Baby BMW Forum banner

4) Waxes, Sealants and Hybrids

37K views 74 replies 26 participants last post by  Geordie_73 
#1 ·
Time to top up your hard work with a long lasting and glossy protection! :cool:

The best way to a fantastic car finish is through the preparation stage, and that is absolutely true. However, a good wax or sealant gives a final 20% of your finish, and can make or break a look. If you thoroughly cleaned the paintwork properly, its fair to say a £5 wax from Asda will look great, and also proves that spending £300 or £1000 on a wax is not necessarily needed for what you want from your cars looks. Quality waxes WILL give you better clarity, gloss and protection over cheaper waxes and thats where your money will go. I'll discuss the 'surely a £300 wax is better than a £50 wax' argument as I go...

So what are the differences between Waxes and Sealants?

Waxes:



Sealants:


The basics of it are -

Waxes are produced using natural materials and are 'crafted'
Sealants are chemically manufactured in a lab

Both give great but VERY different looks to your paint.

You can put a wax over a sealant to give a slightly different finish than normal, but not the other way around..

Waxes bead better and longer, sealants do bead, some very well, but there main design is to sheet and repel water far better than a wax ever will.

Waxes have been around for years, and dependent on the look you want, contain more or less carnauba than others, and also more oils in them to give the 'wet look'. More oils = a wetter look finish, but give less longevity in the end. The R222 Concours wax above is buttery soft, and as long as you apply it thinly is a doddle to remove again after a few minutes. Now it gives a very deep, glossy wet look finish, its one of the best show finish waxes on the market, but protection drops after only a few weeks. The look is a very intense, deep look, and the reflection are out of this world - only you know however if you really want to keep applying it every week!!!

Carnuaba (wax) is graded like gold is in rings - the higher the grade, the purer the wax and the more 'glowy' as an effect you get in the finish. A wax is designed to give a 'warm glow' when applied, and to some, this is the ultimate in look that they want in their car.

A waxes length of protection varies massively - and especially in the winter. Even good quality wax will not last longer than 10 weeks in salty conditions, it eats through the protection very, very quickly. Ive used many different waxes, and achieved some stunning results with them, but never got more than about 10 weeks on my daily drivers before the need to re-aply the wax.

Sealants are totally chemically engineered, and give a different look and feel to the car. They provide a very 'glassy' finish to paintwork, wheels and metalwork. They are spectacularly easy to apply..

Auto Finesse Tough Coat:
" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

A whole car can be coated, and buffed in well under 20 minutes with awesome shine and a good 2 months protection. In fact - I went through November to March on Tough Coat by a simple squirt over the panels and a wipe down every wash. Its a great product - but the market is constantly changing with these sort of products as the competition is fierce. Sealants really are best on light coloured cars, and metallics (the chemicals react superbly with metallic flake popping to bring out a stunning finish) - however they will work on any colour car


Sealants I'd highly recommend - Auto Finesse Tough Coat, CarPro Reload and GTechniq C2v3

Longer lasting sealants are now available, as they bond to the paint better and offer much better performance over a longer period of time - the Gtechniq / Wolfs / Autobright manufacturers are all putting out products as simple and easy to use as Tough Coat - but offering up to 12 months of protection from a simple wipe over of the product on your paintwork :eek: :cool:

Ceramic sealants are also on the market now, offering up to 2 years of protection, and also an ability to shrug off minor marks and damage to your paint, protecting paintwork from swirls and stone chips.

" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The down side to all this protection from CQuartz - is that it can not be applied at home. You need it applied in a temperature controlled environment, with a face mask and away from moisture. It has to be applied professionally and by an authorised user, otherwise its just too temperamental to get right.

Hybrid Waxes -


These are also relatively new, and mix the look and feel of a traditional Wax, with the look and finish of a sealant. Dodo Juice Supernatural Hybrid is without a doubt one of the best of these products on the market, regardless of cost. The looks are amazing, and you get a good 6 months of longevity out of it. This is my normal personal choice of LSP on whatever I'm working on - great finish and depth to the product!



:cool:

So which is better - wax or sealant? Personally I use more sealants on cars than waxes, from a looks and protection level basis. I do enjoy waxing a car though and Bouncers 22 is my 'high end' wax, and its a stunning product in all price brackets, created by a car enthusiast like ourselves.

So to answer the question about 'is a £300 wax better than a £50 one'....

There are some very VERY good waxes and sealants out their nowadays, and they don't have to cost more than £50....and personally Ive not had a desire to go out and spend £300 on a wax. Ive seen them used and they certainly do not give a finish that to my eyes warrants the extra cost. Swissvaz, Zymol (to name but a few) use all sorts of marketing, and brand awareness to get you to believe that these products are a 1000 times better than say AutoGlym HD wax. I guess its like fashion in a way - If you pay £200 for a pair of quality jeans from a branded store, then you are buying into what the brand represents - its image, its uniqueness and the name. Swissvax and Zymol are no different.

" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

See what I mean..... :eek2: :lol2:

The important thing to remember with waxes, is always apply them THINLY......apply it too thick and you will need arms like Popeye to remove it! They usually only take 5 minutes to haze over before they are ready to buff, but use the finger swipe test to check that it is ready - if it comes off using your finger - its ready to buff :cool2:

I use finger applicators to apply waxes - they make using a pot and applying the wax easy :)

" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Quirks..

Some waxes are designed to 'gloss' an hour after they have been applied - Supernatural Hybrid is one of them -this is perfectly normal for it to look better later on after application. 'Gasing' is a process you may have heard of too - waxes because they are natural 'breath' slightly - and you may spot the odd patch of car (particularly on darker cars) where you get a patch that needs re-buffing a few days after you have detailed a car. This again is normal, and just a quirk of some higher grade waxes :)
 
See less See more
1 1
#3 ·
Nice right up James, its always good to get good clear helpful advice as you helped me when i wasn't sure of the difference between the two.

The Klean care Fk1000 sealant i used was very easy to apply & buffs off pretty easy, it seems to disperse water very well but doest bead up much & leaves small beads only & doesnt give off a deep deep shine but it will do the job of long lasting layers & i plan to put a layer of wax on, on friday to get a deeper shine & the nice beading i miss, i have a bit of Autobright Obsession left which is pretty good or some of my mates Farécla G3 but thats nit amazing & doesnt last more than 1-2 weeks but it will have to do till after the Northern romp.

P.s i think you should mention about the tar & break fall out products will remover all of the sealants or wax as many want know like i didnt till i asked you :)
 
#10 ·
Blackroc said:
sonicvanman said:
Are ye if you read it fully it does explain it removes all & to only use when doing the full job :)
In English Nick??!! Lol ;-)
So it was a reply to Marco about iron x/ purple rain & it removing all of the sealant or wax, he then linked to your wash & prep sticky which explained to only use if you are doing the full job & re applying the sealant & wax.

I did write a different comment but edited after reading it fully.

You should be used to my posts not making sense by now ;)
 
#19 ·
Good write up thanks, So best sealant or wax for my sapphire black. I use nattys blue at the moment but the pot is looking bare/

I try to apply once a month. With the current wax. I like the wet look. I dont mind using a top up wipe on product to give it a show wet look shine. What can you recommend. I keep looking at Gtechniq exo.
 
#20 ·
Ralf_Msport said:
Very informative James, thank you very much. I have always used AutoGlym Ultra Deep Shine for my car.
I want to try this C2v3 Liquid Crystal and would you say to use that first then apply my wax/polish after?

Thank you in advance.
C2v3 is great value for money, £6 buys you enough product for two coats (one coat = up to 8 months protection so all good!) it will happily sit over a polish, and under a wax if you want.

I regularly use AF Tripple polish (much easier to work with that UDS you mention here, and gives a better finish) under c2v3 and it bonds in seconds to paint.

Spray product onto a panel, wipe the area you want covered with a clean microfibre, as it hazes, buff clear with a second microfibre. That's it, job done! If you get smearing (you can on black) its either because too much product used, it the initial microfibre you've used is loaded up with too much product ;-)
 
#21 ·
Rich196 said:
Good write up thanks, So best sealant or wax for my sapphire black. I use nattys blue at the moment but the pot is looking bare/

I try to apply once a month. With the current wax. I like the wet look. I dont mind using a top up wipe on product to give it a show wet look shine. What can you recommend. I keep looking at Gtechniq exo.
Hi Rich - depends if you want a wax based sealant (so applied like a wax) if so, get some DoDo Juice Supernatural Hybrid. It goes on like a wax, seals and behaves (huge water dispersal, beading and self cleaning properties) like a full blown sealant. Finish is amazing and is £25 at Monza Car Care for a tub. You can also get testers too for around £10 from Juicy Detailing and i4detailing.

If you want a spray sealant, see above! C2v3 is stunningly easy to use, wipe on, wipe off!! Will go on plastics, rubber, glass and wheels too!
 
#23 ·
Blackroc said:
Rich196 said:
Good write up thanks, So best sealant or wax for my sapphire black. I use nattys blue at the moment but the pot is looking bare/

I try to apply once a month. With the current wax. I like the wet look. I dont mind using a top up wipe on product to give it a show wet look shine. What can you recommend. I keep looking at Gtechniq exo.
Hi Rich - depends if you want a wax based sealant (so applied like a wax) if so, get some DoDo Juice Supernatural Hybrid. It goes on like a wax, seals and behaves (huge water dispersal, beading and self cleaning properties) like a full blown sealant. Finish is amazing and is £25 at Monza Car Care for a tub. You can also get testers too for around £10 from Juicy Detailing and i4detailing.

If you want a spray sealant, see above! C2v3 is stunningly easy to use, wipe on, wipe off!! Will go on plastics, rubber, glass and wheels too!
Thank you!!

Which will make the dirt come off easiest when washing, and which will give the best glossy wet look?
 
#24 ·
Rich196 said:
Blackroc said:
Rich196 said:
Good write up thanks, So best sealant or wax for my sapphire black. I use nattys blue at the moment but the pot is looking bare/

I try to apply once a month. With the current wax. I like the wet look. I dont mind using a top up wipe on product to give it a show wet look shine. What can you recommend. I keep looking at Gtechniq exo.
Hi Rich - depends if you want a wax based sealant (so applied like a wax) if so, get some DoDo Juice Supernatural Hybrid. It goes on like a wax, seals and behaves (huge water dispersal, beading and self cleaning properties) like a full blown sealant. Finish is amazing and is £25 at Monza Car Care for a tub. You can also get testers too for around £10 from Juicy Detailing and i4detailing.

If you want a spray sealant, see above! C2v3 is stunningly easy to use, wipe on, wipe off!! Will go on plastics, rubber, glass and wheels too!
Thank you!!

Which will make the dirt come off easiest when washing, and which will give the best glossy wet look?
Both are great at being glossy, SNH does give the better wet look though. It takes an hour or so for it fully gas out, and that's when it's finish truly reveals itself.

C2v3 is better at speed of use, and slightly better at repelling dirt (not by much) and can be used as a QD too if watered down.

Personally, my own preference is SNH, I love the feel, look, beading and finish of It above anything else I've used.

C2v3 is a different product designed for a slightly different market and finish. Neither will disappoint though :)
 
#26 ·
barneyrubble said:
I use supernatural hybrid on my cars on James' recommendation - you wont be disappointed.

Superb finish on both the Black Saphire and Astro Black mini my wife has.
I do not know anyone that's used it and not been impressed. Looks fantastic on any colour car, metallic or flat. 3-6 months protection, with deep reflections and a quality finish
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top