xxdevilzeroxx

have you guys ever wondered which product is the best? well i work for Pep Boys and i deal with these things every day... i just dont know which is the best.....maguirres 3 step VS the Mothers 3 step..........Zaimol.....or liquid glass.........i usualy use the maguirres line, but i think im going to transfer to the mothers 3 step line.....with pure carnuba wax.....and also,, have you guys ever tried the 3M line? its much more expensive over the maguirres and mothers line.....im Curious

SLiM8

I've never tried 3m's carnauba wax so i can't compare it to meguiars or mothers. Both meguiars and mothers will give you outstanding shine. Its just a matter of personal choice. I prefer meguiars over mothers. I feel that meguiars product are easier to work with than mothers, but others prefer mothers over meguiars. Is your paint in good condition? Have you clayed your car before? If not, get a clay bar and clay the paint before you polish it. My personal favorite polish is meguiars #9 smr and top it with meguiars #26 paste wax.

xxdevilzeroxx

i was thinking of getting a clay system from maguirres. then getting a cleaner wax - then swerl remover- then NXT on top.......whould that be okay? if not i was just gonna go with the 3 step system from mothers (Added step Mothers Clay system)........1 cleaner wax ...........2 glaze (swerl remover) ...........3 Pure carnuba wax (cost more than NXT) which whould work better? i want to do this next friday i need help!!! thank you

SLiM8

actually, if you're getting a swirl mark remover you really don't need a cleaner wax. Cleaner wax is a one step product for people who doesn't want to do 2 or 3 step process. A cleaner wax is a special blend of cleaners and wax together. If you want to do the 3 step process start with the meguiars #1 cleaner and #2 polish. #1 will clean your and remove some light swirls on the paint. The polish will leave glaze or oils to nourish the paint. The polish will give you that wet look and you're last step is protect it with a wax. I would use #26 paste wax as your last step. It will further enhanced your paint and give it a more deeper reflection.
http://www.cardomain.com/id/miatamosca This guy uses #26 on his red miata. The top picture on 1st page is with Pinnacle Souveran and the bottom one i think is done with #26.

xxdevilzeroxx

so you do not prefer the mothers 3 step? can you name the maguirres producst on the 1 and 2....and 3 i dont know them....

SLiM8

It's not that i don't like mothers product. I've heard from a few people that mothers product is a little harder to work with. I've never tried their cleaner or polish but i did get to use their carnauba wax. Although it looked glossy, it's slickness isn't up to par with other carnauba's i've tried. The 3 step product meguiars has is called deep crystals ( not really sure). Or you can look at your local phone book and try to find if theres any harley davidson dealership near you. They carry p21s products but named as s100. They have a 2 step product (s100 shine enhancing cleaner and s100 paste wax) and works like wonder. Both are very easy to work with and looks deep and will make your car shine like a mirror. There are too many products out there to choose from, it's just a matter of which you like best. Right now, im using Pinnacle souveran which is really the king of wax for black and red cars. But for $60 for a 8oz jar, it's not for everyone.

markd

I've used Meguiar's products since I got my 8 about a month ago. My car is titanium gray, and it's harder to get the 'wet' look than black or red. The guys at Meguiar's said I should, as slim8 just mentioned, first use the Deep Crystal Polish, then apply the NXT wax--you can apply up to 2 layers of the NXT wax (with at least a 24-hour curing period for each). I've gotten a very good shine from this process.

And just a little tid-bit: Meguiar's product support did not recommend the Gold Class clear coat wax. They said NXT trumps Gold Class and that NXT only should be used.

You should read this recent thread for more detailed info on exterior detailing: https://www.rx8club.com/rx-8-show-shine-26/exterior-care-38233/ .

PS. To answer your question, the Deep Crystal Polish would be Step #2, and the NXT wax, of course, would constitute Step #3.

Mark

bgreene

I've never tried meguiars on my paint except for a couple spots with the quick detailer this weekend, but I'm currently using the mothers 3-step system.

I'm very happy with the results on my black, except that it doesn't do much about swirl marks (I don't know that any of the steps is really designed to, though with a cleaner/glaze/carnauba combo). When my current coat of wax wears off, I'm going to try adding 3M SMR into the sequence to see if that helps (I'm also seriously considering picking up a porter cable 7424). On the metallic Ti gray, swirls probably won't be as big a deal, though.

Didn't really notice any difficulty with the mothers products, except for going to 3-step from 1-step (previously I was using NuFinish 'cause I had half a bottle left over from my old pickup).

I would highly reccomed some sort of clay system. I can't imagine there's really that much difference (at least on a fairly new paint job) between the mothers and meguiars except for maybe the smell. Meguiars seems to be a bit cheaper, because mothers throws in a bottle fo cleaner wax (which you're not going to use if you're going with a multi-step). Also, if you don't like cinnamon, go with the mequiars clay kit.