Car Wax Blues

[Patrick Bajtka]

I purchased a 2007 Sport Trac XLT in mid-June. At the time, the only one I could find equipped the way I wanted it happened to be black. Having had plenty of experience with black cars and trucks, I knew that waxing could be problematic so before I waxed the new ST, I did quite a bit of research on the internet.



For the last five years or so, I had been using Eagle One Wet Liquid Car Wax and had been pretty much satisfied with its performance, even on black vehicles. But this product is no longer made. After my research on the internet, I ended up buying Black Magic Wet Shine Liquid Wax and Turtle Wax Liquid Carnauba Wax, primarily because they were top-rated by Consumer Reports magazine.



I tried the Black Magic first, applying it with a foam applicator. I attempted to remove it with brand-new (washed once with fabric softener) 100% cotton terry cloth towels. It came off ok but left streaks that I had a difficult time removing. I final got rid of the streaks by using micro fiber polishing cloths. The shine is gorgeous, but it takes way too much work for an old man like me (57).



Two weeks later, I tried the Turtle Wax. It was a little bit easier to work with, but not much. I then happened to run across an old half-full container of Eagle One Wet and tried it on the left rear fender. It worked very well, was easy to work with, and left a fantastic shine with little effort and NO STREAKING!



My questions: seeing as Eagle One no longer manufactures Wet, does anyone have any experience with their new Nanowax? Also has anyone else had any experience with the Black Magic, or Turtle Wax? And what about the streaking? Should I go to using a buffer? Any help, thoughts, or advice will be appreciated.



Thanks in advance and have a good weekend!

 

[Dre L]

Try Meguiar's NXT tech wax, or Turtle Wax ICE polish. Both come off easy with relatively little streaking.



I prefer the meguiars on my deep wedgewood blue trac, but the ICE does a nice job. Depending on the color, one may be better than the other.



The ICE is fantastic on rubber and plastic trim, and is worth it as a dressing if nothing else.



The NXT brings out depth, color, clarity, it's just beautiful. I used to swear by Mother's before finding NXT.



Their car wash soap, detailer, and spray wax also revive the shine of your initial waxing.

 

[Martin Luckett]

You should try Malco's FLASH Liquid Paste Wax. I have a dark red ST & it does a great job on it.

 

[Dallas Starr]

I agree with nobleman... get meguirs nxt. Its what I use and has easy application and smooth removal.

 

[Chops]

I won't get in on the which wax is best exchange, because that is subjective like oils.



But I will offer this advice, since all I've ever owned or bought is black cars and motorcycles:

Use your cotton towels for something else. It doesn't matter how soft you think they are, they scratch clearcoat period. It just shows over the black worse than other colors. I can scratch clearcoat with the skin on my finger.



Get a bountiful supply of quality micro-fiber cloths, and go ahead and buy a bottle of 3m swirl mark remover, because it happens no matter how careful you are.



I use Eagle One spray, but only between waxing periods. It is good after a wash, and also good to use with the claybar.

 

[Patrick Bajtka]

Thanks to everyone for your input and suggestions. Nobleman and Big D: I'll definitely be giving Meguiar's NXT a look-see. Martin: Ditto in regard to Malco's. Chops: I agree...everyone has their opinion on which wax works best. And I've already given up on my cotton towels and have purchased a supply of micro-fiber cloths. So far, I haven't had any swirls to remove but I do have a bottle of 3M swirl mark remover left over from my last truck, a black Chevy Sportside.



At the risk of sounding repetitive, let me state for the record that the Black Magic Wet Shine leaves an absolutely beautiful finish...no swirls at all. But it was just too much work for me. I look forward to trying some of the new suggestions. What the hell am I going to do with all of the leftover wax from the brands I've tried and given up on?

 

[Bart Adkins]

California Custom makes a product called "M-Ron Glass" It is FLAWLESS on black, and effortless to remove. I have tried everything, and I mean EVERYTHING. The Trac is my second black truck.(Once you go black, you never go back) Nothing else even comes close. It is the best. Especially for us nuts with the black vehicles. You wont believe this stuff...it will save you hours and hours of buffing and rubbing, and shines better than anything else. You can let it dry all day in the sun and take it off at your leisure with no effort at all. No streaks, no dull spots, no white powdery crap. Black vehicles go by a whole different set of rules. Lots of other products work for lots of other colors...Just click the link.

 

[Nelson Atwell]

I've read a couple of places that you do NOT use fabric softener on microfiber cloths, because it leaves a residue on your paint. I did that once, and the cloths did leave streaks with the fabric softener. The ST is cleaner when I just wash them with laundry soap only.

 

[A K]

Nelson is right. Never use fabric softener on MF towels. I recommend a non-scented non-colored detergent (Tide Free, for example) or a MF cleaner (see www.autopia-carcare.com or www.pakshak.com).

 

[Patrick Bajtka]

Once again: a big THANK YOU to everyone who took the time to respond to my original message. I learned a lot and will definitely take everyone's suggestions under consideration.



Just for the record, I waxed the entire ST Saturday morning using some of the Eagle One Wet Liquid Car Wax that I have left over and it came out great: no fuss, no muss, no streaking whatsoever. I used Cobra brand microfiber towels to remove the wax.

 

[Johnny O]

I'm pretty picky about keeping my vehicles clean but I have a cousin who is way, way worse than me and has owned nothing but black vehicles for years. He swears by a wax called Collonite. It's a little tough to find (try non-chain auto parts stores) but it works real nice.

 

[Data Kruncher]

Based on this discussion, I went shopping and bought the last bottle of NXT Tech Wax the store had. A bit pricey, but not much more so than the Auto Glym stuff I'd used previously.



Wow, this is a great product. Now I'm not adverse to work, but this is Super Easy on and off. Even the little applicator pad supplied was nice. It lets you be careful where the wax goes; like painting freehand. Fantastic shine and super smooth. Used it on the wheels too. Hopefully the durability is as good as the AutoGlym was. It seemed to last about 6 months.



On the downside, even after all the washing I've done, I never really realized just how many little tight spaces and how much surface area there is on an ST. There goes the whole afternoon! Oh well, just a couple times a year, right?



Anyway, thanks for the recommendation. Seriously, I really think the truck looks better now than when it was new a year ago (to the day).