I grew up in the 70’s and 80’s, when car finishes weren’t nearly as good as they are now. Also living in sunny SoCal helped colors fade. It was at least a once a year thing to give the car a good wax. We used either Turtle Wax or Simoniz. And it killed an afternoon, especially on a big dark red Caprice or grandpa’s green Impala. Mom’s tan Buick seemed to go faster, probably because we didn’t have to do as thorough a job. Dad finally bought an electric buffer in the early 80’s.
This weekend I happened on The Karate Kid on TV, and saw the part where Mr. Miyagi is teaching the wax on, wax off part. And it occurred to me that it’s been probably 10 years since I’ve waxed one of my cars. The paint just seems to last, you wash and dry the car and it looks great. No dull finish, no splotches of water sheeting off instead of beading up.
How many of you have a late model car that you wax regularly? Is there a noticeable improvement when you do?