Confused about different types of wax

[Janneman]

Hi,

I've read a lot about it, but still don't get it totally right. What are differences between

STEP3 Carnauba was ?
NXT Tech Wax ?
Gold Class Clear Coat Liquid Wax ?

What to use (by hand) on a metallic (clear-coated) blue 2001 Volvo ?

Thnx,
Jan

[Aurora40]

One difference is cost. Step 3 will be less expensive than the other two. And it's a carnauba based wax.

The others are synthetic based waxes and are a bit more expensive. As to which is best, it depends on what you are trying to achieve. You might want to look for some reviews of the products here and see which aligns with your objectives better. Or let people know what you want from a wax?

How do you rank the importance of things like cost, ease of application, durability, final appearance, smell, any other things?

[Mike Phillips]

Very good answer Aurora40,

I would just add that each wax offers different features and benefits,

Deep Crystal Carnauba Wax is a pure wax, it contains no ingredients with the intended purpose of cleaning the paint. For this reason it should only be applied to cars with paint in new and like new condition. This mean if your paint is older, you need to pre-clean & polish before applying this wax.

I have had many, many, many, (note I wrote many three times to emphasize the word ), enthusiasts attend our Saturday Detailing classes, and often time the nicest looking finishes are cars that are completely maintained with Meguiar's Deep Crystal System, this includes, Deep Crystal Paint Cleaner, Deep Crystal Polish and Deep Crystal Carnauba Wax.

While this system is priced very competitively, it is still a top shelf line of car care products that has been available for over 20 years. If nothing else, the Deep Crystal System is poised to be yet another set of Meguiar's product that will prove them selves through the test of time. A lot of products come and go, I'm sure everyone can think of a few late night t.v. commercials touting the newest, latest, greatest product, yet where are these products today?

Answer: They don't exist.

Deep Crystal System, and the Deep Crystal Carnauba wax are great products and offer great performance and value.


Gold Class Wax is what Meguiar's calls a polish/wax, this means it contains not only protection ingredients, but also a blend of Meguiar's rich polishing oils to really bring out the richness of color of any type of paint as well as produce crystal clear, reflections with super high gloss, the kind of results people who show cars look for.


NXT Tech Wax is a different wax altogether, it is based upon Meguiar's Engineered Synthetic Polymers, it offers excellent protection against the things that would attack your paint and deteriorate it while at the same time it has the unique ability to eliminate fine swirls and scratches taking your hard work over the top by helping to create a truly swirl free flawless finish under bright light and the most critical eyes.

In the big picture, the only way you will ever know which wax is right for you is to try them yourself and see which wax looks best on your car's paint to your eyes.

Hope this helps...

[gb387]

Just some thoughts on the waxes...

The Deep Crystal system is a great system! you can have all three Cleaner/Polish/Wax for around $15... Best of all it works and it works well! I have used Deep Crystal products tons of times. In fact when I need a light cleaning prior to was I always reach for the Deep Crystal Cleaner.

I have not use the Gold Class Wax but many speak good things about it.

As for NXT its top of the line (consumer) as far as I am concerned. Very easy to use easy to find but it is going to cost you more than Gold Class and the Deep Crystal Wax but it looks good especially on dark colors.


Deep Crystal Wax VS. NXT Wax... I like the look of NXT better it also seems to hold up much better than the DC Wax. NXT is a dream to apply and remove, it smells god too. I can not speak for the GC Wax.

Good luck let us know what you do.

[tandoc]

Re: Confused about different types of wax

Forgive me to ask this stupid question but my car is new but with lots of scratches and swril marks. Which wax should I use?
Thanks

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Confused about different types of wax

Forgive me to ask this stupid question but my car is new but with lots of scratches and swril marks. Which wax should I use?
Thanks

Wax will only help a little to hide or mask fine swirls and scratches, if this is okay with you and what you're primarily looking for it a wax to protect your car's paint, the give the NXT Tech Wax a try.

If you want to remove the swirls and scratches, then you'll want to use a paint cleaner and remove some paint, which is how you remove scratches.

Read these


What it means to remove a scratch out of anything...


and,

How To Remove Swirls By Hand

and

Meguiar's 5-Step Paint Care Cycle
(Posted in the The Information Station)

[avwh]

Re: Confused about different types of wax

In the big picture, the only way you will ever know which wax is right for you is to try them yourself and see which wax looks best on your car's paint to your eyes.

Hope this helps...

Are these waxes available in sampler sizes, to try them and see which we like best for our particular car finishes? Otherwise, it's a pain (and expensive) to buy so many different products, if we're going to end up with one clear favorite.

[keesue]

Re: Confused about different types of wax

I have a 2001 Teal S60-T5. I just clayed the car, used a swirl remover, polished it and waxed it. The products I used were:

1. Meguiar's GC wash
2. Meguiar's clay with a GC wash solution for the lubricant
3. Meguair's swirl remover (I used Scratch X and #83). This is step one in the three step system.
4. Meguairs polish (I used #7). This is step two in the system.
5. Meguairs NXT. (I topped with a coat of GC for the 'carnuba look'). This is step three - the pure carnuba wax.

The car looks fantastic. I had not detailed it in 5 years although I did keep it clean and frankly, it needed it. It now it looks as good as new - better even.

I would recommend the three step system. You simply can't go wrong. A tube of Scratch X is also a very good thing to have on hand for more stubborn assignments.

I started my purchases with GC, then NXT, and ultimately graduated to the professional line. I got hooked. I must confess I found it confusing at first but I finally think I have a handle on it by relentless reading; however, for the money, the three step system is the most cost effective and produces spectacular results. Clean, polish and protect.

Hope that helps.

[tandoc]

Re: Confused about different types of wax

Thanks for all the great tips. I'm nervous because the car is only one month old

[Murr1525]

Re: Confused about different types of wax

When its new is the best time to get it all fixed up, it will be easier to maintain after that.

[keesue]

Re: Confused about different types of wax

When its new is the best time to get it all fixed up, it will be easier to maintain after that.

Agreed. I completely detailed (clean, polish, wax) my new Yaris and it is like glass. So much easier to maintain now.

[cv_soccer]

Re: Confused about different types of wax

When its new is the best time to get it all fixed up, it will be easier to maintain after that.

I could not agree more. I picked up my car on March 15, 2006 and on March 16, 2006 it was washed, clayed, polished, and the first cost of wax. I started off using Classic Gold but switched over to NXT after doing a test panel on my hood.

No matter what Meguiar's product you select it will turn out great, and the help here on this forum is top shelf all the way!

My 06 VW MkV, and it is parked outside and is my daily ride to work

[tandoc]

Re: Confused about different types of wax

You did a great job. It looks so nice !

[skoufos]

Re: Confused about different types of wax

What is the reason of polishing a brand new car?
I Guess cleaning and waxing should be enough in this case.
A question from my side. How long does Next Tech wax need to stay on the car before it is wiped off when it is applied?

[cv_soccer]

Re: Confused about different types of wax

You did a great job. It looks so nice !

Thanks, Meguiar's did all of the hard work and all I have to do is use their products and thats not hard at all.

What is the reason of polishing a brand new car?
I Guess cleaning and waxing should be enough in this case.
A question from my side. How long does Next Tech wax need to stay on the car before it is wiped off when it is applied?

You assume that the paint on a new car is perfect but it is not. Off of the lot there can be swirl, scratches, hard water spots, and a host of other issues that need to be addressed as you prepare the foundation of a great shine. The majority of the time spent in the final product is always in the preparation. Mike Phillips from Meguiar’s is a great resource and can site better examples then I but the bottom line is what you build is only as good as the foundation on which it is built.

Regarding the curing time for NXT, I asked hat very same question and I was told by Mike that 24 hours was what was needed for NXT to cure properly otherwise a second cost would interrupt the curing of the prior coat. I can not find the thread where he told me this but I’m sure that he will respond and tell you where to find it.