshiny days), what would be best for my car? Would Klasse be good?

[Brucelee]

In my experience, Klasse is the tops for black cars. The sealant will "hide" many swirl marks very nicely. With the sealant, the more coats you use the greater the hiding effect and the deeper the color gets.

On swirl marks, if you are handy with a buffer, Meguiers makes a nice swirl mark remover that does remove SOME of the marks, depending on what you are starting with. After using that, proceed with the Klasse All in one and then sealant.

Good luck!

PS-Black is just plain tough to get right.

[Adam]

Many people swear by Zaino and I love it too.

[PasadenaBoxster]

Anyone have any feelings one way or the other about Amway Car Polish? My wife swears up and down that it's the best, but I've never used it. If you have used it, how does it rank vs. other products you've tried.

Thanks!

PB

[fab]

Thank you all for your feedback. I just purchased Klasse kit.
Hopefully, we can have another beautiful day soon... so that I can get busy.

[Perfectlap]

just remeber:
foam pad for the orange bottle
microfiber towel for the silver bottle. (tiny spray of water on towel)

I also suggest getting Sonus Acrylic Spritz spray bottle to boost the Klasse SG shine. It was formulated with Klasse for use in between layers of SG.
Very good for dissolving the streaking that occurs when too much SG is applied.
Its tricky to spread a dime size drop evenly over one panel without a porter cable orbital polisher.

I think this had about 7 layers of Klasse SG and a couple of layers of P21s Wax
Klasse on Black (this car was ten years and never garagged)

[IceBox]

I'm thinking it might just be easier to fly Perfectlap in, feed him a hearty Canadian breakfast and set him loose on my Box!

[Brucelee]

Sonus is great stuff and a perfect compliment to Klasse. In fact, you can buy it within a kit that Klasse offers.

Nice job on that black finish. Black is very very tough but rewarding.