XSeries-forum

Has anyone got any views on Autoglym's high definition wax?  I know there will be better products and the detailers may cringe, but I don't have the time to look after the car properly.

What I want is to spend a tenner getting the car washed by hand by the local Lithuanian guys, and then go home and stick a quick bit of polish on....and 20 mins later for it to look nearly as good as Westside's X6!!!!

The AG HD wax (£45 from Halfords) seems like a reasonable compromise of effort and results

Thanks for the advice
Ben

I use it all our cars and it's fine.  Yes there are better options but it works for me....and I bought on discount from Amazon I think....

EDIT: Just checked and it's here for a tenner less, and if you can wait a few days it's postage free too.

Richard

save yourself the £45 -
1. Buy a bucket and wash mitt, some car wash shampoo (£10-15)  20min
2. Wash your car properly after the lithos have made an attempt for £5. 
3. Dry your car with a decent quality microfibre chamois towel (£10) 10min
4. Apply Autogym Extra Gloss Protection (£11) Long protection/shine for very little effort & bottle lasts ages 15min on / 15min off & nice tea break in between

NOTE: If you let car wash clowns clean your car then drive home (even if its only a short distance <1mile) your car paintwork will pick up small amounts dust / debris (+ stuff car wash clowns miss).  You then wipe on wax / wipe of wax ALL THOSE SMALL PARTICLES OF DUST DEBRIS WILL CAUSE SWIRL MARKS & MAKE UR PAINTWORK LOOK MINCE - You have been warned - Give ur car a second wash at home!

Google detail supplies and pick up items in one purchase & get it sent to your door
ps: u dont have to buy the most expensive shampoo, mitt, micro towel to do a decent job & Extra Gloss Protection goes on very easily & wipe of 45min later (tho u can leave it on longer)

EDIT:
A brief explanation as you refer to wax and polish on your original post / they are not the same thing
Polish = remove any protection and cleans paintwork
Wax = protect paintwork & gives shine

Everyone has there preferred brand.
I use Collinite 845 (on ebay, amazon etc) twice a year. Easy to apply and buff (use one of those big mitts with the tassles). Leaves a good coat for protection.

I could be wrong but whilst you may see some improvement I doubt yours will look anywhere near as good as westsides car using local supermarket hand wash & AG HDW......I am asuming your comments were a little tounge in cheek

As has been pointed generally polishes correct/fill & waxes seal/protect but a handful of products attempt to do both to some extent........Meguiars NXT2 will correct & seal to some extent as will AG SRP (Autoglym Super Resin Polish). Not used the latest revamped one but the original was a one stop solution to improve top coat finish & seal. Ironically I used to use SRP followed by the EGP that has been recommended to you by another member.

BMW Clearcoat is hard and IMHO machine polishing is required to properly remove surface imperfections such as minor scratches & swirl marks. The NXT2 & SRP products I mention will make the clearcoat smoother albeit I believe on BMW clearcoat they conceal/fill/hide issues rather than removing them. Thus if you use one of these you will have to repeat the process fairly frequently.

Ideally don't waste cash on expensive wax unless paint genuinely good or machine corrected 1st.

If not needing significant correction & you have an acceptable clearcoat then Collinite 476 is a far cheaper cost but versatile and durable wax. It's is okay to work with & finish lasts more than other products.

If time is the only factor then maybe pay pro-detailer to attend to the car properly, (plenty of so called pro-valeters wash cars in methods not much better than supermarket car park washers).  Plenty of references & links to pro-detailers on Detailing World Forums albeit most charge hundreds for their services.

As for me ?.................Nothing fancy - I handwash mine myself using noodle mitt & 2 bucket method, (I don't use shampoo unless haeavy soil as I feel it can remove the wax/sealant), I then dry with MF towel. Sealant/wax used varies - if clearcoat fairly good & time on my side then Collinite 915 wax used but SRP or NXT 2 for a quick fix.  I also use clay, random orbital machine & various products to correct when of benefit & time permiting. 

Bottom line....For good results time & effort required, (whether by you or someone else paid to do it).


 

I've been using autoglym hd wax for about two years I think, I was a swisvax user and wanted to try some other waxes, it's pretty good wax and much better than the price would suggest. £30 or 40 isn't it?
The x6 has been done with hd since new, long lasting too.

Thanks all for this - genuinely much appreciated and very good advice, I'm sure. 

The car is 6 months old, so the paintwork is in decent shape, albeit needs a proper clean.  There is, unfortunately a small scrape already (given the height of it, it looks like a bag scrape in a carpark rather than a driving accident or malicious damage), so I will try and polish out - I suspect I won't be able to treat it properly though and may need to call out a pro for a mobile repair.

I fully take the point about grinding in dirt from a journey home from the local carwash, so I'll wash at home first.  Is it worth me "claying" at least the first time before the polish (re scuff) and then wax do you think?  I know I'll never get close to detailing standard (it's already pretty swirly) - I just want a decent shine and to protect what's left of the paintwork

Cheers guys
B

Hi

on my old forum there was a very easy and clear detailing guide not too difficult to follow.

When i then read that I ad not been using 2 bucket method and you switch it's scary what comes off a car let alone waxing it.

http://www.vxronline.co.uk/forum/forumd ... -Detailing

Never really got to grips with autoglym when I did the cars myself

Last time detailed was with swissvax which lasted longer than anything else before

These ones are about to be done with GTechinq

Excellent  - really useful and a simple read too!  I had been a yellow sponge and one bucket man but no more.

I've done some research on detailers and found someone who seems to be brilliant according to Detailing World (http://www.gleammachine.net/) - he's very local to me so I've emailed him and suggested I pop the car round for his professional view.  If it take a few quid to get me back to square one, then that may be the best course of action.

An expensive mistake I suspect, but at least I'll learn.  Will keep you posted.

Once you get some of the folks going about car cleaning on here your bank balance is in danger!!

I have now learned about and am operating the two-bucket system, a 'DI Vessel' to soften the water, DTS meterto see how hard your water is and to make sure the DI Vessel is still working, a better pressure washer, new microfibre cleaning cloths, and that pvr has a Teflon coated car.  No 'Albanians' are now allowed near the car....including those used by my BMW Dealer.

Mine was machine polished to sort out the defective paint soon after it was delivered, coated with whatever BMW offered as a paint sealer and has been waxed with HD Wax for the last two and a bit years (the Extra Protection Gloss is good too) and no polishes are used as it will strip the protection coat.  The Mini is treated the same way.

Be warned, detailing can break your wallet...... :blink:

Richard

[quote="X5Sport"]
Once you get some of the folks going about car cleaning on here your bank balance is in danger!!

I have now learned about and am operating the two-bucket system, a 'DI Vessel' to soften the water, DTS meterto see how hard your water is and to make sure the DI Vessel is still working, a better pressure washer, new microfibre cleaning cloths, and that pvr has a Teflon coated car.  No 'Albanians' are now allowed near the car....including those used by my BMW Dealer.

Mine was machine polished to sort out the defective paint soon after it was delivered, coated with whatever BMW offered as a paint sealer and has been waxed with HD Wax for the last two and a bit years (the Extra Protection Gloss is good too) and no polishes are used as it will strip the protection coat.  The Mini is treated the same way.

Be warned, detailing can break your wallet...... :blink:

Richard
[/quote]

Racist

[quote="X5Sport"]
Once you get some of the folks going about car cleaning on here your bank balance is in danger!!

[/quote]

Best not tell him about detailing world then.........

No, that site has certainly cost me enough....


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[quote="5wany"]
-
1. Buy a bucket

[/quote]


Just the one?  I was always told to use the "two bucket method"