I have been doing some comparison on the best off the shelf car wax for weekend amateur detailers like myself. I began the process by buying the following waxes.

1. Meguiar NXT 2.0 Paste wax 2. Mother`s Pure Carnauba Gold paste wax 3. Zymol polish/wax liquid. The 3 products are easy to find in most car parts stores and each retailes for less than $20. I am very tempted to buy professional line of products such as Zymol paste wax but wonder how cheaper alternative waxes compare to the more exclusive Zymol paste waxes.



1. Meguiar NXT 2.0 Paste: My favorite paste wax so far. Easy to apply by hand and easy to wipe off with the micro fiber towel. It leaves incredible shine without residue and leaves the paint surface smooth. Water beads beutifully but I could not get the water beading property to extend beyond 1 month. Over all a wonderful product which requires monthly applications for optimal result.



2. Mother`s Pure Carnauba paste: Pleasant smelling and the cheapest car wax in the store. This wax is easy to apply by hand but gave me a harder time wiping it off with the microfiber towel. The wax leaves a good shine and good water beading property. However, I feel this wax was more troublesome to remove. The surface did not feel as slippery as does the Meguiar NXT paste wax.



3. Zymol polish/wax liquid: A great smelling product from Zymol. This is the entry level Zymol product I have tried. The liquid wax was very easy to apply and was easy to wipe off with micro fiber towel. however, the blue/white residue was a problem for me and required a car wash to get rid of the residue. The shine was mediocre and water beading was so so at best. I still enjoy this product because of the great smell and the Zymol brand name. Perhaps it is time to move on to the more exclusive Zymol paste wax before I judge the brand to be inferior to Meguiar or Mother`s paste wax.