Waxing frequency?

[chicagox7]

Curious what the consensus is on how often folks wax their cars? We got a new X7 in March ‘23 and use it on long trips mostly (8.5k miles to date- 3 2k mile round trips and drive home from Spartanburg in addition to nominal local use). It otherwise sits in the garage. There is no ppf or ceramic coating. The goal is to keep it looking decent and stay rust free. We’re in Chicago- so not a ton of great DIY wash/rinse options (especially in the winter). That means there is longer periods of non-washing when it needs it most (like now with all the salt and crap on the roads and on the car). Uneducated guess is that keeping it ‘well waxed’ will help mitigate potential damage from longer non-washings during the winter. Also don’t want to overwax (suspect there are pitfalls to that- though could be wrong).

Note that we had 2 layers of Zymol wax applied in April and detailed it again in September.

Appreciate thoughts and insights. Bonus points for any good ‘easy’ options to rinse/wash in downtown Chicago in the winter.

[///MPhatic]

The short answer is that it depends on what gets on the paint, how its removed, and how frequently it's removed.

Anything that rubs the paint will rub the wax off, the harder you rub, the faster the wax is removed. 3 months max under flawless conditions, meaning the paint was perfect before the wax was applied, and you're only washing the car once a week and drying with a blower and a wet terrycloth towel on the remaining bits.

I'd say you're a perfect candidate for having it properly ceramic coated, but if you're not going to do that then it's anybody's guess.

[Chappers 71]

I use Turtle Wax Hybrid Solutions ceramic wash maybe once every couple of weeks & give it a coat of their ceramic polish & wax once every 4-6 weeks….unless I’m bored then I’ll just give it a wash & polish whether it needs it or not

[clutchdj]

You can wax as often as you want but the car has to be super clean in order to keep the scratches from waxing down. If using pure wax with no abrasives then 4x a year would be a minimum especially if there is no ppf.

Are you using hand or machine?

[chicagox7]

Originally Posted by clutchdj

Are you using hand or machine?

Very helpful. We bring it to a detail shop- assume they do a thorough wash before the wax. Have not seen any obvious scratches from the efforts to date.

We use hand wash services. Even though we have skyscraper grey, I still think the brushes from most car washes will cause swirling.

[chicagox7]

Originally Posted by Chappers 71

I use Turtle Wax Hybrid Solutions ceramic wash maybe once every couple of weeks & give it a coat of their ceramic polish & wax once every 4-6 weeks….unless I’m bored then I’ll just give it a wash & polish whether it needs it or not

Looks great. Looks like you have a great helper as well!

We’ve not tried a ceramic solution on it yet. Appreciate the input. Living in the city- we’d end up paying someone to do that (no driveway- just an alley). Seems that there is no issue waxing it a bit. Wasn’t sure if there was potential issues with build up or over doing it. Another recommended at least 4x a year- which seems the direction we’re heading- maybe getting up to 5.

[Chappers 71]

Yeah is a personal thing cleaning cars & waxing four or five times a year will be fine.
My G31 is a bit of a garage queen & rarely gets used in bad weather, I clean it more because it’s something I enjoy rather than the car actually needing doing.
Haven’t had any issues with product build up, although I have wondered about it & yes that’s Frank he usually sits & watches