Please recommend a good wax for my white Honda

Charlie, thanks for the info. I am going to look him up now and try to get in contact with him.

 

I'll save you some time, should have included this with the original post:
Detailers Domain

 

I second that contact Phil. You can search him on here and find pics of the cars he has done and posted.
Duragloss 501 and 111 are great. I had that combo on my car and it lasted 3 months before I reapplied.
Collinite 476 would be another good choice, that wax lasts and lasts.
After a rain I usually go over my car with a quick detailer. Well since recently I use Optimum No Rinse, dilluted as stated on the back in a spray bottle. Then will go over that with a quick detailer when I want a lil exta gloss on the car.

 

wow in this whole post no one really suggested polishing at all.

I would probably wash/clay/polish and then seal or wax the car.

I didn't see the answer to Charlie's questions on where is the car parked , are you by a tree, train station, factory etc, I saw this on one of my customer's m3 but I asked him where he parks and he said next to a construction site every time I cleaned up his car it looked horrible.

 

Hi Phil, thanks for responding to my email so fast.

I am sorry that I didn't answer Charlie's question. Yes, i live close to the train but my condo building blocks where I park. In other words, my car is not next to the tracks as it is blocked by my condo building which is 2 stories high.

I've already had the car washed, compounded, clayed, polished and waxed 3 weeks ago and it's still doing the exact same thing. It actually feels like there isn't much wax left on the car. My car looked amazing for the first week but after it started to rain on it, it got ruined again. I park it outside constantly (no garage). I understand wax doesn't last long on cars but 3 weeks? We had a really bad rain storm here this past Sunday and after that, the car started looking bad again. I already have rain spots on the hood of my car which are faint but I know they are there and they will only get worse if I don't do something soon. It's extremely frustrating.

 

the condo may block the tracks but if its in the air its in the air.

how does the car feel is it rough?

 

I just replied to your email. here's what I wrote:

Hi Phil,

I didn't expect you to respond so quickly. Thanks.

When you say polish the car, do you mean a really good detail? I had a full detail done 3 weeks ago which included using the buffer to compound and polish, clay and also apply a carnuba wax. When I got the car home , the paint felt super smooth but now it's starting to feel gritty and I just washed it last night. After the terrential downpours we had on Sunday, my car is now starting to collect dirt again in the pain. You can actually see rain spots that are turning my car like a grayish color. Basically, I think right now I can tell b/c I know what to look for but my friends are clueless when they look at my car from a distance b/c it still looks white from a distance. I'm just really tired of spenidng a lot of money to have it detailed and it doesn't last. I applied Liquid Glass to the car 2x within 2 weeks a few months ago and when it rained, the stuff was gone, like it was never applied. My husband and I used a pre-cleaner wax on the car as well before we applied the Liquid Glass. I really am starting to lose hope for this car. When it rains, I actually cringe which is crazy. LOL..

I had my car simonized by a well known person on Long Island last year (Charlie Simoniz) and he usually does an amazing job, he clayed my car and hand waxed it and when i got it back it still had streaks of dirt going through it. I spent like $200 on that and just recently spent $125 on the other detail. I'm just tired of spending money and the car looks nice for a few weeks and then turns to garbage again. When I used the pre-cleaner, all of our buffing pads we used were black. It was pretty gross.

I read somewhere that the pores need to be closed on the paint. Have you ever heard of this? I am getting so desperate. I was thinking of applying an oil based glaze as someone mentioned on the forum and apply Collinite 476s over it (a double wax)... If that doesn't work I don't know what I am gong to do. I was referred to you b/c they said you were very knowledgable.

From waht I understand, Honda is using cheap paint these days. Shame on them.

You asked if the car feels rough, yes, it does not feel as smooth as it did on Friday and it is starting to feel a little gritty. I'd hate to use anythign abrasive on it again b/c I get so worried about the depth of the paint.

Thanks,
Trish

 

I did. Or I, to be exact, I said probably a good polishing after being inspected. And as mentioned after my post it was recently done but who know the level of work performed.

 

She had her car washed/clayed/polished already

 

Reasons why I didn't suggest polishing:

1. It's been done within the last month.
2. I don't know the caliber of any shops in the area except those I see posted here so I'm reluctant to suggest that she go back to the shop that just detailed it (hence the reason I referred her to you).
3. She's had it detailed but expressed no interest in performing the paint correction using rotary/PC/Flex or whatnot, only in a better LSP.
4. Apartment Dweller, polishing may not be practical/possible with a machine.

 

That as well but my thinking was it may not have been done correct.

 

Also in retrospect of my first post I would have to agree with SuperBee. I didn't realize you had single stage paint (must have missed it....).

Bottom line you need find to find somebody near to go over the car.

 

Duragloss 501 will deep clean the paint....works great on SS paint....

I worked for the Railroad for 13 years and i will tell you this..exhaust from the idling engines will settle on paint and just soak in....the fuel does not burn complete and its a combo of fallout and vapored fuel....

if you have no PC ..I would use a terry applicator with 501 so it adds some cut...use some elbow grease to work it in....clay will not deep clean..its a surface cleaner...

now after using the DG 501..then next day use the DG 105.....this way you give the 501 to cure up and give a good hard base protection....501 has some good properties to it ..like anti corrision ...a hard shell coat....it will seal the pores of the SS paint....and cleans like magik....

105 will seal that all in and add protection also..its very acid resistant so will help wwith the exhaust settling on the paint...its nice and slick also to help the dirt just wash of easy....

do not use a wax in the conditions you stated..they do not help much with heavy fallout..the fallout just eats it up cause of the atomized solvents in the air...



wash weekly witth a good shampoo I like DG 901 as its PH nuetral and helps keep acid levels at bay....cleans good and leaves a little something on the paint to help ....

do Aquawax monthly to maintain maximum slickness and protection..the slicker you keep the paint the less fallout adhesion

Hope this helps you

this combo will last you 6 months easy if you maintain it right....as above....


Al

 

Thanks Al for the info.

So you really think all this stuff will work to protect my paint? You think it will bond? It's like nothing I've tried has bonded to the paint after it rains. My husband and I are hoping to move within the next 5 months so we won't be near the train. After I move, will I still have to keep all this up or do you think at that time, I will not have these problems?

So are there really pores in single stage paint like I've read online? When I told my husband this his comment was "paint is not a living thing".

So you don't think I should try the Collinite at all like everyone else suggested?

 

Trisha, yep, it’s not an easy situation, but try to imagine how paint systems work and age.

You have a white Honda. White is theoretically a tough color, because of the pigment in it – titanium dioxide, also a hard thing. But newer cars are painted with a different technology, so the amount of paint on the cars is about the third of what was on them 20 years ago.

Clay was developed to clean these thin, sensitive paints, because it slides on a water film, so its abrasive action is minimized. Cleaning the paint is always a good idea. You can do that mechanically (clay, abrasives) or chemically (cleaner waxes, all in ones, and decontamination). From your descriptions, your car is reluctant to hold the protection for whatever reason. Considering your car lives outside 24/7, the paint may have reached a state that we call permeable. It means that the molecular structure of the paint is not as dense as it was when new, but more porous. Yes, paints don’t have pores like the gas exchange openings on the backsides of leaves, but porosity is a characteristics of basically every known material. Paint has little hills, valleys, holes under the microscope. They are wonderful nests for dirt, unwanted chemicals, etc.

If your paint sheds the protecting chemicals, it is called improper bonding. Such a bonding issue means that you have to restore the base by thorough cleaning, so the LSP, aka last step product; the wax or sealant can bond properly, thereby ensuring good protection. Unwanted/cheap/bad chemicals can cause bonding issues so it would be important to know what was on your paint BEFORE this whole adventure begun.

If you have returning spots (brown), that means that you have ferrous particles embedded deep into your paint finish. Rail dust, construction/industrial fallout, etc. Claying is just a temporary fix, because the light abrasives can shave off the top of the ferrous particle. The tiny little bit that still hides in the paint film, will bloom again, no matter where it is. You can see rusty spots even on plastic bumpers. So, the first task is to remove all the contamination from your finish. The decontamination systems mentioned above will remove everything, providing a squeaky clean surface. On this prepped surface the waxes/sealants can bond so you won’t have issues any more. However, a decon is a pretty sophisticated process, definitely not recommended for beginners – but I think it is the only solution.

After the decon I’d suggest a substantial heavy carnAuba (spelling!!!) wax, such as Collinite 476S. The reason for it is simple. Sealants build only a flat molecular net when bonding to the substrate (paint), but carnauba waxes do have a more 3-dimensional layer, which can be thicker than sealants’. We are talking about mere microns here, so don’t expect wonders! If a particle is aggressive enough to embed itself deep into a hard paint (average 120 microns thick), then a wax/sealant layer has no answer against it and the particle will strike through the 0.5-1 micron thick protection. You can slow down the attack by using an *industrial* carnauba, because the sacrificial barrier will work initially. But DO expect more frequent protecting when your car lives outside, near rails, factories, airports, etc. Be prepared for a – say – 2-3 month cycle for waxing, weekly careful washing with GENTLE car soaps ( not to strip the existing layers), and light protection refreshments after every 2-3 wash with a good spray wax/sealant.

I’ve encountered strange paints on which no wax was able to hold on. Concentrated wipe-on walk-away sealants, like Optimum Opti-Seal or Ultima PGP were quite successful on these paints, because of their consistency and application. There are no scientific explanation to this, only a broad empirical observation base.

There is another possibility though. If you can install a good coating, it will multiply the protection of normal waxes. Try to contact David Ghodoussi at Optimum Polymer Technologies as they are developing a good coating for the prosumer detailer. Installing it will still need an experienced professional, but the result will worth it IMO, and cheaper than rival coating systems.

Let’s go practical! First thing to do is to examine the paint. Put on a plastic glove (the thin one ladies use at the meat section), and feel the paint. It has to be smooth as glass. If it feels like sandpaper, there are lots of contamination on it. Means: decon, clay. Check the clarity and the overall optical state of the paint. If you can see little circular scratches in the reflection around a light source, you have to polish it to perfection. Develop a good scratch and mar free washing technique with proper wash media and chemicals. Use clean microfibers to apply the spray wax and/or quick detailer after a wash. DON’T use any cheap, slingy, silicone-laden dressing over your rubber door seals, unpainted plastic parts, tires because reacting with rainwater they cause ugly black streaks as they run down the body and sling off the tires.

 

Thank you. I must say that you have a lot of knowledgeable info. I really appreciate your help.

So you think that I should get a decontamination as mentioned above by someone else? I don't even know anyone around my area that would do this. I know I can order the products online but I don't know any professionals in my area that specialize in this.

Is it really that much different if I run my hand over my cars paint with a plastic glove? I actually ran my hand over my paint tonight to see how rough my paint was. It didn't feel terrible. I felt other cars in my condo's parking lot and I couldn't believe how rough their cars were. It was gross!

I took a good look at my paint tonight too since there wasn't much sun b/c they are calling for rain again. I can see that my hood, trunk and roof of my car have this faint brownish looking color (spots) coming through. I know it was caused from our recent rain storm on Sunday.

So in other words, I need to do the following:?

decontaminate my car by professional (if I can find one in my area)
apply a sealant (I was told oil based works well with single stage paint)
apply Collinite 476s (carnuba wax)

then, when I wash the car thereafter, use a product that is not harsh. I believe the car wash product i have which is Liquid Glass car wash is not harsh at all. My husband used to use Mr. Clean's car wash system but we noticed that it would strip my wax and when we used the Liquid Glass car wash both of or cars seemed to bead a lot more than with the Mr. Clean system.

I appreciate all your help but I just worry taht there is nobody in my area who handles this stuff. You wouldn't happen to live in NY, would you? LOL..

 

Al, thanks for your help. I just looked up Duragloss 501 and it says it's for acrylic finishes such as boats and RV's. Is this safe for auto paint?

Someone on here told me to use an oil based sealant before I use a wax as the oil based sealant would seal the pores of the single stage paint. What is your opinion on that?

 

501 is safe for auto's I use it and love it. I top mine with DG 111. I would forget the word wax and use a sealant on the car.

 

Trish,

Unfortunately, I live in Hungary, Europe...

Definitely yes, a plastic glove will act like a tactile magnifier glass. You won't believe the feel.

If there are brownish (rusty) spots, well, they aren't caused by the rain directly. The ferrous particles oxidize (rust) because of the moisture - not necessarily rain, but of course, rain accelerates the process.

There is no oil-based sealant. Sealants use man made raw materials to produce the bonding/protection. Oils hinder bonding so they are incompatible with most sealants. You are thinking of glazes containing oils. Glazes are temporarily concealing imperfections, but most of them make the whole protection package shorter lived. Polymer based glazes are much more stable than their oily counterparts but you have to focus on full blast protection and bonding of the wax.

Watch your spelling; it is car-na-u-ba wax.

I think experienced prosumer or pro detailers in your area can do a Finish Kare or Autoint decon if they follow descriptions to a t. Again, Optimum has a beta product which will be easier to use, so another reason to ask David Ghodoussi.


What you have to do:
- decon (either FK, AI)
- paint correction if necessary (machine applied polishes and/or compounds if the paint condition makes it necessary)
- applying heavy protection (Colli 476S/885; same)
- developing a good washing technique (EXTREMELY important step)
- quality car soap; weekly washes (DON'T overdose) alternatively ONR washes (easier, adds further protection)
- extension of the protection by using spray waxes or substantial QDs (after 2-3 washes)

Done.

If you want to know more about decon, you can read worthy infos on the www.fk1usa.com site.

 

Bence, thanks again. I am actually getting ready for bed but will make sure I read this over again tomorrow morning.

I hate to say it but I really don't trust any auto detailers in my area. I don't think they are experienced enough to know any of this stuff but I will do more research in hopes I can find a trustworthy detailer.

Thanks again.