Anyone use Xymol?

[Steve]

I have some of this myself, the cleaner-wax, blue in colour with a decidedly pleasant, "exotic fruit" smell.

It seems to do a good job, but it must be mildly abrasive, which I am told is not a good thing. On the first application, there was a lot of blue paint on the cloth, although on subsequent uses that wasn't as bad, so as far as I am concerned, the jury is still out. It left a deep, glossy almost 'wet' shine, and I must say that I was pleased with the finish, although the shine did not seem to last a long time.

Zymol does have a good reputation, although I am going to send for the Griots Garage products so that I can do a comparison test......on the wife's car!!! (You don't think I'm that daft, do you?) I would also like to get my mitts on Autoglym's products. They had a great reputation in the UK, but I never had anything nice enough to show over there!

 

[William]

The pale blue stuff you get at Trak Auto, not the expensive stuff that cuts into my car book buying habit. My Dad got some for me this Christmas, mostly because I get some nasty wax streaks on my Miata (which is black), and he gets them on his New Racing Green MGB (we know it is wax, not paint swirls, because they fade as the wax wears off). Anyone use this? I won't know until spring, as it is still too cold out to wax, and the B is hibernating anyway. I was pleased with Xymol's car wash soap (clear blue stuff), but always used Meguiar's waxes. I probably should've asked this over at the Miata forum, but everytime I ask car wash questions, I get told off because I don't much care for Zaino. So, anyone here use the stuff on their classix?
-William

 

[William]

I've heard great stuff about Autoglym as well. After all, they sponsor a concours series! Like I said, I really like the shine and durability of Meguiars products (Gold Class Carnauba is what I've been using), and the last application (the day before Thanksgiving) is holding up nicely. Every time I wash the car it comes up shiny. Of course, the mild winter we've been having here might have something to do with it.
-William

 

[aeronca65t]

I know a lot of you folks have really nice Brit cars...mine's more of a basic street scooter, with lots of warts. Here's how I take care of my roadster.
About once a month, I power-wash all body work and undercarriage (1000 psi) using dish detergent in the soap dispenser. On "fancy days" (car shows), I use Pledge (yes!)on the body work...OK, I *know* it sounds bad, but it's SOOOOO convenient! Paint on the nose of the Spridget is Rustoleum Forest Green with a little black Rustoleum mixed in (homemade "Rustoleum BRG" to match the BRG on the rest of the car). Sprayed in on with a cheap gun 3 years ago ("baked on" in the NJ sun!)...holding up nicely, looks OK (from ~ 20 ft anyway) and it actually is a pretty good colour match! (so now you know why Pledge is good enough)
My Miata gets Meguiars.....but it's more of a "sissy car".

[ 01-21-2002: Message edited by: aeronca65t ]</p>

 

[MattP]

My parents had a Dodge Charger. The arrival of my older brother prompted its sale. After a few years of baking in the West Texas sun, the Dodge red didn't look so hot. So Dad had the Idea to try Future floor wax on it. It worked beautifully. The red was bright and glossy agian. They put it on a relative's used car lot and it sold in a week. A month later when the wet season hit, the customer returned to the lot with is Charger that now looked like a bad DeLorean. All the paint and primer sluffed off in the first rainstorm. The Charger was history.

As for Xymol. I have some and it has worked well on my 97 Escort, also on my 50's model Kenmore blender, 2000 6qt. Kitchenaid Stand Mixer and all my other kitchen gadgets. It keeps them looking good and any spills wipe right off.

The Xymol was a "gift" from a BMW driving friend that bought it for his car, then learned of its abrasive properties. So, if you don't like it on your car, use it on something where the finish may not be as crucial to aid in quick clean up.

 

[aerog]

<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by William:
The pale blue stuff you get at Trak Auto, not the expensive stuff that cuts into my car book buying habit. My Dad got some for me this Christmas, mostly because I get some nasty wax streaks on my Miata (which is black), and he gets them on his New Racing Green MGB (we know it is wax, not paint swirls, because they fade as the wax wears off). Anyone use this? I won't know until spring, as it is still too cold out to wax, and the B is hibernating anyway. I was pleased with Xymol's car wash soap (clear blue stuff), but always used Meguiar's waxes. I probably should've asked this over at the Miata forum, but everytime I ask car wash questions, I get told off because I don't much care for Zaino. So, anyone here use the stuff on their classix?
-William

<hr></blockquote>


The problem people have these days with waxes and dark cars is a lot of the waxes (all maybe?) soften and streak on the dark cars once they're in the sun. Besides any other 'hype' involved with Zaino products, that's probably, in my opinion, one of the primary reason people like it.

Addressing Xymol (are you sure it isn't Zymol?), you're right, there are several different "grades". The Trak-Auto variety is the cheap stuff they make and, from what I understand, is on par with Turtle-Wax. In the big world of waxes and polishes I think it's safe to assume that if it works good for you, and looks good, you'll be happy - no matter how cheap or expensive. Give it a try and see what happens.

Some alternatives I've tried lately:

Eagle-One Polish, detailing spray, and car wash - I clayed my Saturn, then used Eagle-One polish as directed. It goes on fairly evenly and flows well as long as you don't slobber it. The only huge negative is it WILL produce a lot of white dust - something you might find annoying on the Miata.

Eagle-One seems to last pretty long too. My Saturn lives outside - period. I haven't been very good in keeping it clean this winter, but the water has consistantly beaded and after a quick wash looks like new again. Waxes usually don't last THAT long on that car.

The detailing spray seems pretty good, several people have commented that they prefer that over the Zaino and Meguire's products. I haven't decided myself yet, but it isn't garbage either.

Mequires - For a daily driver I don't think they make anything that is lasts long enough to be considered maintenance-free. Unlike the non-wax products like Zaino, Liquid Glass, etc, all the Mequire's products I've used give top quality appearance for a few days, then they slowly fade into oblivion. I suppose the rumors about the wax's oils and other magic potions evaporating away might be true.

Gold-Class wax always gives a great appearance, and it's easy to work, but it doesn't last at all.

Hi-Tech Yellow Wax (in the can) works great on my MGB. I use it on the trunk lid and rear of the car, but I always wax before a show, and the car has never seen any serious rain. I can say it doesn't seem to streak on the MGB (it's a dark red), and the results are incredible. I use Mequire's Final-Inspection detailing spray on the areas I wax on the MGB and they works great together.

One last comment about Zaino: You can, and probably have read enough hype about it on the Miata forum... but here's something interesting: I have a horrible problem with occasionally getting overspray from a sprinkler system. The water here is hard - very hard, and the spots engrain themselves into anything the water touches; including glass. I decided to clean the windows on the Saturn really well - I used abrasive cleaners on the glass (an older rain-x product, basically thinned-out soft scub), then used glass cleaner vigorously. On the front windows I used Zaino Z1/Z5/Z2, on the back I used Rain-X only.

After 6 months I suddenly woke up and noticed that every morning, when the windows are wet, the front ones were "clear" and the water sheeted off, while the back ones had big spots that turned into water spots.

I'm not sure what says about what it does for the paint, but it's an interesting experiment.

[ 01-27-2002: Message edited by: aerog ]</p>

 

[William]

aerog-yes, its Zymol with a Z, don't know why I got that wrong. I use Meg's Gold Class Carnauba on the Mazda, and it seems to last pretty well. I re did it last Saturday, mainly because of the stunning high 50s weather we have been having. My last waxing was the day before Thanksgiving, and the Meguiars seemed to hold up really well-water still beaded off nicely, and a quick trip to the coin operated car wash (no brush, mind) brought the shine right back. Heck, it even looked shiny when covered in road crud, as opposed to my Dad's Civic, which always looks dull when it is dirty (that car is also black). I'll give the Zymol a spin when it's consistently nice out.
My main reason for not liking Zaino is the fact that it is A) horribly expensive for my budget, and B) not very protective in my experience. The Corvette owning father of a friend of mine convinced me to try it, and ordered me the whole kit when he was stocking up. We went through the whole process together, from washing with Dawn to whatever number the final step is. And I have to admit, the Miata looked absolutely stunning-for two whole days. Then it rained. While I was at work, and I'm not allowed to go outside and dry and re-spray the detailer stuff just because it rained, and I was not going to do it at midnight when I got home. Naturally the car was water spotted when I got up the next morning, and the would not come off at all. With most other waxes I have used, a quick wash with car soap takes them right off. Instead I had to-I was later told, I did not bother to do this-re apply the whole mess. I stripped it off with dishwashing liquid and washed again with car soap just to make sure and went back to Meguiars. The Vette owner was nice enough to buy back the Zaino kit, which he knew that I could not really afford to just let sit around. He also expressed shock that I left the car out in the rain (what part of "driven in all weathers" did he not understand?)
I suppose you are right, that Meguiars is not really maintenance free, if you want to keep it super shiny. I end up waxing every three or four washes (I try to do it weekly in the summer), just to shine it up. But it does seem to protect the finish pretty well, something I have heard that Zymol does only averagely.
-William

 

[aerog]

I think you pretty much hit on one of the common complaints I've read about - water spots seem to persist with Zaino. They do seem tons better on my windows, but then I never "waxed" the others to compare

I bought a Ford Probe in '89 and the dealer gave me an "auto armor" kit. Apparently the car had been "auto armored" at some point in the prep process (I didn't pay for any of it thankfully). I usually take the "paint sealer" line from the dealer as a joke, but I went ahead and used their stuff anyway. It was an absolute joy to use. Went on smooth, wiped off smooth - like a decent polish, beaded water as well as anything I've used, and lasted forever. That car was a deep maroon too, and always looked great - if I knew where to get the stuff I'd buy some and try it, but I've never seen it since I owned that car.

 

[William]

I'd like to know what they use at some dealerships. The couple of times I bothered to have them wash the Mazda (it's a free service, but I don't always bother to ask for it so I don't have to wait around for them to do it), the car looked fantastic! I suppose I should ask, eh?
-William

 

[William]

Several months later and we have an update! I finally used Zymol (cheap powder blue Trak Auto variety) a coupla weeks ago. My opinions? Not bad, probably not the best. Went on really easy with a wax sponge like the ones that come in Turtle Wax cans, came right off with my "Micro Fiber Waxing Cloth" that I got at Pep Boys. It produced an awful lot of white dust, but that's what I keep flannel cloths lying around for-dusting. The shine was quite nice, if not as eye popping as Meguiars or Zaino the one time I used it. I've washed the car twice since then (using Meguiars car wash soap-the pink stuff), and water seems to bead up pretty well and roll off. Oddly, it's rained a coupla times too, and rainwater doesnt seem to bead up as well as the kind that comes out of the garden hose. The shine seems to have dulled just a bit, too, but it still looks pretty good, even though it rained the other night. Most importantly, the streaking was at a minimum. Will I use it again? Probably not as my only wax, but its cleaning properties might make it an occasional use item.
-William

 

[spritenut]

This is what I have learned from waxing cars for over 30 years....
1st, If it goes on quick and easy, it will come off quick and easy.
If it smells good, it will attract bees.
Cleaner waxes are great if you don't mind repainting the car every couple years.
If it contains "polishing compounds" or petroleum distilates, it will wear or eat away at the paint.
The more it costs, the the more foolish the buyer.
Nothing beats a hand rubbed carnuba wax job.
There are lots of brands out there, the cheap carnubas work just as well as the $20 a can carnubas. It's all the same stuff.
The real difference between a $20 can of wax and a $5 can of wax is $15 out of your pocket.
Soft(in the can or bottle) waxes will melt into balls on your car out in the sun.
Avoid those new spray on detail wax renewers at all costs unless you just washed the car and chamois dry. If you spray this stuff on a dusty car you will buff the dust into the paint and after a few applications, you will see the scratches.

As for Zymol, it costs too much, is way too soft, attracts the bees, and melts away in a couple days. I used it once, yes I was a fool for paying that much for it. But like alot of us, I believe what they say. Would you buy something if they actually told you it was a lousy useless product?

Spritenut

 

[William]

Spritenut-it's still a little early in the season for bees around here! Actually, I think I'm through with Zymol for the moment. Like I said, it seemed to work all right, and looked shiny, and seemed to be protecting, just not as well as some other products I have tried. Went out and bought a fresh bottle of Dawn dish soap (really, this stuff is great for taking off old wax!) and some Meguiar's Gold Class (had to go to three different stores to get paste, not liquid!), but not the Carnauba ( I believe it's a polymer type of thing-there was no Carnauba to be had anywhere in the Tri-Cities yesterday!). Looks good, didn't smear too bad. I'm happy with it.
-William