strebal

I purchased my TSX from the dealer, in Feb of '05. The car either sits in my garage or in a covered parking garage at work. The only time it's exposed is in transit. Water still beads up when its gets wet.

Since water still beads up, do I need to wax it or is it still being protected?

I would like to wash ,clay and wax tomorrow.

by the way, I've already read through the Wash & Wax section so Im good there.


By the way, this is a great site.

Dallas, TX

LuvMyTSX

Umm, Zaino that baby ASAP!!!

Brandon24pdx

wax it

moda_way

Dawn -> Clay Bar -> Wash -> Zaino IMMEDIATELY

Consult a Detailing Professional when you save up. That paint will need some serious attention, so the process above will at least protect.

strebal

Really why? I never really sits out in the elements.

Thanks for all the feed back. I've already got my list for the auto store, will do tomorrow.


Thanks for the quick response....

stogie1020

Wash with a quality car soap and a MF or Chenille mit, clay, paint cleaner (Like Klasse AIO), polish of needed, then put a polymer on it (sounds like you want low maintenance).

Even if it's covered all the time, stuff in the air just "settles" on the paint, and since there are allot of chemicals in the particles in the air, they will damage/dull the paint.

Plus, if you get in a position where you suddenly have to leave the car out in the sun for a while, it will already have some protection on it.

joerockt

LOL...you guessed all that, sight unseen??

And leave Dawn in your kitchen to wash dirty dishes, what its made for.

Do you have any pics to put up so we can take a look? I would suspect swirls, if so, you're going to want to polish it to remove them. Though you'll probably want to bring this over to Wash and Wax...

strebal

Don't ge me wrong, I do take care of my car, and it does look good, but I have put off the waxing for way too long.


I've already read through every post in wash / wax section. I posted here becuase I figured it would get a quick response


I don't have too many swirl marks and zero pics. I will take a before and after pic this weekend.

I was going to use Mequairs NTX for the wax, is this a polymer? If not would you suggest a polymer? is Zaino one?

again, thanks

moda_way

You use the dawn to strip any old wax and grease off the car. You use the clay to remove clear coat impurities that can cause havic on a wax. I do this to all my customer's cars and it is a recommended practice SO LONG as you do the full process.

moda_way

I know ppl who have independently tested Zaino. It has the highest quality of polymers and UV protectants in it bar none.

autopia.org is the bible, but using the Zaino will give you the easy method.

waTSX

If the water is still beading, I'd say the paint is in at least OK condition, esp if it's lived indoors most of its life. I'd go with a good clay session, then follow with a good polish and finish up with a quality wax. As good as Zaino seems to be, you can get great results with any number of products out there.

The trick is the clay, IMO.

moda_way

Brake dust puts metallic particles on the paint. Only way to remove is to clay the car. Very simple to do. After you dawn the car, mix up small amount of water with the dawn as a lubricant for the clay. Dip your hand in the soapy mix, put on a 2'x2' section and rub the clay (pancake style) in a horizontal fashion. Move on and fold the clay over and pat down to shape, start the next section.

moda_way

waTSX

NTX is very good, and more affordable than Zaino.

strebal

One more question and Im done with this thread...

can I purchase Zaino at Auto Zone or any other store of is this an projuct that needs to be purchased over the internet?


When claying, what is "pancake style" ?

waTSX

I think you have to order it from their website. Never seen it in stores.

moda_way

I suggest ZFX, Z-2, their clay bars, and detailing spray. Grab a couple of application sponges. If you intend to keep it up more, grab a bottle of their car wash too. Their stuff is truly worth the money you'll spend for quality and ease.

If you need something local and you are ambitious to get done today, Meg's NXT. Grab a clay bar and some appication sponges from the local.

moda_way

Take the bar and flatten it into a pancake and palm it. When you finish that section, fold it over and pancake it again. This will give you clean clay. Oh, if you drop the clay, toss it, so be careful.

moda_way

Sal makes a great product and he's a good guy. Always suprised me that he keeps it in house, but I know why.

Savio

https://acurazine.com/forums/wash-wax-23/

strebal

Great thank you for all your advice... Im looking forward to the "new looking" car!

Have a great weekend.

Go Cowboys!!

Sclass88

I used to be a diehard Meguirs guy. Put NXT on my TSX dozens of times and while the result was good, it was not great. Tried Zaino and I'm hooked for life.

jwood_06TSX

I just got a lot out of this thread as well actually, so thanks for bringing it up!! My car has been waxed before and i do it too, but never detailed throughly so i will be doing it in the spring, first thing!

Oh yea, GO EAGLES

ILoveMyHonda

sounds like something my CG needs, when im drying my car with a towel it sounds like sand paper and feels gritty to he touch. is it to late to clay or wil i need multiple clay bars?

BTW Go Niners!!.....tied for2nd in the most dominant division!

acn684

agree with moda_way go to autopia.org - don't agree with moda_way don't dawn your car...it completely strips the wax off of it.

Theres much better products out on the internet than at ur local autozone or similiar shop.

Also, product choice depends alot on the color of your car. If you have a dark rich color, black, products tend to stand out more on it being how reflective the paint is. Other colors such as silver, white, etc, tend to hide that reflection more, so the "glossier (and usually less durable)" products don't make a big difference. Often dark cars benefit in looks from higher qualtiy products more, which usually means its better to get a product that last longer on silver cars because the difference is harder to see on those colors.

I use Klasse synthetic polymer for my car and follow it with P21S. Both are very high quality products, somewhat costly but in the end the car looks beautiful. My car is black btw. Good products to use are also Zaino as Moda_way said, but i don't have much experience with them. Also for ease and looks - try Werkstatt Acrylic Jet, you basically spray and wipe for polymer protection. Of course all these are synthetic polymers, they add protection and the shine, but to get depth in your car, you'll need to layer these, let them cure in between layers, then top them off with a layer of caranuba wax for the deepest and wetest paint possible. Pinnicle Souveran Wax has been claimed to be amongst the highest quality products out there on the market...except its 70 dollars a jar...gag.

Oh yeah...since its been 2 years...you might want to look into polishing your car to remove it from swirls which is very likely to happen.

acn684

Nope! never too late. Get some good detailing wax, i prefer using less abrasive ones but they all work great. Make sure you knead constantly to avoid further marring. You'll need a good wax job after that too! I clayed my dad's van this summer, the car's never been clayed for 10 years...Let me tell you, the hood was slick!

joerockt

The clay will do it all. Everything thats on top of the CC, including what imbedded in it will be removed.

I usually use a 50/50 mix of Iso Alcohol and water after im done claying. I would never touch Dawn.

TSX420J

Here is an old thread of mine.

https://acurazine.com/forums/showthr...ighlight=zaino

strebal

Well, washed, clayed, washed, and waxed to today. My car is a light metallic blue. I used the Clay Magic and the Mequiars NTX. I wanted to get it done today and just went up to the Autozone. Claying was really easy and it did pick up alot of stuff. I could see all the dirt on the bar. The car looks good, but feel better... very slick...

thanks again.

waTSX

You've just crossed a dangerous line. Once you've clayed, you'll never go back

BusyShifter

And good job on getting it done right away.

swirlie

I popped my clay cherry this summer... very painless and I now have a whole new world opened up to me!

ck123

i got a 18 year old car that never been clayed or waxed and the clear coat is still shining -.-

Brandon24pdx

how often do you guys typically wax your cars?

TSXtravis

I usually wax once every 2 months. 3 at most. With the FL, our cars need all the protection they can get.

BusyShifter

I am on the lazy side. I clay and wax every 6 months; apply quick detailer or even wax inbetween.

aaronng

BTW, the reason that Zaino adviced to use dawn was because they did not have a way to clean the surface. Now that they have ZFX, there is no need for dawn anymore.

stogie1020

Well, pull that beauty out of the garage for once!!





J/K

But seriously.... Pics?

ck123

this picture doesnt really justify much but look at the gloss on the hood, trunk and top...you can still see reflections

waTSX

Pic not showing for me.