Wax vers Polish

[jedi]

Which is better for the paint on my vette? Wax or Polish? And why? I am having a professional detail job done and need to choose between the two.
Jedi

 

[Ctfoodguy2000]

Jedi - I suggest you go to General Forums & then into Care & Detailing. There are numerous threads on this subject as well as types of wax, etc..

 

[Vettelt193]

asking wax or polish is not a very good question... you may want to reconsider taking your car to whoever asked that question.

polish makes the paint smooth and glossy

wax protects paint, and should only be applied after polish

some show car owners don't use wax becuase they say it detracts from the natural finish, others use special waxes to enhance the finish

some wax comes with a polish built in (like the stuff you would see at your local auto parts store or wal mart) high quality wax are almost never like this

a good website to check out is www.zymol.com

 

[GS Diva]

Yes, wax and polish are two different products, each designed to do something different. Show car people tend to use polish as it leaves a very glossy look...but lacks the protection from the elements that wax provides. There are many great products. You just need to decide what you need and try some out!

Elaine

 

[RubyDropTop]

Sorry, but the choice that you are being asked to make does not sound very "professional" to me. How experienced is the place that you are taking the car to? You should not have to choose between the two, and actually using both a polish (first) and a quality "pure" wax (second) will only serve to enhance the finish on your car. I'd look elsewhere or gather as much detailing info as possible (try: Autopia.org) and do the job yourself.

Which is better for the paint on my vette? Wax or Polish? And why? I am having a professional detail job done and need to choose between the two.
Jedi

 

[jedi]

Lesson Learned

Yeah, I should have listened to the advice here. You can find out what happend in the detail forum under the title "ARRGG!!!". Hind sight is 20/20 and now my vette has been damaged.
One very ****ed Jedi

 

[Full Bull]

jedi....one word: Zaino

 

[Vetsvette2002]

You can't wax new paint. You can GLAZE it.
After the car is painted wet sanded and buffed, alot of the oils in the fresh paint are dried out. We use Meguires #7 glazing compound every day for 2 months before using Meguires #26 yellow wax.

Don

 

[RubyDropTop]

Sorry, but I don't agree with that. Today's paints do not require a certain period of time before they can be waxed - they cure through a chemical process (such as concete does) and not through a typical drying/evaporation process. Paints that were used years ago required time to cure before they could be waxed, but that is not the case with today's automotive paints.

You can't wax new paint. You can GLAZE it.
After the car is painted wet sanded and buffed, alot of the oils in the fresh paint are dried out. We use Meguires #7 glazing compound every day for 2 months before using Meguires #26 yellow wax.

Don

 

[DetailingDude]

Which is better for the paint on my vette? Wax or Polish? And why? I am having a professional detail job done and need to choose between the two.
Jedi

There is no standard answer to this as it depends on the condition of your paint. I have a feeling what your detailer is offering is a wax job or a polish and then wax job..... if he is professional.

The purpose of a polish is to remove surface contamination and some slight surface defects like light surface scratching or a minor abrasion. A polish should be followed up with a wax as a polish's durability is quite limited as is the durability of glaze. There is not much difference between a glaze and a polish with the exception that a polish typically has a minor abrasive in it.

The purpose of a wax is to act as a sacrificial barrier. If you get bombed by a bird, get some acid deposition or any other number of surface contamination the damage should happen to your wax and not to your car.