Wax/Finish for New Car

[survey]

I will shortly be taking delivery of a new MB, white, non-metallic. I have the option of a dealer Supergard treament for £399 or £199 without the supply of all ancillary treament bottles. The alternative would be to self apply a decent wax or protective film of some sort. I am not keen on spending a lot of time waxing & polishing but if an easy apply solution is out there then I would consider it. Bear in mind the car will be new, so no real preparation needed. With my present MB I have used Meguair's tech spray wax and been plesaed with the result - easy apply and buff off. Any advice/recommendations?

 

[JBell]

Total waste of money IMO, find a local detailer to give it a once over upon collection, prob cost £100 - 150 and money well spent.

To find a detailer have a look on www.detailingworld.co.uk, plenty of advice on there

 

[whitenemesis]

I'd agree with JBell, waste of money. The materials can be bought for ~£50.

I'd use a polymer coat like Car Lack68 followed by a good wax such as Collinite 915. Both are easily applied and removed but does require a little effort

 

[FamilyPack]

I bought a used vehicle from a main dealer rather than a new one, but the dealer threw in the starprotect and all the gloop for free.

 

[survey]

I'd agree with JBell, waste of money. The materials can be bought for ~£50.

I'd use a polymer coat like Car Lack68 followed by a good wax such as Collinite 915. Both are easily applied and removed but does require a little effort

Would I need the Carlack on a brand new car? By all accounts the Collinite is very good and may be the route for me to follow.

 

[JBell]

Would I need the Carlack on a brand new car? By all accounts the Collinite is very good and may be the route for me to follow.

You can never have too much protection

 

[carnut13]

Remember that you "new" car will not have been in bubble wrap since leaving the factory...far from it. So I would have more faith in a good detailer,or my own work, than a MB Dealer giving it a once over.

Most good polishes, and particularly waxes ,will do a fine job. For £199 - £399 you can get a lot of product and some labour too:lol:

 

[MERCSPORT]

I have a friend who works for Mercedes in Milton Keynes, he is willing to do the full valet and the starguard for £50 all inclusive (Weekends only)... If you are interested, pm me, and I will give you his number...

 

[bigbear]

I also like Collinite 915, seems to last for ages.
I recently tried Poorboys Natty's Blue Liquid Wax and I must say it was a easy to use and gave an excellent result.

 

[Alex M Grieve]

I will shortly be taking delivery of a new MB, white, non-metallic. I have the option of a dealer Supergard treatment for £399 or £199 without the supply of all ancillary treatment bottles. The alternative would be to self apply a decent wax or protective film of some sort. I am not keen on spending a lot of time waxing & polishing but if an easy apply solution is out there then I would consider it. Bear in mind the car will be new, so no real preparation needed. With my present MB I have used Meguair's tech spray wax and been pleased with the result - easy apply and buff off. Any advice/recommendations?

As others have said, it is an expensive way of doing this. But the sales teams are obliged to ask if you want it done, and I am sure they receive an incentive for so doing. The same is true of OEM Finance, Insurance and gap insurance. (You may well be asked to sign to say that you have been offered it but chose to decline).

Cars cost a lot of money and the customer may well be vulnerable to coughing up that bit more when he has already spent thousands of pounds on a new "pride and joy". As a percentage, the extra required to "do it properly" may not seem much, but it can easily add up to a thousand pounds (finance, gap insurance, Supergard or equivalent).

 

[jberks]

I had it done on my E240 and to be honest I was disappointed. The car looked in desperate need of a polish within a few months.

What most don't know is that most of the products on Halfords shelves are polishes, fillers and have a bit of wax in there for good measure. In other words they are a jack of all trades but master of none. Hence they do a nice job short term, but the abrasives leave a dusty residue and the wax doesn't stick well so you end up back where you started 3 months later. You also can't layer it as the abrasive takes off the previous layer.

If it's a new or newly polished car with perfect paintwork, then you don't need to polish it, you simply need to seal the paintwork to keep it that way. I believe some of the products listed above are for that purpose.

My product of choice is something called P21s which is virtually pure natural Carnuba wax. It's a doddle to apply, has no dusty residue (I've even applied it to spruce up the plastics), forms a deep thick layer which can be added to and lasts 8-12 months. It's not cheap at £35 a pot but a pot lasts a long time. Just bought the new version called P222 which I'm hoping is as good.
It's obviously no use of the paintwork is swirly or faded as it contains nothing but wax, but on perfect paint it's the best I've personally come across.

 

[survey]

I had it done on my E240 and to be honest I was disappointed. The car looked in desperate need of a polish within a few months.

What most don't know is that most of the products on Halfords shelves are polishes, fillers and have a bit of wax in there for good measure. In other words they are a jack of all trades but master of none. Hence they do a nice job short term, but the abrasives leave a dusty residue and the wax doesn't stick well so you end up back where you started 3 months later. You also can't layer it as the abrasive takes off the previous layer.

If it's a new or newly polished car with perfect paintwork, then you don't need to polish it, you simply need to seal the paintwork to keep it that way. I believe some of the products listed above are for that purpose.

My product of choice is something called P21s which is virtually pure natural Carnuba wax. It's a doddle to apply, has no dusty residue (I've even applied it to spruce up the plastics), forms a deep thick layer which can be added to and lasts 8-12 months. It's not cheap at £35 a pot but a pot lasts a long time. Just bought the new version called P222 which I'm hoping is as good.
It's obviously no use of the paintwork is swirly or faded as it contains nothing but wax, but on perfect paint it's the best I've personally come across.

The idea of the sealant protection sounds very good. Diamonbrite is supposedly guaranteed for life (assuming that a conserver shampoo is used regularly)!! However I think that I am gradually coming around to using a good wax put on soon after taking delivery - maybe the Collinite or your suggestion.

 

[survey]

I had posted a similar thread on the Detailers Forum. However, I became somewhat confused as to what to apply (if anything) to the car upon delivery. Carnut13 on this forum said he would have more faith in a detailer than a franchise garage and I agree with that. In fact I have had a quote from a detailer (£180) for the diamondbrite nano sealant; at least I would hope that this would be a decent job. Diamondrite is supposed to last for life (take that with a pinch of salt!) and needs regular washes with a conserver additive. If this treatment means a good gloss and keeps the car clean for a couple of years, bearing in mind it is white non-metallic, then I reckon that would be pretty good. If it fails and loses its beading after that time then I would apply a decent wax myself.
Is my logic flawed here? Should I just apply some Collinite 915 upon delivery, particularly if it is a simple application job? Must admit that with my present MB metallic silver, I have just used Meguairs spray wax, easy to apply, and had a pretty good gloss finish that lasts a while!

 

[jberks]

I love these products that need you to use something else every time you wash it.
Just locks you in to spending a fortune with the same firm, in my view.
Surely better to buy something yourself. A decent wax will last the best part of a year and it's not a major issue to re-apply annually or so.
I'm just clayed and waxed the land rover. It looked ok but was caked in tar spots. By the time I'd got the tar off I doubt much polish would have been left on the paint, hence I really can't see how any product would last forever. Sure, maybe if the car was parked in a showroom or gallery, but hit by bird lime, road tar and general grit and rubbish on the roads, how could it? Anyway, for the cost, you can re-polish many times over.

 

[survey]

I love these products that need you to use something else every time you wash it.
Just locks you in to spending a fortune with the same firm, in my view.
Surely better to buy something yourself. A decent wax will last the best part of a year and it's not a major issue to re-apply annually or so.
I'm just clayed and waxed the land rover. It looked ok but was caked in tar spots. By the time I'd got the tar off I doubt much polish would have been left on the paint, hence I really can't see how any product would last forever. Sure, maybe if the car was parked in a showroom or gallery, but hit by bird lime, road tar and general grit and rubbish on the roads, how could it? Anyway, for the cost, you can re-polish many times over.

I guess a decent wax will seal the surface as effectively as a nano sealant. Is Collinite 915 the easiest to apply for a longish lasting beading gloss finish?

 

[survey]

Total waste of money IMO, find a local detailer to give it a once over upon collection, prob cost £100 - 150 and money well spent.

To find a detailer have a look on www.detailingworld.co.uk, plenty of advice on there

And what would you ecpect the detailer to recommend?
I have spoken to a local detailer and he recommended the diamondbrite and never referred to wax instead. This is what is confusing me. I want to do the best for the appearance and glossiness of a white car!

 

[teddycatkin]

I also like Collinite 915, seems to last for ages.
I recently tried Poorboys Natty's Blue Liquid Wax and I must say it was a easy to use and gave an excellent result.

POORBOYS also do white for lighter coloured paintwork --I prefer the wax paste to liquid it brings up white to a brilliant finish and is just as easy to apply
Also: at £15 a tin its not only very affordable but also very satisfying doing it yourself ?:lol:

 

[Tashman]

What about Autoglym Lifeshine, thats supposed to be only for brand new cars.

 

[MERCSPORT]

I have a friend who works for Mercedes in Milton Keynes, he is willing to do the full valet and the starguard for £50 all inclusive (Weekends only)... If you are interested, pm me, and I will give you his number...

I have a friend who will do the EXACT thing MERCEDES-BENZ are offering... Let me know if you are interested.......

 

[whitenemesis]

I guess a decent wax will seal the surface as effectively as a nano sealant. Is Collinite 915 the easiest to apply for a longish lasting beading gloss finish?

Collinite gets my vote. Applied sparingly and one can do the whole car in one go. Buffs off easily and minimal dust.