Aqua wax or rapid detailer?

[t4 chump]

Which wud be better to use after washing?

[LiamT4]

At the simplest level, it depends if you want to make it shiny or want to protect it.
wax will give it some shine, but is mainly for protection, where as detailers are the opposite and are usually used between washing/polishing/waxing. (i think)

People like wobbly and volvokid are the jedi's of the car cleaning world, so they will be able to give you the best answers.

[AndysR]

Your talking about two different products entirely.

The rapid detailer is more of a cleaner for use of removing light dirt etc. It is said that it can be used to remove the dust etc left after it has rained instead of washing a car, although I've never tried that myself, to bring back the freshly cleaned look. It is also an effective lubricant when it comes to claying the bodywork. Rapid detailer is also handy for removing wax/polishing dust to help level a freshly polished and wax surface.

The aqua wax quite simply is a different take on your run of the mill wax products. This is more on the protection level and should be applied to an already freshly cleaned surface and preferably after doing such things as claying or polishing for best results.

Personally my routine for a thorough clean is, wash, clay using quick detailer, polish, sealant, wax and then wipe down with quick detailer and it always seems to bring out good results.

[LiamT4]

Its always best to clay it first (after washing it)though as this gets the crap out of the paint work.
But if you only have the time to do one, then use wax as it gives it protection.

I'v never polished my s70 once, just clay bars, detailers and wax and it don't look too bad for it.

[t4 chump]

I was wanting it for a wax top up inbtween the full wax to try to help the never endin battle of the red to pink roof. Rapid detail seems handy if uroff somewhere and its rained an hr before u leave if thats how it works. Think id be to scared to use that without washong it lol

[AndysR]

I was wanting it for a wax top up inbtween the full wax to try to help the never endin battle of the red to pink roof. Rapid detail seems handy if uroff somewhere and its rained an hr before u leave if thats how it works. Think id be to scared to use that without washong it lol

Give the aqua wax a try and see how it goes, I'm never sold on these low effort maximum results waxes but try it and see I doubt it will do any harm, you never know it might help stop the fading.
Personally I feel the same way about the detailer, however going over a freshly washed car with the detailer is great if you want a cheeky just waxed look for the cost of a wash

[LiamT4]

I was wanting it for a wax top up inbtween the full wax to try to help the never endin battle of the red to pink roof. Rapid detail seems handy if uroff somewhere and its rained an hr before u leave if thats how it works. Think id be to scared to use that without washong it lol

I know what you mean i haven't used it without first washing the car, but i'v seen wobbly use it at car meets and he knows what he's on about.

Red is one of the high maintenence colours, it does take some looking after (i used to have an old audi 80 that was red, i did have to polish that! lol). Silver is so much easier to look after.

[t4 chump]

Its herendous for looking after but i love the look of it wen its shiney. Gonna try some aquawax inbetween if it gets me an extra month between the full wax i'll be happy. Miteeven try andget the big trade tub if i get on with it 5litres ofag for £30 off ebay notbad compared to the £12 for the 500ml. Lol

[Dangerous Dave]

A cheap place I found for AG stuff was Camskill, plus other stuff like Meguiars, etc.

http://camskill.co.uk/products.php?plid=m37b0s0p0

[simpT5]

Its herendous for looking after but i love the look of it wen its shiney. Gonna try some aquawax inbetween if it gets me an extra month between the full wax i'll be happy. Miteeven try andget the big trade tub if i get on with it 5litres ofag for £30 off ebay notbad compared to the £12 for the 500ml. Lol

+1 for Autoglym aqua wax, I use it once a week and it really does impart a fantastic shine with minimal effort, and the rain just beads off your paint work too!

The place I work at just happens to be an Autoglym dealer too, so I get the trade 5L container for £20 plus vat, can't complain at that!

[Wobbly Dave]

I am using deionised water for final rinsing now so I don't use as much QD after the wash cycle.

If I am in a hurry I use something like CG InstaWax as it has sealants in it already. This assumes you already have a LSP applied (good quality wax like Pete's 53 is my fav). It can be used on non waxed but the results are not as long lasting. I use it as a wax top up.

I don't always feel like doing a full detail every time.

[t4 chump]

+1 for Autoglym aqua wax, I use it once a week and it really does impart a fantastic shine with minimal effort, and the rain just beads off your paint work too!

The place I work at just happens to be an Autoglym dealer too, so I get the trade 5L container for £20 plus vat, can't complain at that!

So its the same stuff then?

[simpT5]

So its the same stuff then?

Yes.

Autoglym sell it to the trade as 'Express Wax' in 5 litre containers, but according to our friendly Autoglym rep, it is Aquawax just sold under a different name due to marketing reasons?

If you've ever used Aquawax before, it has an unmistakable smell of bubble gum and this stuff smells identical!

I absolutely love the stuff, you can use it everywhere but the windscreen too, great on your alloy wheels, the brake dust just falls away dead easy leaving your wheels sparkling!

[jimka]

aqua wax is an amazing 'quick clean' product. (recently they now include two microfibre clothes in the box and a small 50ml bottle of AG shampoo - originally the clothes were pretty crap but they have since improved the quailty to that of a £4-5 fibre - one 3 for 2 in halfords - you're looking at a cheap product.

I can clean my car in less than 1hr inc snow foam, wash, tyre dressing and wheel cleaning finishing on the aqua wax for a shiney finish.

I prefer it to using a chamious as you use the wax to take up the remaining water... it does indeed smell like bubble gum - it leaves a mirror/glass finish and lasts 1-2 weeks - biggest problem is dust this time of year.

claying a car after each wash sounds excessive - i expect a light polish would be better.

[Wobbly Dave]

My advice would be to used a good quality sealant after clay &polishing steps to prevent adhesion of inorganic contaminants thus reducing the need for claying in the future

[volvot5lisa]

Go for the aqua wax. Good stuff easy to use and gives a good finish

[merc85]

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[merc85]

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[t4 chump]

My advice would be to used a good quality sealant after clay &polishing steps to prevent adhesion of inorganic contaminants thus reducing the need for claying in the future

Whats a good sealant to use?

[AndysR]

I use Poorboy's and that seems to do the trick really well...