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Next week I’ll be knee deep in carnauba, doing Q&A with the folks at Turtle Wax in Willowbrook, IL. I have questions of my own and none pertain to the wine they’ll serve at dinner. Readers of this series expect more than the standard PR spin; commenter Tosh previously warned me of giving hollow endorsements. With that—and TTAC’s mission—in mind, I will never forget who is the boss ’round here (hint: you).
So what would you like to know about wash/wax/polish/glaze/clay or interior care? Questions can be general or relate specifically to Turtle Wax branded stuff. No holds barred, obviously. And while we’re at it, thank you all for your continued support of “Piston Slap.”
37 Comments on “Piston Slap: Questions for Turtle Wax Junket Please...”
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uhmmm, don’t really have a question, though I love the series. Keep it up Sajeev!!
5 minutes after I finish waxing my car, it’ll start to rain. Why does waxing a car bring the rain?
I have a question:
I’ve heard/read the comments over the years, usually coming from detailers or producers of detailing products, that exposure to “road grime” and other pollutants without waxing or other paint “sealing”/protection will cause permanent damage to a car’s paint.
Are there any credible, independent sources for that claim? I’ve assumed that, for the most part, it’s an urban legend propagated between car enthusiasts and at the least helped along occasionally by the industry that has an obvious interest in selling its products.
I’m not trying to flame, but I do want to be honest; For years I’ve gone on the assumption that waxing is wildly over-rated as far as paint protection goes (looks are another matter entirely and don’t concern me). If I’m wrong I’d like to know.
So if Sajeev or his hosts would like to enlighten a non-customer (and possibly remove the non- part), can we have some pointers to The Truth About Waxing?
Know where a good how-to is for waxing? Can’t find one on the web.
Also, best soaps and wax available at your standard auto store, like Autozone or Kragen or whatever?
THANKS!
1) How do I get dried wax out of the textured black plastic trim?
2) Why did 1970s vintage Turtle Wax destroy the plastic chrome on after market trim on my Dad’s ’78 LeMans?
3) What’s that cute turtles real name?
4) Is Zainos really worth the hype?
5) Why does my Father – born in 1934 – insist on waxing his windshield?
What the hell is the Ice line? How is it different than other products from Armour All and 303?
Bevo: The Ice line was specifically developed to infuriate the end user by leaving a greasy residue that takes more microfiber than China can produce to remove.
I got so pissed I reverted to wiping the paint with mineral spirits and starting fresh with 3M and Meguiar’s products.
Hit them hard on the Ice line Sajeev. Try applying it to Plexiglass so you can see the haze it leaves after polishing through the other side.
1. Which are the best TW products for preserving the finishes of a vehicle that has to be parked outside all of the time in a hot summer area, like SoCal? By “finishes” I mean not just paint, but matte black, plastic and rubber.
2. Which TW products are most suited for protecting parts of vehicles which accumulate smashed bugs, like motorcycle fairings? My motorcycle’s fairing has both painted (the batwing) and clear (windshield) sections.
3. Will TW be coming out with a product to compete with the “Mr. Clean” carwash system?
Thanks! Have fun at the event, and bring back good info for us.
@Austin Greene:
1) peanut butter. it’s no joke. based on my and others’ experiences. get’s rid of dried wax quite well.
4) i use zaino z2 pro, and i’m pleased with the shine and durability. it’s a synthetic polish like klasse. lasts longer than other products i tried.
What would be the best method for eliminating water spots (With out buying a buffer). I own a black car (I’m a masochist) and I can never seem to get rid of them. Is there a TW product that can help me? I own a microfiber towel, and always dab dry, I just can’t seem to get rid of water spots, and I don’t want to spend a fortune.
Schm, the first thing you need to figure out is whether they are actual water spots, or “ethcing,” that is, permenant damage to the clear coat. The former can be removed with various products. I’d try vinegar first.
The easiest first try is detailing clay. You don’t have ot buy over the internet. There’s a decent kit available from Meguiar’s in your local auto parts store or even wal mart. That can take out a lot of regular water spots with ease. Make sure you use it correctly – i.e., do NOT use it dry, basically, make sure you always use adequate lube (the peanut gallery can stop chuckling now). If you drop the clay, throw it away immediately. For this reason, break the new bar into a bunch of small pieces, so if you drop a piece, you won’t lose all your clay.
If its etching, you will need to physically remove that small portion of clear coat by way of polishing. Sometimes the ethcing can be so deep its not wise to try to remove it because you may remove too much clear coat.
If you don’t want to buy anything, wash the car first, then try some vinegar + water, spray it on the microfiber towel, or on the car, then wipe it down.
At the risk of sounding like a shill for a different web site (again!)
autopia.org
Good forums and lots of articles on ANYTHING you ever wanted to know about exterior and interior care. I have found it invaluable as a new car owner who is determined to keep it looking new.
I live in Illinois and am looking for work. I sent them a resume. So the question is, do they have my resume?
Please discuss their polymer technologies?
A number of car finishes (REJEX was one of the first) promote this type of polish as superior to wax.
However, Nopanegain’s comments are worrying. I’ve not had that problem polishing either with REJEX or Meguiars Tech Wax 2. It would be good to chat with TW about ICE’s properties.
kurtamaxx, are you sure you’re not confusing terms? Polish is something which breaks down the surface. Wax and sealant are products that go on top of said surface. They are not the same, despite some old-school terms.
However, there are certain one-step products which can combine both steps into a light polish and basic sealant.
Does anyone have experience with a cilajet wax treatment?
http://www.cilajet.com/
As far as clay goes I’ve always liked http://www.claymagic.net/
Nopanegain: ICE is terrible.Greasy crap. One of the worst products I have ever used, and I have been waxing cars since I was 10 years old. The first time using “Turtle Wax”.Liquid,in a glass bottle. That’s a longggg time
Mcguiars doesn’t hold up for me in LA and NuFinish seems to last the longest here.
Could you please ask if hot wax or cold wax is better?
Why doesn’t wax, or whatever you wish to call it, last longer? Couple of washes and most seems to go away. While I am told that it is bad, I love the beads of water. Is beading really bad for the finish? “Sheeting” action makes me thing of Jet Dry, which a friend of mine uses in his car wash water. Love PS…keep up the good work!
Yes, ICE is not the panacea, but if you stray onto rubber or plastic parts, it doesn’t leave a white residue. Unfortunately, ICE has no ability to remove minor stains in the paint due to bug guts; you need to prep it first.
Which brings me to the ICE “Liquid Clay Bar” – it is a decent polish for removing minor scratches/bug stains in the clearcoat.
I’m not selling the stuff – I’ve found that all car wax products will exacerbate your bursitis, then not last over the winter (or two months in hot sun) – the work/benefit ratio seems to drive people to try to find that “magic formula”; which is why billions are spent on products that have all different ingredients/formulas but seem to get the same results. So, yeah, it’s a scam (I mean a lucrative business).
Time to slap some ICE on the Elantra before it rains…
EDIT: The “trick” to using ICE is to use less than you think you need on the pad – then spread it as thin as possible. Then, there will be “enough microfiber in China” (BG) to remove the residue.
1. Encourage them to continue making their classic green Turtle Wax liquid car wax. Yes I know it is a product made for lamers but it is easy to apply and the residue is easy to remove. I would rather do my car every two months with that product than every six months with the hard Carnuba (real) wax that requires 10X the elbow grease.
2. What is the easiest way to remove wax residue from rubber molding which is flush with painted surfaces?
Sajeev,
When I was a kid, Turtle Wax was the number one brand of automotive wax. I remember it came in tall glass bottle, the wax was green, and the smell was addictive. I must have fried brain cells on the stuff.
Today, the product has dropped to rental car status. What happened to this iconic brand?
Was it a marketing/pr issue, or was the market saturated by more advanced products that the Turtle couldn’t be interested in competing with?
Has Turtle Wax considered how much the new Panamera looks like a turtle, when compared to the VW New Beetle with the prosthetic turtle attachments in the photo above?
I’m on my second black car, and I’m obsessive about keeping it clean. Water spots are, of course, particularly vexing to anyone with that combination.
For years, I’ve used a squeegee on the car after washing.
I don’t know how healthy it is for the paint, doing that week after week, but it’s pretty effective against water spots. In the hard-to-reach areas, I’ll use a soft cloth.
Hope that helps.
– Is there a difference in the result between paste wax and liquid wax of the same brand? Said another way, is there a reason to prefer one over the other for any reason?
– I sometimes give my car two coats of wax. Am I getting any benefit (other than my feeling of having done a good job)?
– Sometimes I leave the wax on for a while, and it dries up hard before buffing (this usually happens when I try to apply wax to too much surface area before buffing). Am I losing any benefit when this happens?
Turtle Wax is junk. Most low-end car waxes and polishes will leave a chalky mess on black plastic trim if you’re not careful. Synthetic polymer waxes (I use Zaino, but there are many others) last much longer, and don’t leave a mess on trim.
I have a car with a black and white leather interior. It looked amazing when i bought it three years ago, but, as my resolve died, and i spent less time with it, i stopped using leather cleaner and conditioner on the seats after every wash. The white parts of the drivers seat now look more gray then white. Can anyone recommend a product to bring back the white without damaging/harming the black part (its white on the side bolsters, and black for the center)? Does Turtle Wax make such a product? I have gone over it with a few brands of leather cleaner, but I think that a yeah and half of grime needs something a little more potent. Thanks
I just want to tell you that some years ago, my buddy, George, who lives in the SF Bay area, sent me a photo of the Turtle Car, pictured at the top of this blog, which he’d found on the internet. A few months later, my GF and I were driving through her town, Bolton, Massachusetts, and THERE WAS THE TURTLE CAR, parked at some store, along with the rhino car. I saw it one more time, and got a bunch of photos of it. The company that made it (from a New Beetle) is several towns from Bolton, which is about half way betw Boston and Worcester.
Austin Greene:
1) How do I get dried wax out of the textured black plastic trim?
Use any solvent like a bug and tar remover. I’ve heard that even peanut butter works.
2) Why did 1970s vintage Turtle Wax destroy the plastic chrome on after market trim on my Dad’s ‘78 LeMans?
Don’t know.
3) What’s that cute turtles real name?
You think it’s cute?
4) Is Zainos really worth the hype?
No and hell no!
5) Why does my Father – born in 1934 – insist on waxing his windshield?
Before windshield treatments (like Rain-X) a wax or sealent on a whindshield was the only way to get it to repel rain. I’ve have heard theat others have had good results with Klasse All-in-One on their windshields.
tparkit:
– Is there a difference in the result between paste wax and liquid wax of the same brand? Said another way, is there a reason to prefer one over the other for any reason?
No. Whether a wax is a paste, cream, or liquid just depends on the formulation. These forms are arrived at by a simple adjustment of the raw materials. No magic, just basic chemistry to achieve a desired result. Which form you use is a matter of preference.
– I sometimes give my car two coats of wax. Am I getting any benefit (other than my feeling of having done a good job)?
NO, just good feelings.
– Sometimes I leave the wax on for a while, and it dries up hard before buffing (this usually happens when I try to apply wax to too much surface area before buffing). Am I losing any benefit when this happens?
No loss in benefits just more work for you.
jimmy2x:
“At the risk of sounding like a shill for a different web site (again!)
autopia.org”
Also Detail City is good. Just google it.
golden2husky:
“Why doesn’t wax, or whatever you wish to call it, last longer? Couple of washes and most seems to go away. While I am told that it is bad, I love the beads of water. Is beading really bad for the finish? “Sheeting” action makes me thing of Jet Dry, which a friend of mine uses in his car wash water. Love PS…keep up the good work!”
Fresh new paint from the body shop will also bead. All that means is there is no surface contamination on the paint. The dirtier a car, the less it will bead. All waxes will only last 1 to 6 months tops. Sealants protect from three to twelve months. The shorter ends of these ranges indicate a vehicle that is parked outside day and night and is washed frequently. The longer ends of these ranges can be expected on a vehicle that is garaged day and night in moderate temperatures. If you are in a hot climate area like Florida you need to wax or seal more frequently than when you are in Maine.
Also though no one has asked, Teflon does nothing to enhance the protective abilities of a wax or sealent. Just marketing razzle-dazzle.
Waxes highly overrated. Just keep the car clean with regular washes and a spray instant detail product and your vehicle will look marvelous. You will most likely need to wax just once a year along with some spot light compounding. If you have been a bit neglectful, just find a friend with some wheel skills and the finish will look fine.
I have always used artists’ kneaded rubber erasers as I am convinced that they are exactly the same, but way cheaper, than detailing clay. They have always worked well for me. Am I wrong that they are the same?
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/72/Kneaded_eraser.jpg
Also, is there any reason to use real carnuba wax any more? I know it’s still for sale, but the synthetic waxes last much longer and look just as good as far as I can tell.
Bridge2far,
Your cars surface has many enemies, some visible, some not so much, but the biggest enemy is time. The longer an offensive substance is left on a car the more damage it will do. That is the primary purpose of a wax/sealent – to protect the surface. The shine is secondary. Since no wax lasts more than 6 months under the best conditions (and usually less than that) and sealents last 12 months max (but again usually less) your best defense is to wax/seal at least twice a year. If you do this you will have little need to compound out problem areas due to neglecting the paint finish.
Is there anything you can put on interior trim that won’t cause the rubberized coating to peel off? Also, what’s a good product to use on textured interior surfaces (interior door panels on the wife’s SLK350 are brutal) that will clean filth and leave the surface looking nice and new (ish)?
Is that wax still hand scrapped from the carnuba leaf? I read that on the side of a tin once. Apparently that was a selling feature, but instead it made me feel guilty for exploiting South American workers living on subsistance wages so I could have a shiny car.
Personally I like a ‘wax’ to go on with a minimum of elbow grease and make bugs and tar easy to wash off for the next several months. I don’t need a show car shine and don’t want to spend more than $7 (although I did spend lots on my bottle of Meguiar’s NXT, which will probably last forever at the rate I’m going).
No matter how much truth serum they force you to drink, I’m not sure how you can endorse anything without actually trying it and comparing it with other competing products under the same conditions. That sounds like dividing up your car’s surface and applying different products to each section, something I might be willing to try on my own car if there were free samples available. So please bring back enough free samples for all of us, Sajeev!
All: your comments are noted, forwarded, and ready for follow up on Wednesday. Your collective body of questions pretty much blew me away, so now its time to see what Turtle Wax says.