When I wash and wax my car, I put two coats of wax on after I use the Meguiar's paint cleaner and polish. I do this once a week. My question is, am I "building up" layers of wax? I ask because winter is coming up and I don't want my paint to suffer.

~THT

 

Not if you use all 3 steps.

Really you only need to use step 1 a few or a couple times a year, and step 2 when you want to re-wax and gloss up the paint a bit more (step 2's a glaze). "Building up" wax doesn't really work all that well most of the time because of the application process and the solvents involved.... If you want more complete coverage and more of a "build up" of wax, apply a coat, wait a day (or a few) and then apply another coat, rather than 2 coats back to back.

 

You have to know whether the wax you are using has any cleaners in it. If it is not a pure wax, then layering is impossible because each layer will be removed by subsequent layers. If you notice my sig...EX-P is a pure sealant, which allows me to have 3 layers of it. Paste Glaz is a pure carnauba wax, which allows me to have 2 layers of that on top of EX-P.

 

Where can I find Ex-P or equivalent? Right now, I'm using Turtle Wax Platinum.

~THT

 

Poorboy's EX-P can be found at AutoGeek.net, among other online suppliers. I think it's $15 a bottle.

 

2 coats a week is a bit much, you arent benefiting from waxing it that often, because a solid 2 coats should last a few months. I wax once a month and thats more than enough. If I were you, I'd do the 2 coats of wax once a month and just use a finishing glaze or spray wax finish after weekly washes.

 

Also, be sure to remove all of the wax about once a year because the wax layers will oxidize, leaving you with a finish that is not a shiny as it should be (you're seeing the paint through a dull layer of wax).
It is not necessary to apply 2 coats of wax every week. You can only build up 4 or 5 layers maximum, so you're wasting your time waxing so often. Furthermore, if your wax is not a pure wax, you aren't ever acheiving more than one layer of wax anyway.
I wax my car once a month year round. If it's really cold outside and I lack motivation to wax during the winter, I know the paint will be fine without a new coat since I have 3 layers of a durable sealant on it in addition to the pure carnauba wax on top.