Removing old Wax, Layering New Wax?

[Lonely Raven]

So I dropped some tall cash on Zymol products. I really liked
the results, but it's such a pain to wax on and wax off!!

The other day I helped my girlfriend polish and wax her black
Sentra with her Meguiar's Gold kit, and I was very pleasantly
surprised at how easy it all went on and off, and the results were
VERY close to what I'm getting with my Zymol kit.

So today I ran out and picked up the NXT Wash, Wax, Glass, and
Detailer to try out.

My questions:

I've been told by a few friends in the Porsche club that they like
to layer a synthetic wax a few times, then top it off with a nice
carnuba wax.

So what I'd like to do is strip off all my old wax as best as possible
and try a few layers of NXT topped with a few layers of Zymol
Titanium.

Any suggestions from the local pros on how strip the old wax
completely off and start fresh?
Any tips or suggestions on layering different waxes?

My paint is in decent shape as it's been polished recently, and the
car is only 4 months old (came from the factory with lots of swirls, yey!!).
I just have some water spots and bug issues to deal with from
long drives and flash rains followed by hot sun...

Your suggestions are greatly appreciated!!

[SingingSabre]

Wash your car with a high quality car wash, something like Gold Class or the NXT Generation wash. This will provide good lubricity to safely remove dirt.

Next clay your car. This will remove above surface bonded contaminants, including wax...all wax.

Now use a paint cleaner or cleaner/polish. Since you have swirls, I would suggest working ScratchX in really well a few times or using #80 to get rid of those swirls.

Penultimate step, wax. I would suggest the NXT Generation Tech Wax. I love this stuff. 2 layers is the most you'll need. A 3rd layer won't do anything but waste what you have in your bottle/tin.

If you feel the need to add a layer of carnauba on top, try out #26. I've seen great results from the other members of this forum with that.

Now you just need to keep a good washing regimen with a high quality car wash, none of this Dawn ****! Dawn will dry out your paint, strip your wax, and make you go blind (well, maybe not the last part). My point is, Dawn is bad for your car.

Have fun and good luck!

[Murr1525]

If you have a dark color, you may also benefit from a polish inbetween the ScratchX and wax. DC#2 is an excellent choice by hand.

Incidently, if you already got all the swirls out good, using DC#1 as a psint cleaner may be better, until you need to use ScratchX to remove swirls again.

I would also add that 3 layers of wax is about the most I would consider. Probably 2 of Nxt for protection, and then 1 of a carnuba, maybe #26, for extra looks. Adding much more is just a waste of effort.

Since wax is supposed to create a layer that wont let things attatch to it, how many times do you want to add wax over wax that it shouldnt attatch to...

[Lonely Raven]

OK, thanks for the responses guys, but I don't feel my
questions were clearly answered. Or maybe they were and I'm
just not as clear with your response.

As I said, my paint is in great shape. I don't need to polish.

I have $62 tub of Zymol Titanium, so I'm not running out and getting #26
A good product is a good product regardless of brand.

Thanks for suggesting high quality car wash and NXT wax, as you
can see, I've already said in my thread I picked up the NXT wash,
wax, window cleaner and detailer...

So, again, my questions were:

What's a good way to strip off old wax so I can start fresh with
the NXT?

Any recommendations as to HOW TO LAYER a carnuba over NXT?

[05PhillyStang]

What's a good way to strip off old wax so I can start fresh with

Well, Like SingingSabre mentioned, to remove the old wax, clay your car. that will give you a fresh canvas to work on, so to speak.

Someone else will have to feild your layering question as it is something I am not familiar with. Is the Zymol 100% Carnuba? I'm just curious

[Tanat198]

[
So, again, my questions were:

What's a good way to strip off old wax so I can start fresh with
the NXT?

Any recommendations as to HOW TO LAYER a carnuba over NXT? [/B][/QUOTE]

Claying your car will certainly remove wax and contaminants like others suggest. I think polishing the car will certainly beneft the paint, increase the depth and gloss. For me it's a must before waxing.
If you'd like to layer a canuba wax over nxt, you should first wax with nxt. Then wait for the wax to cure usually 12 hrs. After this ,you can add another layer of canuba wax over nxt. Or you can try synthetic sealant , then add another layer of canuba wax.

[Mike Phillips]

The best way to remove old wax is to use a gentle paint cleaner like Deep Crystal Paint Cleaner. Apply, work in, wipe off. Now go to your choice of wax.





On a side note, Meguiar's doesn't believe in layering past 2-3 coats of wax in any one detailing session and to date, no one's ever proven that after 2-3 coats in any one detailing session any further applications adds anything that the first applications didn't already produce.

After 2-3 coats of any companies wax, it's time to stand back and admire the results, not add more and more wax.

Have fun!

[05PhillyStang]

Mike, it's obvious that you are not a fan of layering wax. I've never done it so I can't give my opinion either way. However, it is definitely a much discussed topic. I would like to hear some people's opinions on the pros and cons of layering "wax." I put wax in quotes because this can be carnuba, synthetic, sealant, etc. Be sure to mention what you process is (number of layers, time in between layers) and what products you use. Also, if you've tried product x over product y and acheived horrible results, share that too.

Raven - I'm not trying to hyjack your post, I just thought this was a great way of learning some techniques and "do's and don'ts of layering."

[Lonely Raven]

Cool, thanks for the info Mike!

No problems with hijacking my thread, we are all here to learn
and share!

~Eric~

[SingingSabre]

Re: Removing old Wax, Layering New Wax?

Originally posted by Lonely Raven
My paint is in decent shape as it's been polished recently, and the
car is only 4 months old (came from the factory with lots of swirls, yey!!).
I just have some water spots and bug issues to deal with from
long drives and flash rains followed by hot sun...

Your suggestions are greatly appreciated!!

My idea about the M#80 was about those very swirls. M#80 breaks down into a wonderful polish after removing swirls which enhances depth, gloss, and shine. Great jig, if you ask me!

What's a good way to strip off old wax so I can start fresh with
the NXT?

Any recommendations as to HOW TO LAYER a carnuba over NXT?

1: Claying or using a paint cleaner will remove the old wax.

2: Apply NXT. Let cure. Remove. Apply 2nd coat of NXT. Let cure. Remove. Apply carnauba. Let cure. Remove.

[zr123]

Originally posted by Lonely Raven
Cool, thanks for the info Mike!

No problems with hijacking my thread, we are all here to learn
and share!

~Eric~

You must be really really new here, and have not read through very many posts to know who Mike is ... I wouldn't call it hijacking... if there is anyone who can give you the "best" advise, it's Mike.

You might want to spend some time just reading through some posts rather than assuming we are not answering your questions. Sure, other companies make good wax and we know you have NXT Wash, but to clearly answer your questions, keeping in mind you are on a Meguiar's forum, nothing wrong in reiterating which products you should use

Look through galleries, before and after's, extreme makeover, show off, etc... and you'll see what and how much you can do using a lot of even Meguiar's bottom line stuff. Buying a $62 wax will eventually be out of the question . . .

Anyways, welcome to MOL and have some fun! oh and yes... we are all here to learn and share! no doubt about that!

[Lonely Raven]

Psst, re-read the post AFTER Mike's where the guy mentioned
hijacking my thread.

Seems people skim over threads a lot here.

Thanks for the info guys, I've read and re-read and gone
through dozens of thread, I think I have the ammunition I need now.

[taylor192]

Mike will confirm if I'm wrong...

What's the purpose of 'layering wax'? Most will say its to get the ultimate deep shine thinking adding more layers adds more depth and shine.

My baseball coach used to say: practice doesn't make perfect, perfect practice makes perfect. The same applies here: Adding layers doesn't add the depth and shine, adding the right layers in the right order adds the depth and shine.

I've been using #7 for a bit now and absolutely love the results. #7 topped with Gold Class gives an amazing deep oily shine, adding more layers does nothing. I've tried this before:
#7
Gold class
Gold class
#7

The last layer of #7 didn't do much, although the first layer did a lot! I don't think there's much better than #7 for adding that deep oily shine and if layering it last did nothing, then I agree with Mike that adding more layers is pointless.

[Mike Phillips]

Just a note...

Because layering is a topic of interest, I'm going to put together an article on the subject that I hope will put things into their proper persepective...

[Mike Phillips]

While Meguiar's doesn't specifically endorse, or recommend topping, because a lot of enthusiasts like to do this, I have written a how to article to help you with the process by explaining a few fundamental ideas behind the process. You can read it by clicking the link below.

Topping NXT or other products