When it rains...

[FlaresideLariat]

When it rains, what is a GOOD sign that your car is dealing with the water on the paint, properly? The hood, for example. The water on the hood, when it rains; is it supposed to be beady, or is the water supposed to sort of 'slide' right off (no beads)? By 'good,' I mean, how the water SHOULD deal with the paint on the surface (from detailing, etc). How should it look?

[Mike Phillips]

I guess that depends on the wax... how long it's been since the last coat, etc.

That's a good question and the topic of water beading is a sometimes heated discussion topic.

Let me think on this one...

Mike

[Don]

I usually figure the wax (coating) is doing well AFTER the rain, when I wash the car and the mitt/drying towel still glide smoothly over the surface (no "squeaky clean" spots).

[RamAirV1]

Don's test is similar to what I do when I determine if I need to wax.

I don't think you can reliably tell by what the rain does on your car how much wax you have left. It depends on how hard the rain falls, was the paint already dirty before the rain, etc. Now if the water just sits there and neither sheets off nor beads, then there is a good chance that you may need to wax.

What the rinse water does after a car wash may give you a better indication. When I use MPPP as my car wax, the water tends to sheet off rather than bead, although it may bead in a few spots (why the difference I have no idea). MPPP was designed to sheet rather than bead to avoid water spot etching. But in the rain my MPPP waxed finish will actually bead water but in most instances it will roll right off.

When I use NXT Tech Wax, it beads more than MPPP but most of the water will still roll off of the paint surface as long as I rinse with a flow of water as opposed to a spray. I use NXT Car Wash, my absolute favorite, so that may also affect the sheeting and beading proprties.

If a lot of flat beads are left on the paint surface after rinsing, it means that either the wax is wearing off or there is some kind of contamination on the surace like rail dust or industrial fallout. I had that happen two weeks after I applied NXT (3 coats). It did turn out that there was something on the surface. It felt like rail dust but not quite as severe. I had to clay and rewax. I don't know where I picked that up so I can avoid it in the future! I rewaxed the hood and did part of it with NXT and part of it with MPPP. I'll put second coats on this weekend as plenty of time has elapsed to allow the first coat to cure.

BTW I have noticed improvement in gloss and slickness even after a 3rd coat of NXT. It appears to me that you can layer it, but that's a whole seperate topic.

RamAirV1