Wax now or wax later....

[68Roadster]

I have a brand new (excuse me, my wife has a) Arctic White coupe and was wondering how long I should wait to put the first coat of wax on it.
I have always heard you have to wait for the paint to actually cure before you apply the first coat of wax. Whats the norm these days given advances in paint/clear coats.
I have poured over this forum and the consensus is to use Zaino but I don't want to do it too early.
Thanks for the help!

Cee

 

[Vettart]

Generally, a good rule of thumb is, if it is a garage car, don't wax it, polish it. Outdoor cars should be waxed once a month, stripping the wax off before each application. Clear coats are more fragile but still can stand up to quite a bit of polishing without problems. Most polishes (including Zaino) are tuned for clear coats.

 

[jester]

There are some members here who do body/paint work who may chime in.

I had some paint work done on my car this summer and asked the shop about that same thing. The answer was with today's paints 16 hours was all that was needed for curing. This was at a shop that specializes in doing classic restorations. He said the old rules about waiting a month or so don't apply any more.

 

[68Roadster]

Thanks to all for the info..........
It's Dallas so cold weather isn't a problem and the car is garage kept. Guess I'll wait a few months or until the water doesn't bead up anymore and then "polish" the machine.......better yet, it's her car......I'll sit in the lawn chair with the cold suds and cheer her on!

 

[Vettart]

If you help her detail the car, you might get to drive it.

 

[68Roadster]

I'll definitely point out what she misses.........as for driving it, I got it today.........somebody has to blow the carbon out every now and then..........sure drives different than my old classic..........

 

[JJU]

New C5s from the factory can have paint protection applied immediately on delivery. The paint has already cured.

Here is what Sal Zaino says on a re-paint of a car:
There's alot of misinformation about waiting three months for the paint to cure. I am a custom painter by trade. I am very familar with Dupont, PPG and all the other paint manufacturers. The most I personally would wait on fresh "aftermarket body shop" paint before polishing with Zaino Show Car Polish is 1 week. That's more than sufficient curing time. The new paints are catalyzed. A chemical reaction cures the paint. The older lacquers and enamels needed time for the solvents to release. This is not the case anymore. Believe me if that paint need 3 months to dry than it will never dry. Just the facts.
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Of course if your body shop has implied some sort of warrenty, you should listen to their advise.
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[XS650]

The topic was factory and other catylized paint. But for those of us who might occasionally paint something like a replacement mirror or other widget with non-catylized paint....

To tell if non-catalized paint like lacquer or rattle can paint is ready to wax, sniff it very carefully. If you can smell any paint or solvent smell, it isn't done drying and/or curing. Then wait a week after you can't smell it anymore before waxing.

I haven't verified that, but heard it from a guy who was an accomplished custom painter back before catylized paint.

 

[VAmagred01]

"JJU" has the answer.....

Congrats on your new purchase!.....I mean your Wife's new purchase!:L

 

[68Roadster]

VA, JJU and others..........
Thanks for the advice and comments........

She got the car and I got the payment book.........

 

[XS650]

She got the car and I got the payment book.........

Sound like you have the start of some country music there. Work in prison, mother and train and you will have it

 

[VAmagred01]

Good one, XS650!:L

That's the way it goes when you're married, I guess. Oh what I have to look forward to........

 

[XS650]

That's the way it goes when you're married, I guess. Oh what I have to look forward to........

It works out differntly for different people. My wife gave me a '96 LT-4 convertible for my birthday a couple of weeks ago.

 

[VAmagred01]

Wow! Now that's what I call a birthday present!

Does your wife have an unmarried sister?!!!:L

Congrats!


Kenny

 

[DetailingDude]

You can use any automotive wax including Zaino which is a synthetic wax.

If your paint is fresh from the body shop you will need to find out what sort of curing method the body shop used to know if it's safe to wax.