SlowSi

What happens if you never strip the old wax off of the car? If you wax on top of old wax, will it affect the results and/or harm the paint?

KB798

If you never strip off the old wax on your car, I don't see any problems in terms of the old wax damaging your paint. Every wax has a "shelf" life when it's applied on the car. Some waxes like caranuba waxes need constant reapplication roughly twice a month to ensure proper beading and protection depending on the brand and quality. Sealants on the other hand are made to last upwards to several months. As long as you're washing the car properly before applying wax, you'll be fine. Many people top different waxes on top of each other to get the results they want like for instance topping NXT with a caranuba wax such as S100. This is referring to putting on different wax combos within a day or two, but just make sure to wash your car well before applying another coat of wax. I must have several layers of S100 and NXT on top of each other by now .

However, if you want to polish it's always a good idea to work on a clean and wax free surface to ensure proper leveling of the clearcoat. Claybarring would remove wax as well.

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Brian

SlowSi

So you haven't washed your car with Dawn when applying those layers of wax? Just a good wash and dry?

KB798

I do a Dawn wash when I want to polish. I haven't had the time to polish the car fully for a while, so I've been just washing, drying and putting on a coat of wax every 2 weeks.

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Brian

JoeW

Like Brian said, the wax won't last that long on your car. This is especially true for carnauba waxes if your car is exposed to direct sunlight for extended periods of time. The carnauba will heat up and the wax essentially melts and evaporates/gets washed away. So don't worry about the wax caking up. That usually only happens if you apply too many coats in a short period of time (with the exception of Zaino and some other sealants).

I only clay the lude maybe once a year with some spot claying in between (if you have some overspray or hard to remove tar on the car). It is also a good idea to dawn the car if you switch wax types so you can have a clean slate to work with.

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