The ultimate car wax, autopians input

I agree with what the rest of the guys have said. I think that the appearance and slickness and all that is very important. I think that the ultimate wax isn't going to ever be achieved though. Its always subjective and as we all know, you can't please everybody. Besides, what I think looks awesome on white doesn't look as good on red. I know some waxes that were made for red cars and just look average on Black. Its all subjective to what I perceive as being "ultimate". I think that S100/P21S is as close to Ultimate as we are going to see. It isn't the best looking wax on every color, but it is marginaly better looking on every color than any other single wax. Souveran may look better on red but S100 looks better on white than Souveran. You can't deny the value of the product and you can't deny that it doesn't attract dust and it rinses better than more oily waxes.



That actually brings up an issue.... Can you get amazing depth and slickness without having dust magnet oils in it? I don't think the two desires are in harmony with each other. I think you'd have to compromise a bit for the ultimate wax.



Ok. My rant is over now. :D
 
I should have pointed out that when i say wax factory i mean a "huge" factory producing different waxes for industry, its one of the top 4 in the UK, this is no bloke in a shed operation! At the meeting last week the "boss" showed us a unique product with a unique colour and a shine in its natural state that can only be described as amazing.



The one thing that ive picked up reading the threads is, most people do not care for a natural product? ie:no solvents.



Just want to say, your input is greatly appriecated at this early stage.



Cheers Guys
 
More than likely people will want a wax they can layer on top of a sealant. If you have solvents in it then its going to kill the selants underneath and you wouldn't be able to layer it on top of itself. I wouldn't call it Ultimate if it had solvents in it.
 
For me, its:



1.) Quality - Yes, yes, I know - many products composed of cheap silicone oils work fine. But if I'm spending money on a boutique product, I want my wax to have the finest grade carnauba. To me, quality includes sealanttopperability... read: refined solvents.



2.) Technology - DK said it well, "Just about any bozo can do some basement chemistry and whip up a detailing product cheap and easy." I know this is geared more to the synthetic side, but I want the assurance of technology and research dollars.



3.) Works well - Zymol contains banana oils and that's nice. But most agree it's a PITA to use. So in addition to quality and technology, how about something that's a breeze to apply and remove? I'm getting lazy. Oh, and no dusting, please.



4.) Slickness - Yea, I ranked this above appearance. Most prepped clearcoats nowadays look fine naked. But with slickness, it's either there or not. I would love to have a carnauba with lasting slickness.



5.) Appearance - Depth, shine, reflectivity, clarity, wetness...



6.) Value - I'm a miser...



7.) Marketing - I must admit that I'm unimpressed by all the waxes in this category. Even the "best" like Zymol and Pinnacle have cheesy websites and packaging. Professional customer service is a must, and fortunately, that's common.



8.) Durability - Other than #26 and Collinite, I've given up on finding durable waxes. It's just not out there.
 
Like Lowejackson said earlier, being able to get P21S for 15GBP in the UK would have to be the bench mark. This applied so well, looked good and is so economical in its use.

Remember it is the prep that really makes the difference, the final wax enhances it (IMO any way).

Best of luck though, keep us informed.



By the way I am a chemist and wear a white coat (well in my last job)!!!!!!!!



Steve
 
Would it make since to create your wax with as good of qualities as possible, then create a sister product (i.e. QD) that assists in it's duribility, or even it's ability to layer?
 
The things that make for a beautiful shine with ease of use are all very important, but I think the ability to repel dust has not been mentioned enough. ShowroomLincoln touched upon this briefly but one of the things I really like about P21S is how it seems to stay clean (from dust as well as rain) better than most of the other stuff I've tried.



Also, as BW said, the carrier or solvent would have to be very refined (like P21S)......not only so that you don't 'lessen' any of the glazing/sealing done before the wax, but also to make it perfectly safe for long-term & frequent use.
 
NO SOLVENTS



Depth of shine



Richness of shine (no hard metallic edges)



No Distortion of color (aka yellow carnauba vs. ivory carnauba)



If you can beat zymol destiny/pinnacle souveran (the 2 best IMHO), then I will buy it regardless of price.



-Tom
 
Lots of waxes may be able to beat zymol destiny and pinnacle souveran. It just depends on what color of car you have and what kind of car it is. Some of the Zymol waxes are designed for specific cars and won't work the same way on every car. I've got Zymol Vintage and I've got to say that like my Pinnacle Paste Glaz on white better than the $1500 Vintage. I think that the Ultimate Wax would look better than average on every color in the spectrum, although specific waxes on specific colors or cars may beat it occasionaly. You can't create a wax that is mind blowing on every color of car out there and has no equal. The science of color and reflection doesn't work that way. Its just not possible. Waxes formulated for light colored cars will always look better on light colored cars than dark. If the product is designed to play off the natural light play of a color then you won't be able to beat it with a general "ultimate" wax. Don't you think? It seems that would be the case to me.
 
The wax must have that wet look and the wet look must last. Many waxes will give you that wet look but it is gone in a couple of washes , The beading will be their the protection will be their but the wet look is gone.
 
That's because the wet look is just oils and they wash off after a couple washes. The carnauba is still there to make the beads, but the beads will be larger once the oils wash off. Its the oil that creates the beads to begin with.
 
we all know that there are some pretty good sealants out there, so I don't think durability is the biggest component to a carnuba. So I'd have to say I agree with Scottwax 100%:



1) look (shine, depth, reflectiveness, no hazing a day or two later, minimize dust attraction, etc.)

2) ease of use. don't mind curing, hazing time, etc. so long as instructions are clear. application and buffing off should be very easy though.

3) trim friendly. no sense in having a killer wax that is going to make non-paint surface look like crap

4) durability. Minimum of 3-4 weeks since most of us reapply as frequently.

5) price. There's some expensive waxes out there that accomplish the above already, so if you want to break into the market, I'd think it would have to be worth it to get us to switch over, otherwise we're going to stick to what we know.
 
staying power: How does the finish look after 2 months?



There are many products that look excellent following application but few that are truly pleasing after a month or two of real-world exposures.:mad:
 
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