Opinions on durable/long lasting WAX

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oh-dawg

New member
Hi guys once again thanks, this board has me thinking about detailing and how I can improve on this. Believe it or not its become addicting.



My question is this I am getting worried/stressed about the # of times I need to wax my car to protect it. I have a 04' Sti and well want to keep the paint and car as good as new for as long as I have it. I wanted to know if there is a long term wax that will allow me to not have to wax so often while offering a high gloss and protection? I am sure this is a general question but I would love to read your comments.



Currently I am thinking about picking up some "Klasse AOI" or "Pinnacle Souverian" products but am indecisive. Currently I am using GC, but when I come to this board Meguiars (which I thought was the good stuff) comes off as being junk which I am embrassed to say I use.



Please help and thanks so much for your replies to my previous posts this week.
 
Klasse AIO is more of a cleaner and mild abrasive. It does not, IMHO, offer very good protection or have very good durability on its own (you'd need to use klasse SG after). Souvern is a pure carnuba wax and its durability is no better, if not worse, than AIO. Souvern is also quite expensive.



What you should be shooting for is a sealant. Sealants have much better durability than carnuba waxes. There are many on the market to choose from:



Klasse (SG), Zaino, Platinum, Blackfire, etc, etc.



I personally use Klasse AIO to clean and ready my paint for my sealant, which is klasse SG. SG offers 6 months of protection and has a very nice candy like shine.



Do a search on the above names and read what others have had to say. See which product best meets your expectations, then go from there.



Bill.
 
First off, welcome to autopia. Second, meguiars doesn't suck, their gold class wax is just, well, "consumer level cleaner wax" that is overrated. Meguiars makes other great products like #20, #26, #83(make sure your reading the acronym page carefully), and #7, #81, and #82. As for you wax, I think if you want the longest lasting, pick up the klasse AIO and Klasse sealant glaze for the best protection. You also will want to look at billnorth's method for applying klasse sg, as it makes it much much easier. Again, welcome and be sure to read a lot before buying or attempting to detail anything.
 
:welcome , I think Klasse AIO +Klasse SG or Zaino are two great choices, but there are other great products , you will get a lot of suggestions:xyxthumbs



The two named above will last you about six months:wavey
 
BillNorth said:
Klasse AIO is more of a cleaner and mild abrasive. It does not, IMHO, offer very good protection or have very good durability on its own (you'd need to use klasse SG after). Souvern is a pure carnuba wax and its durability is no better, if not worse, than AIO.
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BillNorth,



I'm surprised at your answer. I thought AIO had pretty good durabilty and certainly MUCH better than Sourveran (or any other carnuba wax).



But, you certainly know more about Klasse products than me.
 
FYI, I have used 2 coats of all in one on my moms accord the beginning of october, and it is still beading after 2 months. AIO does offer the acrylic protection, but most ppl want to top it off to make sure, which makes sg the best for topping.
 
You guys ROCK...



I just did a SEARCH on Klasse AIO and well when reading about AIO it says it removes minor swirls. I noticed when just finishing waxing my car with GC that I have some minor scratches, perhaps from using a "Soft Terry Cloth" when I should have used MF (is this true?) in any case will the AIO fix this?



Thanks again. And I am sorry for posting so much believe me I am doing my best to search before asking.



Thanks.
 
I should have been more clear in my post.



I haven't found AIO to be that great at protecting on it's own when compared to SG. AIO will get about two months on it's own. SG will get anywhere from 6 to maybe 8, depending on the environment.



As for souvern, I've never heard of it lasting past one month (if that).
 
oh-dawg said:
You guys ROCK...



I just did a SEARCH on Klasse AIO and well when reading about AIO it says it removes minor swirls. I noticed when just finishing waxing my car with GC that I have some minor scratches, perhaps from using a "Soft Terry Cloth" when I should have used MF (is this true?) in any case will the AIO fix this?



Thanks again. And I am sorry for posting so much believe me I am doing my best to search before asking.



Thanks.
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AIO can remove minor swirls. In my experience it is good for removing the haze caused by more abrasive polishes. I don't know if I would classify it as an SMR though.



As for towels, where are you purchasing your terry towels from?



It has nothing to do with all cotton being bad and all MF being good. It's about quality. There many quality cotton and MF towels on the market that will not scratch your paint. There are also many poor quality cotton and MF cotton towels on the market that will scratch. It all depends on which ones you buy.



Bill.
 
As far as ease of use combined with durability, I'd go with Poorboy's PwC and EX Sealant. Piece of cake to use and cars I used it on almost 3 months ago still bead like crazy and feel slick to the touch.



Car Polish's Final Polish is a nice one step light cleaner/polymer that lasts at least 4 1/2 months based on my own experience.
 
I use EX on occasion, as well as PUPP and the Klasse twins, however, I REALLY like the 1Z products. Used by hand or by PC, their polishes are in my opinion, top of the line.



Scott, looking at your results, I would love to see what your thoughts are. If you used the Paint Polish, the Metallic Polish/Wax and the 1Z Glanz Wax, I believe you would enjoy the results you got. They have a really strong polish, Ultra, but I doubt you would have much call for it, but then again, you might.



You should contact Michael at Einszett at see about getting some samples and posting your results. It would be an interesting read for me!



Sam
 
BillNorth said:
Klasse AIO is more of a cleaner and mild abrasive. It does not, IMHO, offer very good protection or have very good durability on its own (you'd need to use klasse SG after). Souvern is a pure carnuba wax and its durability is no better, if not worse, than AIO.
Click to expand...





I have to agree with you there. I used AIO only on more than one test vehicle and I was very disappointed in its ability to show me that it was still there. If the only way to tell is by feel and appearance then I would put it on par with the average lifespan of a wax. Between 4 to 6 weeks.



If AIO is really a sealant then why doesn't anyone talk about the cure time? Wouldn't it need one to offer all this protection people say it has? I'm not trying to be argumentitive, but I just think that if it was a product in germany that could be used all by itself then the formula must have been changed for use over here. I just can't see leaving that product on my car all by itself and being satisfied. If someone knows enough to use AIO then surely they know enough to use a real sealant to top it.



I also agree that Souveran is more fragile than, say... S100 or P21S. Its about a 4 week wax or so. If you are using Souveran then you probably want to be adding a new coat every 3 or 4 weeks at the longest. Its interesting that the best looking waxes seem to be the most fragile....



Probably the most durable wax I've used has to be Blitz. That is a good 6-8 week wax. Its not as good looking as S100/P21S or the Pinnacle waxes, but it does last.
 
SamIam said:




Scott, looking at your results, I would love to see what your thoughts are. If you used the Paint Polish, the Metallic Polish/Wax and the 1Z Glanz Wax, I believe you would enjoy the results you got. They have a really strong polish, Ultra, but I doubt you would have much call for it, but then again, you might.



You should contact Michael at Einszett at see about getting some samples and posting your results. It would be an interesting read for me!



Sam
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One of these days. Right now, I have so many products I am evaluating right now that I need to give them all some time to prove their durability.
 
I've been using Collinite as a topper during the winter on my daily car. Got to say it isn't as easy to apply or remove as P21S, EX or CMW but, if you want something that you won't have to keep going back to for a while I think it's definately one worth taking into consideration.

Cheers :).
 
The question that should be asked is how often do you want to wax your car? 3 months? 6 months? 1 year? Once you know that answer, you can better select (or eliminate) a product.



Three months - Vanilla Moose/Carnauba Moose Wax or PwC/EX

Six Months - Zaino or Klasse AIO/SG

One Year - I hope you said one of the two above...



There are plenty of other products out there that will work. Meguiars GC isn't a bad product. But, there are others out there that work better.



Don't get too worried or stressed over what you read here. Many folks are professional detailers, so they do this stuff everyday for a reason. Many of us (myself included) are just a little mentally ill and feel the compulsive need to wax our cars often. Then, there are plenty of others like yourself. They are here to learn and maybe make their vehicle(s) look a little better. My advise is to read and if you find something that you want more information on, do a search. That will turn up plenty of additional thoughts. You may even find yourself offering advice to others as your knowledge grows.
 
~One man’s opinion~



All-In-One contains a chemical (solvent) cleaner that removes imbedded dirt, light oxidation, which occurs when paint loses it’s natural oils, tree sap, road film and old wax plus it provides an tough acrylic protection. The foundation of the Klasse line this is a true one-step product. It cleans, polishes and protects in one easy step. All-in-one is the first component of a two-part system; by adding the SG to the base coat of AIO it enhances protection, durability and the paints appearance.



I think that’s why most detailers call this system “The Klasse Twins�.



I not professing to be an expert on polymer resin systems but this is how I was taught to apply these products:



AIO is formulated from acrylic polymers therefore must be given sufficient time to cross-link (bond and set- up). It offers better durability and a deeper shine, plus is easier to remove the longer it is left to cure, 1 –2 hours plus is recommended.

As air is the primary catalyst for the acrylic to cross-link low air temperatures and / or humidity may effect the cure time required.

After sufficient drying time do a quick swipe test with your finger. If no smearing or drag is evident, the product is ready to be removed





~Hope this helps~





Experience unshared; is knowledge wasted…/
 
TOGWT said:
~One man’s opinion~

AIO is formulated from acrylic polymers therefore must be given sufficient time to cross-link (bond and set- up). It offers better durability and a deeper shine, plus is easier to remove the longer it is left to cure, 1 –2 hours plus is recommended.

As air is the primary catalyst for the acrylic to cross-link low air temperatures and / or humidity may effect the cure time required.

After sufficient drying time do a quick swipe test with your finger. If no smearing or drag is evident, the product is ready to be removed/
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TOGWT,



Did you mean 1-2 hours drying time for KSG?



The directions on the AIO bottle states, "no drying time" required.
 
TOGWT said:
this is how I was taught to apply these products:



AIO is formulated from acrylic polymers therefore must be given sufficient time to cross-link (bond and set- up). It offers better durability and a deeper shine, plus is easier to remove the longer it is left to cure, 1 –2 hours plus is recommended.

As air is the primary catalyst for the acrylic to cross-link low air temperatures and / or humidity may effect the cure time required.

After sufficient drying time do a quick swipe test with your finger. If no smearing or drag is evident, the product is ready to be removed
Click to expand...



TOGWT,



I'm a little confused. Klasse recommends that AIO be removed immediately after applying it. This is what the back of the AIO bottle says (if I remember correctly). Do you use AIO differently? I've heard of some people leaving AIO to sit then having a heck of a time trying to get it off. The general consensus is that AIO is easier to work with when removed immediately. I have a feeling that you meant to say 'SG' in your post not 'AIO'. It seems that many people here use SG the way you have described above. Please correct me if I'm wrong.



Another thing I wanted to ask you. Do differentiate between dry time and cure time? I noticed in the quote above you say that:



It offers better durability and a deeper shine, plus is easier to remove the longer it is left to cure, 1 –2 hours plus is recommended.



I have always considered the words to have a different meaning when speaking about polymer sealants. For me cure time is the time between buffed coats of a product. This is the time when the bonding and crosslinking takes place (minimum 24hrs for SG to a more realistic 1 week). Dry time is the time that a product is left to sit on the paint prior to buffing. In my opinion dry time has no bearing on cure time. Regardless of when you buff off a products residue, there will always be something left on the surface. IMHO, what's left is what needs to cure.



In your sentence above I probably would have said 'dry' and not 'cure'.



Thanks for sharing your insight.



Bill.
 
Jngrbrdman said:
If AIO is really a sealant then why doesn't anyone talk about the cure time? Wouldn't it need one to offer all this protection people say it has?



Probably the most durable wax I've used has to be Blitz. That is a good 6-8 week wax. Its not as good looking as S100/P21S or the Pinnacle waxes, but it does last.
Click to expand...



I think the reason ppl don't talk about cure time for AIO is because many stores package AIO and SG together. If using both products then there is really no need to wait for the AIO to cure. In this scenario the AIO is not really being used to protect, it's more for cleaning and mild polishing. The SG is supposed to do the work of protecting, hence why it does require a cure time if being layered.



Now if you are using AIO on it's own then cure time is not important because if another layer of AIO is applied it will just strip off the previous.



Agree with you about blitz. It is a very durable wax.
 
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