So Ive had my 2011 G37 for about a year and a half now and been getting car washes on the regular. Ive gone to many but there is always some kind of residue of water marks or light scratches still left behind. Does anyone know of a good wax I can use to help keep my car cleaner longer. Also if anyones in los angeles, anywhere i could just take my car to get it waxed?
thanks!

 

Mequiars wax is very good in my opinion! just my 2 cents

 

Wax is just the top layer. To truly remove the small scratches or what looks like spider webbing you would need some kind compound then follow it with a wax. The key is to prepare the paint surface before waxing. I second the Meguiars comment above. Meg's makes a great and easy to use compound called Ultimate Compound. Then follow it up with Meg's Ultimate Liquid Wax. They compliment each other very well. I love Meg's products.

 

Check the Auto Detailing section, it will help you alot. Zaino makes great products. DetailedImage is a sponsor and vendor. Check em out

 

Yep, Meguiars Ultimate compound, then Ultimate Polish, followed up w/ Ultimate wax. Should only need the polish & the wax after the initial use of the compound to get of all the heavier flaws.

 

This. Tons of info and educated advice in the detailing section in tech area.

 

Agreed. Only available on the internet.

 

You need to get back to a baseline from which to maintain your car. You could do that yourself, or...

...you could network through some of the local body shops for a place that does quality automotive detailing. Suck up the $150 or so it would cost to get your car back to the way it looked when you took delivery.

After that, you can apply the techniques and products you learn about through research, to keep your car's surface in that condition for years to come.

 

Do what the others suggest. Really clean the car. Clay it, compound it, polish it. Basically, you are trying to level out the clear coat. If you think about your paint as flat layers, with coats of clear on top of those flat layers of paint, on the top you have flaws. Those flaws could be scratches or chips or whatever and if you were looking from the side at these "layers" these imperfections would be indentations of that flat surface. The compounding and polishing is basically sanding down the areas to make the surface smooth again. I hope that makes sense.

While waxes are great short term, I prefer to use sealants as they last longer.

 

I used to work in a detail shop and it's still a passion of mine.

What color is your car? If it's a dark color, there's probably no car wash you can take it that won't result in paint blemishes, swirl marks, etc. As with most modern cars, Infiniti clear coat is very easy to scratch. A terry cloth towel used to dry will definitely scratch it. Same with automatic car wash brushes. Touchless automatics do a decent job removing dirt but use very harsh chemicals. They will absolutely strip whatever wax and eventually damage the paint. I only use them in the winter to get the salt off the undercarriage/wheels/etc.

Is there a sticker under your hood, near the cowl or hood hinges? It would say "Infiniti Hard Clear Coat" or "Scratch Shield Paint" or similar.

Ideally you'd use a foaming car wash solution when it's really dirty and ONR (Optimum No Rinse) for maintenance washes. Use high-quality microfiber towels to dry. Nothing should ever touch your paint except for microfiber (or foam pads for polishing/waxing).

Meguiar's makes good wax. Optimum also makes a great spray-on wax which is truly a wax product, not a quick detailer. I haven't used it but have heard only good things. I personally use ONR to wash and Meguiar's NXT paste wax, which seems to last about 3-4 months. In between wax (every 2-3 months) I use Meguiar's Ultimate Detailer to add shine and a bit of protection.

To remove the swirls, etchings, blemishes, etc., you need a full corrective detail including multiple buff/polish steps. It's a lot of work, not terribly difficult to learn but not foolproof. It took me about 18 hours over 3 days to do mine. I did 3 polish steps (multiple passes) with a DA buffer, and was also experimenting with various compounds and different buffing pads.

This is something you'd only want to do once or twice a year, possibly less. If you need corrective polishing more often, you've got a problem with maintenance (not washing/waxing correctly or not often enough).

The best products aren't typically available in a retail store. Online is the way to go unless you find a detailer supply shop or distributor near you. You can get set up with everything you need (buffer, pads, microfiber cloths, clay, wax, etc) for $200-300 if you know where to look. That said, a full corrective detail from a professional detailer should run anywhere from $300-$1000.

The detailing subforum mentioned above has a lot of good information resources. The thing about the detailing industry is that it's always changing... there are thousands of products, techniques, opinions, etc., with more added all the time. It can be overwhelming. The Detailed Image (sponsor) site has some great write-ups, tutorials, etc., as well as the online store. I've ordered from them and had a good experience.

Just keep in mind if you're doing research, many of the online resources are also trying to earn your business. I've found it helpful to shop around and read opinions/reviews from multiple sources, as well as a couple buddies in the industry who detail for a living.