Is Waxoyl worth the effort/money?

[Bobthebeard]

Have heard and read mixed reports on the use of Waxoyl to slow down or prevent rust on old cars. Does anyone have any real life experience of the benefits,or not, of using it long term? Opinion seems massively divided, with comments ranging from ' don't waste your money' to ' did my Austin 1100 in 1973 and it is still as good now as the day it was made* 'etc etc.

Does it kill existing surface rust as claimed? Or simply make it a massive nuisance come welding time when it all needs cleaning out to prevent fires, having failed to prevent rust....

Have so far used it in the bits that I have repaired/welded but too soon to have any idea if it works.

Am considering doing the whole 'Waxoyl thing' on my car, as I intend to keep it for a while yet, and attempting to make a thorough job of it, but don't have the money to waste really, if wasting money is the real result!

 

 

 

 

* Possibly misleading due to choice of vehicle.

[MikeKnight]

It most certainly works, I've used it for years. Yes, it kills existing rust. Yes, it stops new rust forming. It's particularly good for inside doors and box sections.

 

BUT

 

Like anything else, you have to prepare properly and apply it properly. It's no good just slapping it on crusty surface rust as that'll just fall off. Do some prep work first, take the "clumps" off and cover the rust hiding underneath those big clumps. There are also different kinds of treatments. Plain old Waxoyl is water resistant but will wash off over the space of 4-6 months, sooner if you make a habit of driving through a lot of standing water. There's also Underbody Seal with Waxoyl added.

 

If you really want to protect and get Waxoyl to do what it's supposed to do, then (as I do with all of my cars) pay for a professional steam clean of the underside and professional Underbody Seal with a pressurised delivery system. Then Waxoyl on top of that yourself with a tin of Waxoyl and a manual hand sprayer every year. During summer is best, then it's protected for winter.

[Bobthebeard]

It most certainly works, I've used it for years. Yes, it kills existing rust. Yes, it stops new rust forming. It's particularly good for inside doors and box sections.

 

BUT

 

Like anything else, you have to prepare properly and apply it properly. It's no good just slapping it on crusty surface rust as that'll just fall off. Do some prep work first, take the "clumps" off and cover the rust hiding underneath those big clumps. There are also different kinds of treatments. Plain old Waxoyl is water resistant but will wash off over the space of 4-6 months, sooner if you make a habit of driving through a lot of standing water. There's also Underbody Seal with Waxoyl added.

 

If you really want to protect and get Waxoyl to do what it's supposed to do, then (as I do with all of my cars) pay for a professional steam clean of the underside and professional Underbody Seal with a pressurised delivery system. Then Waxoyl on top of that yourself with a tin of Waxoyl and a manual hand sprayer every year. During summer is best, then it's protected for winter.

 

Excellent and thoroughly comprehensive answer. Much appreciated!

[retrogeezer]

It can be good but it can also cause problems. When I was in the motor trade late 80's/early 90's we had lots of waxoyled cars in that were rusty as the waxoyl had blocked up all the drainage channels. Water had nowhere to go and therefore rotted the cars out in different places.

[Morgan84]

I am a fan of waxoyl myself,and find where appropriate a nice black wax finish can make a real nice job of the underside of a car,although it does look best sprayed,but brushing is fine.Preperation as already stated is the key to sucess,so a wire brushing first and proper clean up will make for a better job.It is very good inside door panels and wings etc,but in box sections,I do like to get clean engine/gear oil in which doesn't dry out,and can seep into gaps,and keeps 'live' and doesn't dry out,or flake off.

Under my cars,I tend to waxoyl them,and then after a while,spray heavy clean oil underneath to act as a nice water barrier,and it also keeps the waxoil from drying out.My cars do tend to have a nice shimmer underneath them !

 

So in answer to your question,yes,very much worth its money

[plasticvandan]

not long did a chassis with the black underbody seal with added waxoil,key thing is to strip back whatever your sealing back to a sound base,i used jenolite on any surface rust patches,then primed then waxoyled.if you just paint it on over the top you are just trapping the rust/water/mud underneath,which will most likely make it rust quicker.

[Leyland Lawrence]

I've switch to Dinitrol having waxoyled for years. I may have had a dodgy couple of tins but it was thickening before it left the nozzle, even in summer and having been sat in a bucket of hot water. Dinitrol is now my preferred option.

[Bobthebeard]

Have often wondered if mixing engine/gear oil with the Waxoyl will help, but if so why didnt they add it to Waxoyl in the first place? It does seem to dry out tbh.

[Split_Pin]

I've been using it for years and it does protect box sections. As said, just make sure the drain holes are kept clear, nearly got caught out with that this year.

 

However my car just tends to rust at the seams rather than the box sections now - CAN'T WIN

[Bobthebeard]

Was leafing through a classic car magazine in the dentists today. They, the writers,had cut open an almost empty 20 year old, but still sealed, five litre tin of Waxoyl and were ecstatic about the fact that the inside of the tin was totally free of rust! Well it would be wouldn't it? FFS. Sealed up tin of Waxoyl, kept in a shed or summat.

Hardly a real world test! The outside was rusty.... Daily Mail test standards

[dollywobbler]

I'm not that keen on the fact that Waxoyl has become almost the only brand anyone thinks of. I've had good experiences with Bilt Hamber's many products. My white BX estate very clearly demonstrates which bits I treated when I got that car as they're the bits that haven't rotted. BX A posts are a right rot spot, especially around the hinges. I gave those box sections a good soaking and they're still fine. Shame I didn't do anything about the rear crossmember...

 

As mentioned, Dinitrol is good too from what I've heard.

 

It isn't just do-once-and-forget though. Despite my best efforts, the 2CV's sills are rotting out again - though this time from the outside in, so can't really blame the cavity wax.

[Mash]

I switched to Bilthamber products too. I got sick of trying to warm Waxoyl up to a temperature where you could actually do something with it.

 

Dynax is great because you can spray it on thick or thread the long nozzle into box sections. It stinks a bit though and tends to end up all over but it's worth being able to use it in cold weather.

[Bobthebeard]

Suspect I am becoming OCD about my car now after the weldathon. Have become reluctant to take it out in the rain FFS!

Am in danger of losing the whole point of owning Autoshite.

Is there an emoticon for 'needs a kick up the arse?'

[Morgan84]

The 'Waxoyl' is the name Hammerite use for the product,but I still have much older cans which I thought said 'Finnigans' on them. Another Waxoil is Tetrosyl,the clear smells like new car wax treatment ( very german ),but the black is very translucent and doesn't give as good coverage if you want it to look black

[HMC]

had good results with bilt hamber. For those without a compressor or dont trust the pump action kit that waxoyl can be bought with, dynax s50 can be bought in a 750ml aerosol with a long flexible lance with openings at various angles at the end. fantastic for box sections and have seen it creeping around spot welds etc after applying it. a lot of the success of any 'rust proofing' wax is how carefully its applied, and the conditions its applied in. I usually wait for a hot sunny day in a dry spell

[Morgan84]

Yes,its definately a warmer dry weather job when dealing with rust

[dollywobbler]

This is true. Even the spray cans of Bilt Hamber wax don't work too well when it's really cold. Warmer weather helps the stuff seep into all of the crevices.

[TagoraSX]

I use Dinitrol, Waxoyl dries out too quickly.

[Micrashed]

I've had good experiences with Bilt Hamber's many products.

+1

I use S50 and it rocks up big time, it halted the advance of rust on the micra's front cross member and also the rust on the towbar of the C8 which has spent its life by the sea at Lytham. In fact I went over most of the C8 and consider it jobbed now - the body will probably far far outlast the engine and electrics.

[Mr_Bo11ox]

I think these rust prevention treatments are probably much of a much, I reckon the difference is in the application. Its not easy to uniformly cover the inside of a box section. Certainly the applicator thing that comes with a 5l can of waxoyl is utterly useless. I reckon if you use a decent compressor-powered injector gun with a 360deg squirty nozzle thing you could just use your old engine oil or whatever and it would make a decent job of protecting/stopping further rust developing.

[Morgan84]

Yes,its getting to the parts you can't really see which is the important part of rust treatment;just dusting its floorpans with waxoil is good,but its only half of the job done.Rust treatment/prevention is a very messy time consuming job,but its better than having a car taken over by rust,and having to do lots of remedial works,or even have to give up on a car once it reaches such a state its not a viable repair

[cobblers]

Those Waxoyl pressure sprayer things are pretty decent really I reckon, just make sure you warm the waxoyl up in a bucket of hot water for an hour otherwise it'll barely come out. Turn the tin upside down and pump some air through to clear the lines out when you're done otherwise the next time you come to use it, the trigger will stick on and you (and anything in an 8 foot radius) will end up in a right old mess.

 

Back when I was razzing to work in a 106 rallye with all the carpets out (cos it made it loads faster obviously) I managed to rustproof my seats, doorcards, windscreen, head lining, etc etc when the end of the pressure sprayer found its way out of a box section and into the passenger footwell when I was laid underneath the car rodding through a drain plug into the sill.

 

Can't really attest at to how effective it was at stopping rust but it deffo made the car stink like paraffin for about a year and there's still a 106 sized greasy square on my dads drive from where it used to drip out of the sills on warm days. I probably put too much in though, I got a load for free from work so did about 3 tins worth in.

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

There's only one way to use Waxoyl so it's effective. Don't piss about with hand pumps etc but borrow/rent a compressor and spend 50 quid on a rustproofing gun with the various nozzles. Get 100 psi behind it and let fly - the Waxoyl goes into the box section/sill/door shell so fast and at such pressure it turns into a fog that clings to everything Same with the underneath. Needs to be spotlessly clean and dry, any loose underseal and rust cleaned off, cover the brakes with plastic bags and then fire the 'Xoyl on at 50 psi. A light coating is all it needs - the heavier it goes on, the more likely it is to fall off in sheets. Do it on a dry day and then drive the car around - a dusty track is ideal as the dust sticks to the 'Xoyl and builds a nice sticky coating.

 

I Waxoyled a 1991 Mini Cooper when it was 3 months old. It's still rot free and original - and I only did it the once.

[danthecapriman]

Waxoyl and Ziebart both definatly work. My MK2 Granada had waxoyl done from new and its survived very well in places it should have rotted away. The sills, chassis, doors etc are all still in good solid original condition after nearly 30 years and 200K miles! The car has needed extensive welding but only in places the original Ford coatings have failed! Its certainly done the job as im sure the car wouldnt be around today had it not been treated. It can be a pain though when welding as it melts in the heat and catches fire easily!

 

My MK2 Transit has been treated with Ziebart from new (easy to tell by all the little black Ziebart plugs dotted around it!) and this is like new still - its never been welded in all its 27 years and thats some achievement for one of these!! There are a couple of blisters on a few doors but nothing serious or unexpeted from an original unrestored vehicle.

 

So, yes im 100% sure they did good.

Nowadays though theres better things available, Dinitrol is good, I used this in my Capri and so far had no rust at all in all treated areas. But I now use Bilt Hamber Dynax s50, it is superb stuff, and again ive not had any rust in treated areas.

When I use these products I always try to do it on a hot summers day after the cars been cleaned and thouroughly dried off. Jack up one end of the car so its on a slope and put an old sheet, tarpoulin etc on the floor under the car. I always get the cans warm too, either leave them in the sun for a while or sit them in a bucket of warm water. The warmer everything is the better the stuff flows and soakes into gaps and panel seams. Then really go to town with it, get it into every panel you possibly can, I use the long flexi lances for sills, chassis box sections etc. As the car is jacked up at one end start at the higher end and all the excess will gradually run down the slope inside the panels giving an even better coat of it inside! Its best to let it all drip off onto a sheet though as it is horrible stuff and leaves a right mess once on the floor!

After a day or two once its all stopped dripping and solidified a bit I go round the car and clear out all the drain holes. Especially the sill ones as these get blocked up easily with this stuff.

I always do a top up after a year or two.