Does wax do anything for a neglected finish?

[HealthyCivic]

As the title says, does wax do anything for a severely neglected finish?

I have a co-worker who wants me to have a little detailing session with him (mainly wax) because he just bought a brand new black Toyota Corolla and he knows that I am a detailing guy. The thing is, he's never washed a car before. He always takes his cars to car washes, he doesn't know what swirls are, he doesn't care to know what swirls are, and he wants to keep taking the car to a car wash.

So I don't even want to spend time working with him and his car because I figure if he's abusing and neglecting the finish like that, what's the point in even putting wax on? Also, I know just because I know him (I supervise and train him at work) that me spending hours with him won't change his mind about how he cares for his car, he's just not as responsible of a person as I am. He's only 18 but it's sad because I work with a bunch of guys like this where they're like 23-28 and don't even know how to properly care for a car.

Are my suspicions correct or will wax still make a big difference? What do you think?

[Blueline]

You can do the job for him and hope he changes and takes care of his new care, or, say you are too busy. Any new car needs to be clayed, cleaned, and waxed, but if he is then going to take it to car washes and generally neglect the vehicle, for me, I would be too busy to do it for him.

[searle]

Originally Posted by HealthyCivic

As the title says, does wax do anything for a severely neglected finish??

Wax itself will help a little. Better, with same effort, is Meguiars Cleaner-Wax, which also contains some polish oils.

Not everyone is a "detailing Moron" (like me and most folks on this forum). For 95% of population, a wash followed by a Meguiars Cleaner-Wax (Clean+Polish+Wax) gives exactly what they want and they will be totally happy. In fact, the results may be so nice the person may well become addicted to detailing

[RaskyR1]

Originally Posted by HealthyCivic

As the title says, does wax do anything for a severely neglected finish?

I have a co-worker who wants me to have a little detailing session with him (mainly wax) because he just bought a brand new black Toyota Corolla and he knows that I am a detailing guy. The thing is, he's never washed a car before. He always takes his cars to car washes, he doesn't know what swirls are, he doesn't care to know what swirls are, and he wants to keep taking the car to a car wash.

So I don't even want to spend time working with him and his car because I figure if he's abusing and neglecting the finish like that, what's the point in even putting wax on? Also, I know just because I know him (I supervise and train him at work) that me spending hours with him won't change his mind about how he cares for his car, he's just not as responsible of a person as I am. He's only 18 but it's sad because I work with a bunch of guys like this where they're like 23-28 and don't even know how to properly care for a car.

Are my suspicions correct or will wax still make a big difference? What do you think?

I'd correct a spot on the center of his hood to show him how the paint should look. Then let him drive around like that for a while.

I would just use something like ColorX which will do some light cleaning and still add some protection.

[Murr1525]

There is a time and place for the basic Cleaner/Wax, and this is it.

[tcope1]

I like Rasky's post! Polish a big smiley face on the good and then call it a day.

As I've gotten into detailing I've noticed something like this. My friends that I talk to about caring for paint look at me like I'm crazy. They don't care one bit to know about micromaring or how to maintain paint. I show them my 8 tubs of M16 and they just look at me like I'm an alien. Now I know to start conversations with very basic and limited information. If it seems like they are interested then I can get into more detail.

[Trojan fan]

Originally Posted by searle

"detailing Moron"

You must know my wife I hear that all time.....

[Calais]

The only thing I think you guys may be overlooking is the fact that everytime he brings it back to that car wash brand new swirls and oxidation will be re-applied to the car, also the wax protection will definitely be stripped by the detergent they use in their tunnel washes.

[Michael Stoops]

Some people regard as a car as nothing more than a means to get from Point A to Point B. If they run it through a car wash and it's clean, then that's good enough for them. So be it.

ColorX is an excellent solution for people like this, even if they do run through a tunnel wash regularly. Perhaps he'll at least listen to that - he does, after all, want to have a detailing session with you, so that's at least a start! ColorX is easy to use and very effective, so once you show him how easy it can be to use, he may do it more than once a year.

As for all car washes using detergents that strip wax, that isn't necessarily true. Many of the higher quality commercial car washes use Meguiar's soaps in their system - remember that we sell many of our Detailer Line of products in 55 gal drums - Shampoo Plus being one of them. Yes, you're still bound to get swirls in the paint from the brushes or cloth strips, but at least the soap won't just strip the wax.

[searle]

Originally Posted by Michael Stoops

remember that we sell many of our Detailer Line of products in 55 gal drums

Hmmm .... now, I wonder where I will fit these drums in my garage

Should be room for 4 or 5 ...