I have a 2003 Silver G35 Coupe and I'm trying to find the best wax that will give me the nice shiny, deep, wet look that i'm going for. I've seen lots of posts for darker color cars but not too much for us lighter guys...whatcha think? This will be my first wash/wax with the new car and I wanna do it right, I know Zaino stuff is the best, but I can't spend 8hrs on a wash/wax so I need something thats quick (sub 3 hrs) and looks great.

So...whatcha thinking?


PS: I have no experience with a claybar, nor do I know where to pick one up, seems like its def. worth doing once. Would Autozone/Advance Auto have one?

 

Autozsone/Advance would have claybar kits, but that just removes surface contaminants. It does nothing to make the paint shine or give it a deep wet look. It's difficult to get Silver (and most lighter colors) looking wet and deep. Basically the darker the color, the deeper and wetter you can get the finish looking.

That said, I'd suggest a wash with Meg's Gold Class (2 bucket method with Sheepskin mit) followed by a coat or two of S100 or P21S.

IMO it takes more than 3 hours to get a finish looking "great". If that's your goal, then set aside 8 hours and do a wash, clay bar, polish, wax job.

 

8 hours?? It takes me 6 hours to detail an entire car.. inside and out, and most of that is the inside... you can do a good job in far less time than that...

 

The time and the quality of the detail will vary from person to person. I'm sure you can do it to your satisfaction in 6 hours.

I detail as a side business and have spent as much as 16 hours on some client's vehicles. I"ve also done them in 4. It all depends on the original condition and the level of 'detail' the customer wants.

I spent well in excess of 16 hours on my Max before this year's Maxus. The result was worth it, though - Best in Show and 1st place in the Show Category.

 

I did my mom's ES330 in about six hours, inside and out with the following:

Washed with Z6
Clayed
ZPC
Sealed with Z2 three times w/ Z6 between layers
Grand Finale
Z18 tire trim
Zaino leather cleaner
Zaino leather conditioner

 

Looks good, but did you forget to do the fender wells?

 

Shut up

 

Well you yourself.....

But seriously, the rest of the job looks great.

 

Thanks; that means a lot coming from you, Mr. Best in Show

 

I've got 3 questions...where's the best place to get those 2 polishes that you guys were talking about (S100 or P21S) And I generally wash the car with one of those car-washing brushes with the soft brissles (sp) Is that a bad idea, would i be better off with the sheepskin mittens and why? And is a chamois (shammy) a good way to drive a wet car? I just wanna do this right if I'm going to spend the time to make it look great!

 

S100 can be bought at any Harley dealer ($15)

P21S mostly from internet sites (Danase/Autogeek) about $30, sometimes less on sale.

Boars hair brushes are ok, but expensive ($50) Most other brushes will induce swirls/light scratches. I use a sheepskin mitt and the 2 bucket method. Sheepskin is very soft and greatly reduces the risk of scratches. 1 bucket for the soapy water and the other with plain water for rinsing out the mitt.

For drying, I use the California Water Blade and Waffle Weave MF towels. A chamois while absorbant, can trap and drag grit across the surface while drying.

 

I clayed this week, and my truck's red (more of a ruby color) paint looks great, except for the dings, dents, chips (from the P.O.), and of course that orange peal that comes from factory because the bastards are too cheap to wet sand the clear. Otherwise, yeah, looks great. Be sure to polish and seal it off with some wax.

 

I used the Meguir's three step system, then maintain with Eagle one wax as you dry after every wash as I chamois it down.