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Fri Jul 18, 2014 8:40 am

Any recommendations on a good wax for these vans...

Back in the day I would go the Tutrtle Wax route.. but would notice some little scratches in the paint/clear coat when parked to the sun....

Also for the pop top... thinking of going with the West Marine Boat Cleaner/Boat Wax route as this has given me some great results in the past with my fiberglass/gel coat boats... Any other recommendations?

Thanks

Fri Jul 18, 2014 10:11 am

The possibilities are endless

http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/

Fri Jul 18, 2014 10:17 am

I recently tried Meguiars and it scratched the crap out of my paint.

Fri Jul 18, 2014 10:58 am

So I have this special option on my Syncro. I'm not sure if it was a factory option or added on stateside. I has a sticker in the window and inside the glovebox called "PERMA PLATE"

If you look at some of the pictures in my gallery you will see that the paint looks pretty good. I dont baby it by any means and here and there I have done some seam rust repairt and some touchup for chips etc. I'm not sure if it is this "PERMA PLATE" stuff but I have the van @8 years and have put about 40,000 miles on it and folks always ask if I had it reapainted

I live on the coast in NC and keep the van down here and out side from March to November so lots of salt air etc... Given that I think it would look much worse if I did nothing to it.. This is what I do wax and wash wise....

Once a year I use Zymol cleaner way and clay
After that and about once every 3 months I will use Zymol wax ..
In between I use Meguiars Wash and Wax. If you do this while the paint is cool it really works well. I also use a blower to blow as much water off the Van before taking a towel to it. Eliminates a lot of the spotting residue you get with a wash and wax product.

Once a month I may run it by a hand carwash and hit it with some spray wax from the wand.

If your really into it you can have Zymol create a custom wax for you based on the type of paint, color and if you keep it out side or inside and so on.
I just use the original cream wax a little goes a long way

http://www.zymol.com/zymolcreamewax8oz.aspx

Also I have found nothing better for keeping seals soft and in shape than their soft seal conditioner. Once again a little goes a long way... As an added bonus it seems to work well on the black side mirrors as well....

http://www.zymol.com/zymolseal85oz.aspx

That is what know. I use all the same products and process on my Alpina B7 but I probably care more about the Syncro :D

Here is a recent pic from this spring after the yearly clay and wax....

Fri Jul 18, 2014 11:25 am

costal_cat wrote: Here is a recent pic from this spring after the yearly clay and wax....

[pic]

Wow! Looks great! Now try some Penetrol on the fiberglass top and she'll look showroom new.

Fri Jul 18, 2014 11:31 am

ThankYouJerry wrote:
Wow! Looks great! Now try some Penetrol on the fiberglass top and she'll look showroom new.

Thanks... I am due for that for sure. I have half a can in the garage. If the weather is nice this weekend that sounds like a good idea prior to my next road trip.. Amazing how good that stuff works....

Fri Jul 18, 2014 11:42 am

My Van also has the PermaPlate sticker on the drivers side window. I've been waxing it twice a year with Turtle wax and keeping it in the garage when I'm not using it. Since it's white, any scratches don't show. What shows is where the dealer added tape stripe was, which is now long gone

Fri Jul 18, 2014 11:49 am

perma plate is stuff the dealer put on when new.must used some sort of compound of meguires to make it sratch the paint or some dirt in the applicator used to put it on.any polish or wax would work that you have.just needs something to protect the paint.polish makes it shine and wax protects the shine.waxes polishes are basically the same,each company puts there color or what they call there special ingregents init.polished and painted cars for over 35 yrs at a Cadillac dealership.have used all polishes and waxes.it's what you like and easiest for you to use.plus how long you use your elbow or polisher

Fri Jul 18, 2014 11:56 am

photogdave wrote: I recently tried Meguiars and it scratched the crap out of my paint.

Wow, that should never happen and doesn't match my experience with hand or machine waxing using their wax. Wax is much softer than the paint and should just spread out and fill scratches. Were you using the Gold Class Carnuba wax product or something else?

Fri Jul 18, 2014 12:01 pm

Paint: Wash -> Meguiar's Paint Cleaner -> Meguiar's NXT wax. Often I'll use an orbital buffer; if I need a workout, terry-covered foam pads (wax on) and microfiber cloths (wax off). Paint and tools must be clean and cool before starting.

Pop-top: Wash -> fiberglass cleaner -> Penetrol. Please see/use this pop-top restoration/cleaning topic for further discussion: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=314474 .

For general cleaning in/out of the van, see/use this topic: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=547924 .

photogdave wrote: I recently tried Meguiars and it scratched the crap out of my paint.

Considering Meguiar's makes an overabundance of cleaners, polishes, and waxes, it would be helpful to post which product of theirs you used. Technique, tools, and how clean the paint is to start also play a role in how well paint products work.

I've used Meguiar's 3-step process (cleaner, polisher, wax) on my black Jetta since it was new and the paint looks gorgeous after every treatment... for about 5 minutes; will never own another black car as long as I live!

Fri Jul 18, 2014 12:11 pm

Meguiar's Cleaner Wax followed by their Carnuba Wax.

Shines every time, never had scratches.

Fri Jul 18, 2014 12:11 pm

I used mergiures for a few years and I found there product needed more cutter in it.it never cut the paint enough not even there rubbing compound.that's why I think dirt had to be on applicator or cloth wipping it off.use microfiber clothes won't leave sratches if kept clean.mergiures is made for the general public and don't have enough cutter in it so people won't go through the paint.

Fri Jul 18, 2014 12:33 pm

I used the Ultimate Compound and Gold Class liquid wax with microfibre and Terry cloth pads. Cool shady day, thoroughly washed first etc.
The compound scratched the crap out of the clear coat on the old paint. The wax was fine.

Fri Jul 18, 2014 2:09 pm

photogdave wrote: I used the Ultimate Compound and Gold Class liquid wax with microfibre and Terry cloth pads.

Ultimate Compound is a somewhat aggressive rubbing compound that is used on neglected paint, applied with a foam pad (straight foam, no terry) in small sections with light to medium hand pressure (i.e. not heavy-handed or with just fingertips). It should also not be allowed to dry (same goes for polishes and cleaners). Compounds are usually, but not always, followed up with a polish.

Was the van's paint in a really bad way? If not, then all of the preceding variables probably contributed to the scratching, rather than the product in and of itself.

PSA: Always test a product in a small section before going to town on the whole vehicle.

Fri Jul 18, 2014 2:27 pm

kamzcab86 wrote: photogdave wrote: I used the Ultimate Compound and Gold Class liquid wax with microfibre and Terry cloth pads.

Ultimate Compound is a somewhat aggressive rubbing compound that is used on neglected paint, applied with a foam pad (straight foam, no terry) in small sections with light to medium hand pressure (i.e. not heavy-handed or with just fingertips). It should also not be allowed to dry (same goes for polishes and cleaners). Compounds are usually, but not always, followed up with a polish.

Was the van's paint in a really bad way? If not, then all of the preceding variables probably contributed to the scratching, rather than the product in and of itself.

PSA: Always test a product in a small section before going to town on the whole vehicle.

The paint wasn't really bad to start but had a lot of pinstripe scratches. I did lots of research on the Meguiars forum, which led me to choose the compound and the application method.
I tried it on a small section of the wheel well under the front door and it looked okay, but on other areas when the light hits you can really see the scratches.
Sounds like I got some bad info. :evil:

Fri Jul 18, 2014 2:45 pm

I've not tried every polish wax out there, because I stopped searching after I found this product:

http://www.amazon.com/Star-brite-Premium-Marine-Polish/dp/B002E9E1FA

When applied to the hulls of my surfboards, it beads water and retains gloss about 3 to 4x longer than any other wax I have used.

Fri Jul 18, 2014 2:52 pm

I'm fairly lazy and thus really like this stuff:

It goes on & off with minimal effort and can be used on both paint and rubber so no fighting the 'white wax on rubber' or 'Armorall smear on the paint & glass'. It is clear & thin. You can even use it in full sun.

The paint needs to be in really good shape for it to be effective, it is not a polish and will not enhance faded, oxidized, or otherwise damaged paint. But on my van (original paint) once I get it properly prepped (machine polish #3 followed by claying) just using the Ice from time to time is enough to keep it looking good.

Oh, a photo (had to look for one that showed some reflection - not easy on a big brick):

Fri Jul 18, 2014 4:32 pm

photogdave wrote: kamzcab86 wrote: photogdave wrote: I used the Ultimate Compound and Gold Class liquid wax with microfibre and Terry cloth pads.

Ultimate Compound is a somewhat aggressive rubbing compound that is used on neglected paint, applied with a foam pad (straight foam, no terry) in small sections with light to medium hand pressure (i.e. not heavy-handed or with just fingertips). It should also not be allowed to dry (same goes for polishes and cleaners). Compounds are usually, but not always, followed up with a polish.

Was the van's paint in a really bad way? If not, then all of the preceding variables probably contributed to the scratching, rather than the product in and of itself.

PSA: Always test a product in a small section before going to town on the whole vehicle.

The paint wasn't really bad to start but had a lot of pinstripe scratches. I did lots of research on the Meguiars forum, which led me to choose the compound and the application method.
I tried it on a small section of the wheel well under the front door and it looked okay, but on other areas when the light hits you can really see the scratches.
Sounds like I got some bad info. :evil:

If the scratches are thin (like a spider web) and you really only see them in the sun... they can easily be polished out. But, you may want a pro to tackle it ;).

Fri Jul 18, 2014 4:35 pm

ThankYouJerry wrote:

If the scratches are thin (like a spider web) and you really only see them in the sun... they can easily be polished out. But, you may want a pro to tackle it ;).

Thanks - that makes me feel better! :D

However, pretty much every time I go camping, I go bushwacking and end up with more scratches anyway! I was hoping I had found something that would allow me to maintain the paint myself at minimal cost, and I'm just angry that I made it worse! :lol:

Fri Jul 18, 2014 7:22 pm

photogdave wrote: ThankYouJerry wrote:

If the scratches are thin (like a spider web) and you really only see them in the sun... they can easily be polished out. But, you may want a pro to tackle it ;).

Thanks - that makes me feel better! :D

However, pretty much every time I go camping, I go bushwacking and end up with more scratches anyway! I was hoping I had found something that would allow me to maintain the paint myself at minimal cost, and I'm just angry that I made it worse! :lol:

So when I go off road one of the things I do is on the doors and sides I got some cheap blank magnetic sign material in grey... Works great and you can take it on and off easy. I wanted to get them printed up with something like "Yea its a VW" or "It's called a Syncro" but it is a good cheap way to help with off road scrapes..... I saw some in camo on a Jeep XJ when I was out four wheeling gave me the idea so I cant claim I came up with it...