My Conclusion on The Wax Test Results

[Dave KG]

The wax test is complete, the results on the whole are in so I thought it time to sit down and compose my thoughts into a thread to give my own personal opinions and take on the results that have surfaced from the test.

For me, the biggest take home message has to be the inconsistency in the results. Now this doesn't point to a poor test, but rather for me points to a fact that many have said all along: you simply cannot tell which wax is which on looks alone, on a well prepped car. Money will categorically not buy you a better finish IMHO and it is my feeling that the test results prove this conclusively. This was obvious to me when prepping the cars in the garage - the efforts going into the machine finish transformed the look of the cars, but adding the wax delivered nothing tenable extra to the looks - regardless of whether it was Collinite or Royale!

So what of the resuts - well Swissvax Best Of Show takes the top spot, and points wise by a notable margin so one could argue that this did offer something the others didn't... But then only 11 of those attending could really see a difference, and the inconsitencies of the data highlight that nothing more was really at play other than what people themselves were seeing in their own eyes - I'd sooner argue that the results are more an example of the nuance added by waxes, if any, being simply in the eye of the beholder and psychology playing a bigger effect than actual real world looks.

I'd argue that looks are largely irrelevant from waxes - regardless of any marketing bumf that you may read, this test for me has conclusively proved (IMHO of course) that waxes will not add to the look of a well prepped machine finish, and paying large sums of money to try and get that little bit extra is, in terms of looks, a waste of money. Of course, this is just my opinion...

So if looks are irrelevant, what is relevant? Well, this is where the actual true job of an LSP comes in. Forget the looks, achieve them by polishing. Its protection that an LSP is deigned to provide. No an interesting conclusion can certainly be drawn here... The last placed wax, Raceglaze 55. Taking the results of the test the wrong way, ie that the scores actually mean anything at all, one could conclude that this is the poorest wax there. Is it? IMHO - no. Its one of the best! Contradicting my own test? Nope! Assuming the results show that looks are irrelevant as discussed above, we can discount this from consideration. Now examining protection offered, Raceglaze 55 is a wax which I personally find to be highly durable, along with Collinite 915, and for this reason, it will fall high on my list of products to recommend. In the market for a wax and want to spend circa £50, and I would venture to say that its the best in that price range based in its ability to last...

Collinite 915 will last just as well, so why not just save £30 and use that instead? Well, now we enter the realms of psychology. There is a special feeling to spending a little more on a wax, it has to be said and from this perspective this is where RG55 for example scores very well. It doesn't take the piss money wise, but offers those after something a little more special and limited production something a little more boutique - but also, something which performs well and lasts well.

And this brings us neatly onto Royale. In the test, and in my opinion again, it showed itself looks wise to be nothing special! The same for the water behaviour, 915 if anything beaded tighter and sheeted faster. No I have no doubt that Royale is durable, so on that basis I could recommend it - but I couldn't really given its price... But wait, you're thinking! What about those wanting to spend more for something special? Well - there's spending more, and there's craziness... Consider spending £20,000 on a well specced Ford Mondeo - double that, and you can get a well specced Merc E Class. Both cars essentially do the same job, the Merc though makes you feel special. Collinite costs £20, Raceglaze 55 around £60 - its the same kind of idea. But Royale costs £8000, or in terms of the cars above, £8,000,000!! No car costs that and has that big a price rise over another car and for simple reason - its ludicrous! If I personally found Royale to offer something really tenable over other LSPs I would happily say, yes - worth extra. But its not in my opinion anything special, yet it comes with a crazy price tag. RG55, Dodo Supernatural, Swissvax Best of Show - they all offer the "special" feeling, perform well, but they dont take the mick. And to me, IMHO, considering the raw ingredients, waxes in the four figure region are simply taking the mick. I stress this is my personal opinion.

So what of good old Autoglym - another wax I find to be fairly durable and on the whole liked by those attending the meet. Good beading and sheeting, looked the same as Royale to me and indeed many others attending... what it doesn't have is a boutique name. Good! Because that means I can get a quality and effective product without paying funny money! Think AG isn't god enough compared to boutique brands? If so, look at the test - it holds its head high next to the others and is deserving of success in the same way as the rather more fashionable Dodo Juice waxes are for example.

Lastly - the sealent... reading Zaino's marketing, you could think that this would be outperforming everything. In practice though, looks wise it was pretty much the same as the waxes, offering only a little extra slickness extra and this will have effected the beading and sheeting shown (adverseley and favourably respectively). Where is scores is ease of use in maintenance - Z8 being silly easy to use and for those looking for ease of use, its a great system. And very durable too!


So what can I really conclude? Well, for me, the main take home message is this: money will not buy results in the wax world. Prep is the key to any finish, and durability is not directly related to price and durability is the main important factor of the LSP. The inconsistencies in the looks results clearly highlight to me that waxes just do not offer anything to the final look on a well prepped car - in my opinion at least...

Final words... They all exhibited a glossy nuance

	Autoglym Autoglym - A UK based Manufacturer of car care products.

	Z8 Zaino Z-8 Grand Finale Spray Seal

	Dodo Juice Dodo the British Manufacturer.