EdT

As I expected, the most expensve and glossy lablled products did not perform as good as the less expensive stuff.


CONSUMER REPORTS RATINGS

The CR Ratings list the tested PRODUCTs in two groups: waxes in
the first group are OK on any car. Waxes in the second group are
best used on cars with somewhat weathered paint. Within groups,
products are listed in order of overall SCORE, based on gloss,
durability, ease of use and cleaning. Scores are on a scale of 0
to 100: 80 to 100 is excellent, 60 to 79 is very good, 40 to 59
is good, 20 to 39 is fair, 0 to 19 is poor.

TYPE indicates whether a wax is in liquid (L) or paste (P) form.
GLOSS is CR's judgment of gloss after one coat. DURA is the
judgment of durability after one coat. EASE is the judgment of
ease of use, based on application, buffing and whether the wax
streaked, smeared or powdered. CLEAN is CR's judgment of the
cleaning result from our waxing of actual cars. Numbers in the
GLOSS, DURA, EASE and CLEAN columns are on a scale of 1 to 5,
with 5 being better and 1 being worse. PRICE is the estimated
average, based on prices paid nationally in recent months. A *
indicates the price CR paid.


Ratings: Car Waxes
34 tested
Better 5<---->1 Worse
SCORE PRODUCT TYPE GLOSS DURA EASE CLEAN PRICE
81 Meguiar's Cleaner Wax
Liquid A-1216 L 5 3 5 4 $5.38
80 Nu Finish Soft Paste
NFP-80 P 3 5 4 5 5.97
74 Turtle Wax Carnauba
Soft T225 P 4 4 4 4 4.99
71 Nu Finish Liquid NF-76 L 3 4 5 4 5.27
67 Rain Dance Premium
Paste 02450 P 4 3 4 5 5.97
66 Turtle Wax Plus with
Teflon T28 L 3 3 5 5 4.99
65 Turtle Wax Super
Hard Shell T123 L 3 3 5 5 3.99
64 Liquid Lustre Ultra
Hi Gloss 440016 L 3 3 5 5 9.99*
63 Simoniz Ultimate
AS-991 L 3 4 5 3 5.48
62 Rally 05140 L 3 4 4 5 4.30
61 Rain Dance Advanced
Formula 02430 L 3 3 5 4 7.97
61 Rain Dance Premium
Liquid 02410 L 3 3 4 5 6.49
61 Finish 2001 T-27 L 3 3 5 4 3.73
60 Quad 02670 L 3 3 5 4 6.30*
58 Blue Coral Blue Poly
Paste Sealant BP30 P 1 5 5 3 9.78
58 Mothers Clear Care
09100 L 3 3 5 4 7.99
58 Simoniz Ultimate
Carnauba AS-990 P 3 3 3 5 6.00
56 Rally 05120 P 3 3 4 5 4.50
56 Kit Pre-softened 02662 P 3 3 5 2 3.14
56 Liquid Crystal T-33 L 3 3 5 3 13.97
55 Simoniz Super Blue
AS-907W L 3 2 5 3 4.14
50 Finish 2001 T-26 P 3 3 4 3 3.47
47 Kit Creme 02666 L 3 3 4 2 4.29
47 Eagle One Carnauba
Wax 2030014 L 3 2 4 3 6.40
44 Eagle One Carnauba with
Cleaner 2045012 P 3 3 4 1 7.40
41 ArmorAll 20160 L 2 3 5 2 3.96
37 Meguiar's Cleaner
Wax Paste A-1214 P 2 4 3 2 5.47
19 Prism Spray Away
AS-911 L 1 3 3 1 6.97

The following six waxes left slight scratches or haze on new or
near-new paint.
83 Blue Coral Blue Poly
Sealant BP25 L 3 5 5 5 $10.88
78 TR3 Resin Glaze 12A L 5 3 4 5 9.48
55 Total Image AS910 L 3 3 5 3 6.99*
53 Simoniz Super Blue
Soft AS902B P 3 2 4 4 3.49
52 Turtle Wax Super Hard
Shell T222 P 3 3 4 4 4.34
51 Mothers California
Gold Carnauba 05500 P 3 3 3 4 9.99
Note: Blue Coral Blue Poly Sealant BP25 and TR3 Resin
Glaze 12A have been discontinued.


CONSUMER REPORTS RECOMMENDATIONS

For gloss and easy application, try top-rated Meguiar's Cleaner
Wax Liquid ($5.38 for 16 ounces) or Turtle Wax Carnauba ($4.99
for 14 ounces). Although fourth-rated Nu Finish Liquid ($5.27 for
16 ounces) was especially easy to apply, it earned a mediocre
score for gloss. If you hate to wax and won't do it often,
consider Nu Finish Soft Paste ($5.97 for 14 ounces), which earned
top marks for durability and cleaning. But, like its liquid
brandmate, it left a weathered finish slightly less glossy than
some of the other tested products.

If the car is new and water still beads on its finish, you may
not need to wax at all. Simply wash the car regularly. Once you
begin to wax, look to the high-rated products among those in the
first Ratings group and avoid products in the second group, as
they left mild abrasions or haze.

If the car's finish is weathered, it's safe to look also among
the second Ratings group of slightly abrasive products. Blue
Coral Blue Poly Sealant BP25 and TR3 Resin Glaze 12A have been
discontinued. Next best were Total Image AS910 and Simoniz Super
Blue Soft AS902B. Note: If you wash your car often, you shouldn't
need an abrasive wax.

Most of the tested car waxes guarantee satisfaction or a full
refund.

One caveat: Waxing the car is no substitute for regular washing,
which is vital to keeping up a car's looks.


"COLOR" AND FANCY WAXES

In preparing this report, CR's shoppers rounded up three
relatively new products, liquid "color" waxes called Color Magic,
Color Match and Colorcote 2000. All leave behind a dye that
supposedly masks minor scratches, nicks and chips in a car's
finish. They come in eight, nine and 15 colors, respectively. A
16-ounce container of Color Magic or Colorcote 2000 costs $5 or
so. An 8-ounce container of Color Match costs about $6.

Despite the boasts of their manufacturers, including "makes
scratches...disappear like magic," "a paint job in a bottle" and
so on, these products generally performed no better than many
standard waxes when it came to gloss and durability. Color Magic,
the best of the lot overall, would have come out in the middle of
the Ratings. Worst was Colorcote (but its formula changed after
CR tested it).

Although colored waxes did make minor scratches less obvious on
dark-colored cars than did plain waxes (which usually dry white),
we see little point in buying them. A high-rated regular wax
works better than color waxes, touch-up paint protects a deeply
scratched finish better and a good polishing compound can fix
slight scratches more effectively. Fixing serious scratches can
be tricky in any case and is best left to an auto-body expert.

The colored waxes had another drawback: They were messy to use.
It was hard to follow the manufacturers' suggestion that they be
kept off skin and clothes. When they got on CR's testers' skin,
all three products stained. It took repeated, vigorous soap-and-
water washings to remove them.

CR's shoppers also bought a couple of fancy car waxes, the kind
Testarossa owners may favor. Klasse All-in-one liquid claims it's
not abrasive and that it protects with an "elastic, non-chip,
shrink-proof, heat and scratch resistant acrylic finish." Zymol
paste says it's solvent-free, with all-natural oils and extracts
and high concentrations of natural carnauba wax, too pricey for
most car polishes. It comes in special formulations matched to
the car's color, make or national origin. For a few thousand
dollars, Zymol's maker will even create a one-of-a-kind
formulation, basing the wax on such variables as paint thickness
and what's under the paint.

When CR ran Klasse All-in-one and Zymol through tests, both were
impressive overall. Both gave car finishes a superior gloss. Both
improved the look of weathered panels more than any tested wax,
except the top-rated Meguiar's Cleaner Wax Liquid A-1216s and the
discontinued and slightly abrasive liquid Blue Coral Blue Poly
Sealant BP25. Both Klasse and Zymol were very expensive. We paid
$23 for 17 ounces of Klasse and $40 for 8 ounces of Zymol (plus
$8 for a Zymol "pre-cleaner"). We'd suggest using a good regular
wax instead.


WASHING BEFORE WAXING

Frequent washing removes dirt from a car's finish before it can
do lasting damage. Before you wash, consider the weather. Never
wash in direct sunlight or when the paint is hot to the touch.
That can soften the paint, making it easy prey for abrasion, or
leave water spots on the finish. If sunshine is inescapable, wash
either early or late in the day, when the sun's rays are less
intense.

Before washing, remove any heavy deposits of tree sap or road tar
with a soft cotton rag that you've dampened with mineral spirits
or a cleaner specifically designed for the job. Rinse the area
immediately. While the car is still wet, use a lambs-wool mitt or
soft cotton cloth (not synthetic fabrics or brushes, which can
scratch) to apply a mix of water and detergent. A cleaner
especially formulated for cars should spare existing wax. The
jury is still out on whether dishwashing detergent is too harsh.

Wash from the top of the car down, so you don't have to clean
lower areas repeatedly. Rinse the mitt or cloth often and the car
periodically, before the suds can dry. Check the finish for beads
of water. If the beads are bigger than a quarter or if the water
forms sheets, it's time to wax.

After the last rinse, dry the car with a soft cotton towel or
genuine chamois. If you opt to take the car to a car wash instead
of doing the job yourself, choose one with a brushless system,
which won't scratch.

Alchemist

iTrader: (23)

Interesting read- is this in the newest CR?
I'm a little surprised they didn't rate the new "high tech" waxes like Meguiars NXT, eagle One's NanoWax and the other newcomers...... maybe they're TOO new?

as an aside, I do like the NXT wax for all of the above criteria, except price- $15 for a bottle and it seems like it takes a lot to do the job... it left my yellow OZ looking a little "wetter" looking and a little brighter than the "Tough Stuff" (the old school carnuba in the brown bottle). It worked a fricking miracle on my wife's 94 dark blue Saturn.

EdT

Its from their '98 rating, have to pay for their 2004 rating which I don't think is much different, NuFinish has been in that positon for the longest time I can remember over 15-20 years. I just spent over $26 today on a bottle of Presta Products Aurora 3000 glazing compound www.prestaproducts.com , so $15 for a bottle of wax ain't too bad ! I'm using stuff the pro detailers use and try to avoid most of the shelf crap you find in the local stores which most of the cost goes into advertising. I do find the pro series products easier to use and provide superior results.

Has anyone used boat or marine wax on their ride, I would like a report comparing car vs marine waxes.

marek

Wait - so this is an 8 year old article? :sigh: How is this relevant to the current waxes and polishes?

If you are going to simply reprint an article, please at least make it a current one!!