A white car is classless. It can be found right across the spectrum of traffic; from flat white Transit vans right up to satin-finished white Lamborghinis.
White paintwork can be as anonymous or ostentatious as you like, it can also cost as much or as little too. Mercedes charge a whopping £4,750 for a fancy pearlescent white paint on its G-Wagen, for example.
White paintwork is also really popular here in the UK, holding the third most popular colour choice for new cars behind black and grey. White cars also tend to hide small paintwork imperfections better than black paintwork, but will also show up small bits of dirt more than other colours.
Those small scratches can also lead to a flat and dull finish to the paintwork, something that can only be removed with a proper polish or white car wax. We've put together a list of our favourite white car waxes to easily restore lost lustre, looking at price, longevity and glossiness.
The best car waxes for white cars
The best paste wax for white cars
Nothing can get close to PoorBoys Nattys Carnauba Paste Wax in terms of value for money, which is why it gets our top pick for white car waxing. Made entirely from carnauba wax and specially formulated for white and light metallic paintwork, this wax will bring out a deep shine and look fantastic.
Beyond that, it'll also offer up to three months of hydrophobic and UV protection and comes with a more than acceptable 237ml of product. What also helps it nab our top spot is that it can be applied in direct sunlight and requires no curing time at all.
The best white car wax for protection
A legendary car wax, Fusso Wax is renowned for its protective abilities and Soft99 proudly boasts that this wax is used by over 10 million motorists. Available for light or darker paintwork, the lighter example shown here makes use of cleaners in the wax to bring out a natural shine and hide any yellowing of your paint.
It also makes use of advanced fluoropolymers that offer nearly unbeatable hydrophobic protection for up to 12 months of protection. The sponge applicator is a nice touch but isn't a match for a proper applicator and it's quite expensive. Still, for the ultimate wax protection, not much can compete.
The best white car wax for gloss
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Another pricier example designed for white cars is this liquid wax, designed to bring out the ultimate shine in a white car's paintwork. Made with refined oils to help mask any small scratches that are present in a car's paintwork, Chemical Guys claim this wax will help smooth out paintwork which will help add a deeper glossiness to white paintwork.
It can be applied using a microfibre applicator or a machine polisher. Though this wax won't offer the longest protection, it will help make a white car look as white and shiny as possible while still offering some decent protection.
The best white car wax on a budget
Just because white car wax is a more specialised product it doesn't mean you need to spend a lot of money. If you're on a budget Turtle Wax is a good choice for enhancing white paintwork.
It's designed to mask small swirls just like many other white car waxes and contains a very mild polish to help remove small scratches. It isn't as effective as the pricier waxes and the enhanced glossiness won't be as intense or long-lasting.
How white car wax works:
Just like with black car wax, nothing disastrous will happen if you apply general car wax to a white car, white car wax is simply designed with enhancing white cars in mind.
Some waxes will make use of white pigments to help enhance the white paint. Others will contain cleaners within the wax to bring out a natural gloss and mask any yellowing of the paint that can occur over time.
Synthetic options will often contain refined oils that'll help fill in any small scratches to smooth out the paintwork and deliver a deeper shine in the paintwork. They won't remove the scratches unless they contain a polish, however.
Ryan Gilmore is the Deputy Autos and Tools Editor for Parkers, specialising in car cleaning and hand tools. A veteran car cleaner; if it details, waxes or washes he'll be on hand to make sure it's worth your money.