How to Pick Out the Right Car Wax for Your Car
Posted 06/14/09
Car wax makes your car's "new car" shine last longer and restores shine to older cars, but only if you pick the right wax for your car. Some car waxes can scratch and haze your car's finish; others can make your finish gleam, but coat the plastic parts in a visible residue. When you go to choose from the shelves upon shelves of car waxes at your local auto store, here are a few questions to keep in mind.Which is more important to you, depth of color or shine? A natural car wax like Carnauba wax will shine slightly less brightly than artificial waxes, but will give the color depth. Artificial waxes, like most liquid and spray on waxes, give a high shine but less depth of color, and can highlight fine scratches. Dark colors in particular suffer with artificial waxes. Experts suggest that dark cars be waxed only with natural waxes. Lighter cars can take either kind of wax, depending on whether you value color or gleam more highly.
Is there much plastic on your car? Porous, matte plastic, especially dark plastic, reacts badly with some car waxes and acquires a conspicuous residue that may take special cleaners to remove. If your car has a lot of visible plastic, make sure the wax you choose is compatible with plastic.
How durable do you want the car wax to be, and how long are you willing to spend in applying it? Consumer Reports performed a comparison test and found that liquid waxes were the most durable and the best at cleaning. They also took the longest to apply, mainly because of all the extra buffing needed to spread the wax evenly and reduce streaking. Spray on waxes were the fastest to apply, but they lasted the least amount of time and were the least effective at cleaning. Consumer Reports suggested that spray on waxes were best for owners who were willing to reapply them frequently, for interim treatments between full treatments with more durable waxes, or for new cars whose factory fresh finishes required little attention. Paste waxes were about as durable as liquid waxes, and their application time was comparable. Although paste waxes used to be notoriously time consuming to apply, Consumer Reports noted that now they are packaged with applicators that have cut their application time significantly, even and made them slightly easier to apply than liquid waxes.
Consider whether color or shine is more important to you, whether you will need a wax that works well with plastic, how much time you can spend on waxing, and how often you plan to reapply wax. Be frank with yourself about your goals, and do not feel that you should opt for a high effort, high upkeep wax just because the experts recommend it. Unless the experts are going to come and maintain your car for you, pick the car wax that is right for you and your car.
Related Topics
Car washing supplies ... Ultimate car wash ...