Do You Really Need To Wax A Brand New Car?

J4MMYz

J4MMYz

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I've been posting a few threads recently, but I can only say that the advice and answers on here are 100% excellent, so thats why :p

I've noticed people waxing their brand new cars, but I'm wanting to know is it really necessary? I've also seen this thing called claying, which is meant to remove small contaminants on the paint... can anyone please explain this to me, and if there is actually any point? Does this make sure swirl marks are non existent?

Autoglym do a tar remover, so surely that would do the same thing as claying? Or is claying just better in every way?..


Thanks in advance for the replies.
 
Obviously you don't need to wax it, but it depends how OCD you are about keeping your car clean. Personally I clayed, polished and waxed mine. But I like my car looking spick and span! Waxing also makes your car easier to clean for a couple of months as nothing sticks to the paint work a such.

Claying (Stolen from detailing world's Dave KG):

While clay is growing in popularity with many detailers now, it has certainly not become a well known "household" car detailing product. Detailing clay is a substance that is designed to remove bonded contaminatns from paint, leaving the paint smooth as glass, allowing easier and more fruitful applications of polihses, glazes, sealents and waxes. Detailing Clay is wiped gently across the paint which needs to be lubricated with a lubricant such as a Quick Detailer spray.

Clay, like polishes, comes in levels of aggressiveness - if you are a beginner with clay, do start with a mild clay such as Meguiars Quik Clay, Meguiars Professional Mirror Glaze Clay (mild, the blue bar) or Sonus Green Clay. These mild clays should be enough to remove bonded contaminants from most cars, only step up to a more aggressive clay if absolutely needed.

Clay can be used on paintwork, glass, and wheels. Always use separate clay on each - ie dont first clay your wheels then use the same clay to clay your paint, as all the brake dust embedded in the clay from the wheels will scratch the paint.


What Are Bonded Contaminants??
When you come to wash your car, the paint will be covered in lots of fresh contiaminats such as dust, mud, possibly bird boms and many others. In addition, the paint will also have a growing amount of bonded contaminants attached to it, which accumulate over time:


http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=4829
 
MA3RC said:
Obviously you don't need to wax it, but it depends how OCD you are about keeping your car clean. Personally I clayed, polished and waxed mine. But I like my car looking spick and span! Waxing also makes your car easier to clean for a couple of months as nothing sticks to the paint work a such.

Claying (Stolen from detailing world's Dave KG):

While clay is growing in popularity with many detailers now, it has certainly not become a well known "household" car detailing product. Detailing clay is a substance that is designed to remove bonded contaminatns from paint, leaving the paint smooth as glass, allowing easier and more fruitful applications of polihses, glazes, sealents and waxes. Detailing Clay is wiped gently across the paint which needs to be lubricated with a lubricant such as a Quick Detailer spray.

Clay, like polishes, comes in levels of aggressiveness - if you are a beginner with clay, do start with a mild clay such as Meguiars Quik Clay, Meguiars Professional Mirror Glaze Clay (mild, the blue bar) or Sonus Green Clay. These mild clays should be enough to remove bonded contaminants from most cars, only step up to a more aggressive clay if absolutely needed.

Clay can be used on paintwork, glass, and wheels. Always use separate clay on each - ie dont first clay your wheels then use the same clay to clay your paint, as all the brake dust embedded in the clay from the wheels will scratch the paint.


What Are Bonded Contaminants??
When you come to wash your car, the paint will be covered in lots of fresh contiaminats such as dust, mud, possibly bird boms and many others. In addition, the paint will also have a growing amount of bonded contaminants attached to it, which accumulate over time:


http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=4829
Click to expand...



Aha, so would you say that for the less OCD, waxing the car is fine once in a while, then claying every other - or just always clay before wax?
 
Yeah by all means, it's not going to damage the car. Ideally at least once a year a good polish and wax if you're not big into car cleaning. Then wash it two / three times a month. Clay before wax is always a good idea as the wax will bond to the paint, instead of the mucky layer on top of the paint
 
MA3RC said:
Yeah by all means, it's not going to damage the car. Ideally at least once a year a good polish and wax if you're not big into car cleaning. Then wash it two / three times a month. Clay before wax is always a good idea as the wax will bond to the paint, instead of the mucky layer on top of the paint
Click to expand...


I'm hoping that T-Cut does the same as claying, since my girlfriends Aygo was looking pretty tired and dull, it's 7 years old but with 18k miles, i'm guessing it's not been show room polished either, maybe never, so i got the T-Cut and Autoglym wax out and it looks great, I hope I didn't waste time in not claying though, but surely T-Cut would remove the same stuff, but obviously you don't want to T-Cut a car all the time unless in a sorry state :p

So, could you please explain what the difference in polish and wax is? I thought they were the same things. I wouldn't call myself OCD with cleaning, but I do want to keep the car clean enough and swirl/dullness free. I would most likely wax 3-4 months in that case, but what does polishing do?

Cheers :p
 
See this thread for the differences between wax and polish:
http://www.audi-sport.net/xf/threads/wax-or-polish.225037/


As for T-Cut - there will be a outcry from the detailing fanatics about how this is the spawn of satan. It was an excellent product for its time, but today, there are far better products out there to polish and remove oxidation. Unless you have single pack paint and/or faded old red paintwork, put the bottle of T-Cut back into the garage, and research something more suitable for modern paints :) Poor ol' T-Cut. It's main crime against detailing today, is that it does not have diminishing abrasive particles, something which modern water based paints are more suited to when polishing.

T-Cut, as a cutting compound in the correct hands, is OK. But not for your everyday polish. There are better products out there.
http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=76209


Difference between T-Cut and Clay? T-Cut is an abrasive (as all polishes are), but quite aggressive, whereas starter clay is relatively non-abrasive and simply removes contaminants such as tar etc. without polishing.
 
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J4MMYz said:
I've been posting a few threads recently, but I can only say that the advice and answers on here are 100% excellent, so thats why :p

I've noticed people waxing their brand new cars, but I'm wanting to know is it really necessary? I've also seen this thing called claying, which is meant to remove small contaminants on the paint... can anyone please explain this to me, and if there is actually any point? Does this make sure swirl marks are non existent?

Autoglym do a tar remover, so surely that would do the same thing as claying? Or is claying just better in every way?..


Thanks in advance for the replies.
Click to expand...

Best advice I can give you is have a look on here

http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/

All the advice and more is on DW

As regards T-cut, its a load of cr@p. Chuck it in the bin! Its full of fillers and just hides all the swirls, same as the colour magic type products. This stuff is great for the short term and you will find these products just dont last at all

If you were considering AG Lifeshine why dont you get a Pro-Detailer to do your new car? Unless you are a dab hand with a DA machine polisher this is the only real way you will get rid of the swirls/marring instead of masking them

Some Detailers do their work at the garage others prefer at their workshops.
 
& in answer to the thread title - 'Do You Really Need To Wax A Brand New Car?'

YES!

But, I prefer glass coatings (like Carpro Cquartz CQUK & Finest) to wax. I may have opened another can of worms there lol
 
Had a few people at work as me about cleaning as I'm fairly into keeping it clean.

Best advice i have is get some decent but easy to use product.
I recommend autobrite but most brands have similar products.

Banana gloss shampoo
Followed by cherry glaze Polish
Then Project 32 sealant
And finally any wax of you choosing.

Nice and easy to use with pretty much no risk to paintwork and leaves a nice finish with good protection.

Top up with a wash and a coat of sealant a few times a month
 
My car didn't leave the showroom without being waxed. Wax protects the car from contaminates as well as (depending on the wax) UV rays which can dull the paintwork.

My car gets waxed every month or so just to keep the layer between the dirt and paint as fresh as possible. Pays dividend in the winter too as it can help stop the grit binding to the bodywork.
 
Oh my, some one mention T cut?

On no account use Tcut on your car, no matter what the problem. It is extremely abrasive and only fit for inter paint coat rub down. If any of you have any in your garage put in the dustbin.

As far as waxing your new car, well chances are if you didn't stop the dealer cleaning it then they will have used a polish.

There should be no need to clay a new car either, as it will be clean paint with no contaminants on it.

Now back to 'Polish'
Polish by its very nature is abrasive, a Wax or as some company's call it Glaze is not abrasive. The paint as it comes from the factory is pretty much as good as you can get it. Why do you want to abrade the surface? On an old dull car a polish is one step in regaining the finish.

In a way it's the difference between sanding a piece of wood then French polishing it to get a smooth shiny finish or adding a varnish to get the same result. So on a new car only use a wax not a polish.

The white residue left by polish, the stuff that ruins any black plastic, is in fact clay, the finer the clay the less abrasive it is, but it's always abrasive so don't use it.

The swirls on paint are caused by bad cleaning practice in general. By letting the local car cleaners wipe your car with dirty sponges and dirty cloths. Its all that fine dust which acts as a grinding paste.

I've seen new cars sat in the showroom covered in swirls, I wouldn't buy one, it's caused because some one keeps going and wiping the dust off the car to keep it shiny, that dust is fine airborne grit.

When I got my new car home it spent over two days in my cleaned and vacuumed garage being lovingly cared for before I went any where in it.

You need to check out the pages on detailing and cleaning, using the two bucket method and not using sponges, removing as much of the dirt before you touch the surface etc etc........
 
steeve said:
There should be no need to clay a new car either, as it will be clean paint with no contaminants on it.
Click to expand...


This is true, except that our cars have been across Germany on an open train, plus stood at Emden for up to 3 weeks, then at Grimsby for another 2.....

The detailing lot have found lots of iron contamination from the railway, swiftly dealt with by clay, and CarPro IronX.
 
veeeight said:
This is true, except that our cars have been across Germany on an open train, plus stood at Emden for up to 3 weeks, then at Grimsby for another 2.....

The detailing lot have found lots of iron contamination from the railway, swiftly dealt with by clay, and CarPro IronX.
Click to expand...

Very true. Beat me to it! :thumbs up:
 
Please don't use t cut on your cars or I will hunt you down

Claying is an amazing product that makes such a massive difference and it doesn't take that long to do just make sure you apply loads of lubricant and I mean loads and it's always best to wax your car, think how you put sun cream on your body to protect your skin from the elements well that's what wax does for your car! Same with sealants on your wheels

In this day and age where people are spending upwards of 30-40k on a a3 why not spend the extra few hundred quid every 3-6 months on a professional detail! I'm so busy with people's cars these days as people are starting to look after the cars more, this week alone I have a new range rover sport a merc e class cabrio and a galaxy to do each having 2 days spent on them
 
Obliterate is amazing as a tar remover

And iron out from autofinesse is also brilliant
 
lee_fr200 said:
Obliterate is amazing as a tar remover

And iron out from autofinesse is also brilliant
Click to expand...

Just used AF IronOut on the daughters front alloy wheels

I had to break out the CP IronX as the AF IronOut wouldn't shift the really baked on crud.

The IronOut stuff is good, but in my experience, not as good as IronX
 
So what would you use instead of t-cut if you get a scratch? I find t-cut does a good job but apparently not!
 
There were softer versions specifically for metallic paints if I remember correctly...
 
veeeight said:
Meguiars Scratch X 2
Click to expand...
Thank you, I found that. So I also found this: Meguiars Ultimate Compound (450ml) Amazon product

What's the difference between scratch X and this? Literally so many products for things my head is exploding haha
 
My fellow forum member @The Challinor may be able to answer this shortly .....



Edit:
He's only just bought a bottle tonight, so may not have had a chance to use it yet.

Ultimate compound is that, a compound, traditionally very abrasive and needing a finer cut of polish to follow on after. But Megs Ultimate compound boasts of not needing to follow up with a finer polish.

Scratch X 2.0 is a lot finer in comparison, so more suited to spot work.

Following the school of thought of using the least abrasive product to get the job done, use Scratch X 2.0 for spot work, and follow on with a Ultimate Compound if needed, or for a bigger area.

(I'm sure this thread is better suited in the detailing forum ;))
 
Last edited:
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I have waxed mine (2 weeks old) twice since getting it home as i want it to look and feel as nice as possible for aslong as possible also it helps make it a little easier next time i wash the car as dirt and grime doesn't stick so much
 
veeeight said:
My fellow forum member @The Challinor may be able to answer this shortly .....



Edit:
He's only just bought a bottle tonight, so may not have had a chance to use it yet.

Ultimate compound is that, a compound, traditionally very abrasive and needing a finer cut of polish to follow on after. But Megs Ultimate compound boasts of not needing to follow up with a finer polish.

Scratch X 2.0 is a lot finer in comparison, so more suited to spot work.

Following the school of thought of using the least abrasive product to get the job done, use Scratch X 2.0 for spot work, and follow on with a Ultimate Compound if needed, or for a bigger area.

(I'm sure this thread is better suited in the detailing forum ;))
Click to expand...

Thanks, a bloke at work just told me that he's used the ultimate compound as it's the only thing that could get off a bird offense mark.... So going back to my girlfriends car, it's 7 years old and I had t cutted it and finished with autoglym wax, but it's left lots of very fine swirl marks when the sun is on it, this did the same on my old polo I had as my first car and the area's on my other cars I've done to get a scratch out. So would you say I should use megs ultimate compound or scratch X to go over the whole car again to get the fine scratches off then wax? And should I clay bar before megs or after before the wax

That sounds pretty confusing I hope you understand :p
 
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Bristle Hound said:
If your wanting to shift the swirls/marring by hand I would suggest Gtechniq P1 with a Lake Country hand pad
http://www.polishedbliss.co.uk/acatalog/lake-country-hydro-tech-hand-pads-cat24.html

You'll probably end up with arms like Popeyes but it does work

Only other way is machine polishing IMHO

Always decontaminate, then clay, then polish, then wax/sealant
Click to expand...

Okay thanks, so did t cut just do scratches or did I do something wrong? I hope that megs won't do the same.
 
Scratches and swirls were most probably caused by washing the car with a sponge and single bucket previously. Not you using T-Cut.

To get scratches and swirls out, you machine polish, with a cutting polish (abrasive) - or if you're wanting to work up a sweat, by hand, using compound, cutting polish. But this is very hard work by hand, and won't give as good results as by machine.

Scratch X 2 only for small areas, not the whole car.
 
veeeight said:
Scratches and swirls were most probably caused by washing the car with a sponge and single bucket previously. Not you using T-Cut.

To get scratches and swirls out, you machine polish, with a cutting polish (abrasive) - or if you're wanting to work up a sweat, by hand, using compound, cutting polish. But this is very hard work by hand, and won't give as good results as by machine.

Scratch X 2 only for small areas, not the whole car.
Click to expand...

Hm, they can't be swirl marks then. I'm sure the car was not like that before, only just a bit more duller than now. I washed the car with a wash mit and not a sponge, I used the 2 bucket method with autoglym shampoo, I used T-cut then autoglym wax... I didn't clay bar as i've only actually just heard about it, but what happens is in blazing sunlight you see squiggly lines down the paint, but they are not in a swirl, you can't really see them either if you shine a torch on it at night, it's weird. This also happened on my 2002 polo when I had it, I did the same thing and the same thing happened, I don't know if it's because the T-cut hasn't been removed properly...

I'll try polish and wax next time it needs doing, the marks might have been there all along, I can't get a picture of it either as it won't show up, but this has happened on my current car on the fender where SEAT (awful car and garage) had scratched my fender up after replacing a top mount, so I washed and t-cut and it's done the exact same thing, but because it's white you cannot see it unless in a well lit up area, but I think they are swirls, very very fine swirls, almost hazy looking. No idea what my girlfriends car thing is though, maybe someone will know after reading this, maybe it is just swirl marks i'll have to spend some time and try to remove them -_-
 
J4MMYz said:
Okay thanks, so did t cut just do scratches or did I do something wrong? I hope that megs won't do the same.
Click to expand...

Unlikely the T-cut caused more scratches, all that T-cut tends to do is act as a 'filler' for the imperfections. All the swirls/marring will reappera a short time after application of this cr@p
 
Course you need to wax a brand new car!
Audi paint is very hard and easy to chip, the more protection you have on it the better
 
I'd say yes you do, any protections better than none.

Once a month with a good quality hard wax after a decent clean will keep your car in top condition.

Claying is a very good way of contamination removal as are many other ways. But things like fall out are the things you need to protect your car against... Wax will help this.


I recently did a 14plate corsa in black and the amount of contamination on that was unreal due to no protection atall.

Image

This was after a 7stage wash. Fallout and tar and adhesive remover prior to Claying.

So yes waxing is a good thing to do on new or old cars
 
J4MMYz said:
So what would you use instead of t-cut if you get a scratch? I find t-cut does a good job but apparently not!
Click to expand...

Just like @veeeight said they are different products.

Scratch X 2 for deep scratches ( obviously deep cleat coat scratches only )
Ultimate compound for the whole car to remove swirls and "lighter" damage.

Ultimate compound is a bit of a strange product as its over 50% cheaper then megs #105 but is sold as a similar product, albeit in a more prosumer environment.

UC can be used to go over a whole car as its abrasive but not overly abrasive, did my partners A1 all over with it and was pleased with the results. Only used UC all over as was 3 years old and had no idea when last polished and need some mild correction. I'd use it again on areas that need another pass due to heavy swirls, bonnet, roof, etc. But if I wanted to polish the rest of the car i'd switch to ultimate polish where the level of correction just isn't needed.
 
Ultimate Compound is a really great product, easy to use and leaves great finishes, ready for a wax. Here's a few shots of my old car which I made a few passes on prior to selling. Really brings the paintwork to life:







 
Do you really need to wax a new car? You bet you do.
Ideally its best not to let the dealer 'polish it'. Your paint is at 100% when it's on a new car. No swirls no scratches and the surface has its best brilliance.
Then it can be down hill from there. Any polish by its very nature is abrasive and looking at the surface under a microscope will show scratches caused by the abrasives in the polish. Some polishes are less abrasive than others. But all are abrasive. The scratches will affect the level of shine of the paint or lacquer.
So in my humble opinion its not necessary to polish a new car. Most, but not all polishes contain some surface protectant, might be wax, might be silicon or some other item. But any film left is extremely thin and not a very good performer.
So wax or as some makers (Zymol) call it glaze is almost all surface protectant. They will not damage the paint surface but leave a good film after buffing. The surface will be protected for a much longer time. However cheap car shampoos will remove at least 50% of the wax you last put on. Where as wax safe shampoos (almost all decent car care people have a selection) will hardly remove any during careful washing, never use too much shampoo, less is better than more. The care taken when washing and preparing your car will reduce the likelihood of swirls or scratches.

The only time you need to polish your car is when you need to remove some surface defect. Then ideally it's best left to some one who knows what they are doing.
 
Thanks for the replies, i'll wax/clay bar it a few months after i've got it, it won't be going anywhere much apart from sitting in the garage until the nice weather comes and I go on holidays :p

I got told from a guy at work to not bother waxing it for a few months as it'll be fine for a bit.

I'm also not letting Audi wash my car before a service or whatever. I've had bad experiences with garages washing my car, on my SEAT I had the bonnet damaged from someone pulling the wiper up!
I'll make sure I wash it before it goes in, so they don't have to wash it - or specifically note that I don't want it washing!


I think then on my girlfriends car, next time it comes to it i'll clay bar, ultimate compound, autoglym hard wax... as it's 7 years old, I did polish it a while ago but I didn't wax it, i'm leaving that till the spring when it's not freezing. - I hope thats right... if it's not please tell me what order to do what haha. Cheers.
 
Routine for your GF's looks fine.
You really need to get the wax ontop tho as ultimate compound on its own will not offer hardly any protection.
Wax is needed for the wintertime
 
It may have been said before, but you can guage how "clean" your new car paint is by firstly using a good de-iron product such as ironx or AF Iron Out etc as this really does show you what nasties are ingrained in the paint. I bought a new BMW a few years ago and had the £300 paint protection put on and was not impressed. I contacted Rich at Polished Bliss and he suggested I strip the finish off and start again. I as suggested and was amazed (I mean amazed) at the difference between the two finishes. The level of depth and shine when I had added the Blackfire product was simply stunning and it lasted for months. What really did show me how much crud was present was the Auto Finesse Iron out. I cleaned the car and clayed then sprayed half the car Including wheels with the AF iron out (Too many panels and my brake discs needed some TLC afterwards(should read instructions first)). The within 10 minutes I had a purple sludge all over the car especially on roof and wheels. I wish I had taken pictures. The amount of embedded crap was very obvious. I ended up de-ironing twice. The paint was like glass when I was done.

I think we may be a bit harsh on the dealers as the average owner buys the car that looks nice and it gets a clean with halfords wash and wipe once a week. It will still look the same but with few tar spots and bird poo stains in 4 years time. The wheels will be cleaned with soap and water and possibly some really nasty acidic solution. The dealer added protection will be ideal for them.
The other 1% (being ourselves) want more and will laugh at the option of a dealer applied paint protection.
 
Crusher or Grapes said:
It may have been said before, but you can guage how "clean" your new car paint is by firstly using a good de-iron product such as ironx or AF Iron Out etc as this really does show you what nasties are ingrained in the paint. I bought a new BMW a few years ago and had the £300 paint protection put on and was not impressed. I contacted Rich at Polished Bliss and he suggested I strip the finish off and start again. I as suggested and was amazed (I mean amazed) at the difference between the two finishes. The level of depth and shine when I had added the Blackfire product was simply stunning and it lasted for months. What really did show me how much crud was present was the Auto Finesse Iron out. I cleaned the car and clayed then sprayed half the car Including wheels with the AF iron out (Too many panels and my brake discs needed some TLC afterwards(should read instructions first)). The within 10 minutes I had a purple sludge all over the car especially on roof and wheels. I wish I had taken pictures. The amount of embedded **** was very obvious. I ended up de-ironing twice. The paint was like glass when I was done.

I think we may be a bit harsh on the dealers as the average owner buys the car that looks nice and it gets a clean with halfords wash and wipe once a week. It will still look the same but with few tar spots and bird poo stains in 4 years time. The wheels will be cleaned with soap and water and possibly some really nasty acidic solution. The dealer added protection will be ideal for them.
The other 1% (being ourselves) want more and will laugh at the option of a dealer applied paint protection.
Click to expand...


Just to ask, will claying the car get rid of the rust spots? Got loads on mine, guessing it was the train ride from the factory.


Saying about wheel cleaner, I use AG clean wheels which i think is acidic? Whats the problem with it, because i've heard your meant to use custom wheel cleaner which is non acidic - I really hate how there are that many products out there, it gets confusing haha.

Since I used AG clean wheels, my girlfriends Aygo's wheel bolts have rusted like hell, i'm guessing this is what will happen?
 
Hi. I would initially try a liquid such as Iron X to remove any rust marks. Reason being that if there is anything solid there, you may drag it across the paint. Iron X or those liquids are excellent for removing anything iron based. As for acidic wheel cleaners. I think AG do two, one being Acidic and the other "Custom wheel" cleaner being non. My Outback wheels were ruined by a heavy cleaner as it is too aggressive. Again a good clean with wash and then iron X will get most crud off. If you have any chips in the finish and the acid gets onto the bare metal, it reacts very quickly.
 
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