Which Wax and do you need an electric polisher?

I have a black 996 C4 and a electric blue vw camper van - both are metallic, and I now need to invest in a good wax eg Zymol, Swissol or meguiars but can they all be used on both the car and the van, and which, if any, are best value for money? I could be tempted by investing in a good polisher, the Meguirs G220 Dual Action polisher seems to be highly recommended, but is the finish considerably better than that obtained by hand or is it just quicker? Thanks David

I would say that the need for a machine polisher would depend on the current state of your paintwork - if it's covered in swirls, that will take a lot of time and effort to shift by hand. Providing you take good care of both vehicles after treatment, it might make more sense to get a travelling detailer in to do the hard work for you.

The paint work on the porsche is in very good condition, and the camper has been fully restored and had a full re spray last year so but have no paint defects, swirls or scratches to speak of. I just want the wet look shine and the satisfaction of doing it myself but I am not sure if you can use a good quality wax with a polisher, most online info relates to synthetic or liquid polish.

Have a look at detailingworld.co.uk - they're the fanatics for car cleaning, polishing and detailing. Also the relevant forum on this site has some good info. Which wax is a personal thing - on wallet as well as taste! Swisswax or Zymol will lighten your wallet by high 2 or 3 figures, but many speak highly of the results especially when the paintwork has been properly prepared first (basically carefully washed then clayed, possibly then a paint restorer) I've tried Maguiars (2 different types), AG super resin and AG High definition so far as I'm not prepared to dig too deep into the wallet. I'm pleased with the finish from AG High Definition, but then I put a lot of effort and time into the initial preparation. A machine takes a lot of the effort out of preparation and finishing - there's an alternative to the G220 (DAS6 or similar name) which gets good writeups on detailingworld and is half the price. I haven't invested in one as I have an old small 12v machine that I've adapted to use Sonus pads. If you decide to go for a machine, practise on the campervan before attacking the Porsche - it's easy to get too heavy handed with machine and restorer and go right through the paint!!

VW camper van? A split screen? I love those things, do you have any pics?[ ]

FWIW I use Dodo Juice waxes - they go on easily, polish up easily and are no too hard on the wallet: Dodo Juice Personally I would wash & prep the paint (clay bar etc.) and then apply one coat of hard wax (say Rainforest Rub), leave over night, then one coat of soft wax (Purple Haze), leave for a good few hours - overnight if you have time, and finish with a second coat of soft wax. Regular washing, plus a coat of soft wax every 2-3 weeks, should see you through the winter. Repeat the full treatment every 3-4 months.

Be careful with machine polishing if you do it yourself. It's quite easy to burn the paint if you don't know what your doing. And if you do damage your paint paying for a detailer will in retrospect have been the right thing to do Steve

I have a Kestrel DAS6 - it's a random orbital machine. Same as the Meguiars G220 but for £60-£70 less. You'll still need to do everything very slowly with it but I have found that it is not easy to damage the paint - there is a guide on Detailing World (I think) that covers the theory and technique of machine polishing. I believe rotary polishers are a different kettle of fish (though I have not used one). I use Menzerna Intensive Polish, Final Finish and then wax of choice.

Thanks guys, I think I will be getting the DAS6 and the Swissvax Saphire wax next week. Thanks David

If the paint needs correction then you will need to use a machine polisher. A Meguiars G220 or a Porter Cable are both fine machines. You will need a selection of pads of varying degrees of "cut". With the above polishers it is very difficult to burn through the paint. There are more aggressive polishers available such as that from makita which will burn through and only to be used by pros or those very familiar. I suggest you search youtube for detailing videos. Loads there and it will help give you an idea of polishers in action and how to use them. Find an old panel and practise using for example Meguiars polishes which come in different grades. Check out their website. Else 3M make good products. There are loads out there. Also check sites like detailing world. I would recommend clay bar first followed by a good wash. Then put aside a solid day and work your way panel by panel around the car. Loads of threads on the site above to show you how to do this. Key thing is to take your time and believe me it will take a couple of passes to get it just right. Protect car with a gool quality wax, a few coats and you will transform the car. The above is a brief summary but you will find loads of threads and videos out there. Enjoy as it is a very satisifying job when you see the results [ ]

another vote for the kestral DA6. its a great machine for the money. The results are fantastic but it takes time. Each panel needs a couple goes over if marked and swirled.