I preform my major detail every May, getting impatient for the weather to improve. Hasn't been above 60 here in MD for any length of time yet. Had a new idea for claying, wanted to see if anyone had tried it. Claying seems to be tedious(Not that I mind) since you have to constantly spray lubricant - clay - then wipe away area with a good towel so the lubricant doesn't dry. My is idea that after throughly washing the car to put my nozzle on a light spray and use water as lubricant to clay the newly clean surface. Should make the claying process easy by being able to move across the whole car without much fuss, then simply dry and you are ready to apply your favorite sealants. Matt
have heard from the fanatics at Roadfly but I have never tried Zaino. Most swear by it. What is the hook -- is it a wax or synthetic? I use Zymol for the cars I do by hand. The 530i gets the occasional pro 'spa' treatment since it is the wife's daily driver.... I can't do them all by hand.
The product is a full synthetic sealant, the proof is in the durability. My car has spent almost a year in outdoor duty and still beeds water quite well. If you apply with light pressure(which is key) the zaino wipes off by just dragging your towel across the surface. Ease of application is a selling point(the main factors being the durability and shine).
Good Zaino Alternative: REJEX! Some (including me) have tried a product called REJEX! and have had fine results. Very easy to apply, and the results last for months. See it here:http://www.corrosionx.com/rejex.html
Both are great. I have a lot of experience with both Zaino and Zymol products. I'm talking the full detail, multi-step products here, not the all-in-one, cleaner wax, or spray wash stuff. Both are great systems with pluses and minuses for each. I could go into great detail and ramble on and on about this, but I'll try to keep it short. I think Zymol leaves deeper richness in color to my black car, but it takes longer to do and takes more to maintain. Zaino to me seems to leave a more of mirror finish, but it is easier to maintain and hides swirl marks, etc. better in my opinion. A Zaino detail can be done in a weekend with one person, but a really good Zymol wax job can take considerably longer. My situation has a lot to do with my pick here. Since I live in a city condo and park my cars in a parking garage, I really don't have a good place to wash my car. Because of this, I end up running the cars through the best hand wash place I've found nearby and then bring the car back to the garage where I do a once-over with Zaino's Z6 and then another with Z8. For a 30-45 minute procedure (25 minutes of which is spent waiting for the car at the wash), it doesn't get much better than this. Total cost $25, assuming I already have the Z6 and Z8. In between washes (i.e. almost daily), I do 60-second once-over with a California duster. This is where I really see the difference between Zymol and Zaino. Most of the time I can get away with just the California duster with Zaino, but doing the same with Zymol leaves me wanting to hit the car with a once-over of a quick detailer. When the California duster isn't enough for the Zaino, I hit the car with Z6 and Z8. Done in 15 minutes and darn close to being just washed. If I had a full time garage staff, I'd have them Zymol the hell out of the car every day, but since I'm a one-dude operation with time and facility restraints, I'd have to pick Zaino. As far as using a mist of water from the hose for clay bar lube, I would NOT recommend this. If your water is at all hard or even treated soft for that matter, you may end up doing more harm than good. You can use just about any quick detailer (QD) product for the lube. It doesn't have to be branded or expensive. If you spray the whole car down first, you'll run into evaporation problems and have to re-wet the thing. I don't see you saving much time doing that. Look at the pictures from detail sessions past out in the suburbs. They're from different cameras at different times, but I think you might be able to see a bit of what I'm talking about as far as richness vs. mirror-like. Guess that wasn't so short after all. Rick
Glad you found fault in my logic, hard water!. So pressing the claybar against hard water has a chance to do more harm then good unless of course you have one of those inline water purifiers. I have a garage to work with and a house that has good shade coverage in the afternoons so evaporation hasn't been a problem for me. That why I was considering going over with the clay just after a wash, with slight application of water along the way. However, since I am not using di-ionized water it is not a risk I am willing to take. As far as shine goes I know what you mean about some other waxes looking a bit different then Zaino (I think my old choice, meguiars tech wax may have been brighter) but the difference isn't necessarily one better then the other but a matter of personal taste. Zaino keeps me faithful with their philosophy to focus almost strictly on paint protection products. No fancy packaging just really durable synthetic sealant. Btw - Nice Pics
Interesting you mention inline water purifiers. I am a HUGE fan of the Mr. Clean AutoDry auto wash gizmo. That thing rocks. The water literally sheets off the car after you rinse. I use it whenever I wash the car or when I do a base-up detail. Well worth the $30! You _might_ try using it and then a claybar in an inconspicuous place on your car to see what it does, but being there wouldn't be any actual lubricants in the filtered water, I don't see it working well. Additionally, the filtered water might fall/evaporate off the car quicker than water from the hose. ??? Rick
I think a "major detail" should include the claying step. It really is not that tedious and it does wonders on cleaning the surface. You do not have to "constantly spray lubricant." Just make sure the surface is wet enough for the clay to glide easily across the surface. Give it a try and I think you will be impressed with the results. Good luck.
I have found it best to use a 'quick detailer' spray with the clay. I don't use water. I have used the Zaino products and switched over to P21s and like the P21s shine, durability and easy application better.
Add me to the Zaino Fanatics Club Been using it for a few years now, and here in the dirty-tree-crap-falling-down-all-year-Northwest, its been a lifesaver for our vehicles that dont get the coveted garage space. Regarding claybars, its something that is also needed up here alot, and certainly, after you wash with soap or in some cases, even during the wash with soap, a claybar could be used then. Just be aware that some bars are not happy with some soaps and they might start to fall apart. I dont do it at the wash stage but prefer to claybar after washing and rinsing, using Meguiars Quick Detailer as my lubricant for the claybar process. As long as the clay and surface being clayed is wet, there should be no problem. However, all claybars, can mar the paint if used dry, but a polishing liquid, such as Zaino ZPC-Fusion, can remove the mar's and most scratches, swirls, etc., pretty darn good too. I like all of Zaino's many products, and their newest - All-In-One, and Clear Seal are really a great addition to their inventory. No, Im not affiliated with them in any way other than buying alot of their products and being totally satisfied with them. Good luck in whatever you use for your detailing! DanF
Zaino/Zymol I had been using Zymol years ago and when I bought a Corvette--Zaino was a popular choice among vette owners. I have noticed Vette and BMW owners are similar in that we are all sort of, uh, anal about our cars. I am not sure there is a huge difference between the two--both are excelent so it's personal preference.
Depends on what you mean by similar - Believe last I read, that Zaino will last months longer than the carnauba's since it is an acrylic polymer. I used to use it back 20 years ago or so, wasnt as easy to use when it first came out as it probably is today. I suppose it will give you what you expect out of it, and the varying degrees in pricing must mean something too. Zaino on the other hand, gives you consistent, show quality shine with a whole lot less rubbing to get it off, and it lasts a heck of a long time. Hope you are enjoying your Bimmer !! I just came back from SoCal, and saw a huge amount of beautiful vehicles with Mercedes and BMW being the most frequent and the most beautiful. The 335CiC is just an absolutely gorgeous body style to me. DanF
Add another Zaino Fan Zahnarzt's posts are nearly identical with my experience. I was also an original Zymol fan in the late 80's and early 90's, but it was enormous work to accomplish the end objective and typically resulted in crippled hands/fingers by the end of the weekend when applying by hand. I found Zaino a few years back and have been a convert ever since. I find the products to be real winners ... relativly simple application by hand or machine. I can apply 2-3 layers of polish by hand in less than 4 hours on my old coupe. While the basic process for applying Zaino is the same, I know the specific methods all of us use vary. If it's useful, the products and how I generally use them are explained here http://www.bertsplace.net/auto/zaino-steps.htm on my personal website. The basic steps have been used by several of my friends when they've converted over to Zaino. None have gone back that I'm aware of.
Congratulations on your new Bimmer on order ! I just love the 335 in either Coupe or Convertible. It has the nicest lines I have seen in a few years on the Bimmer marque. I tried to get one here in Bellevue, WA., but couldnt really get past the over-priced snooty attitudes, of the guys selling them. When I finally pulled the trigger on a new IS350 Lexus, the Internet guy from Niello BMW in Sacramento, where I bought 2 new cars in 2001 and 2002, came in with a 335 at a really nice price, but alas, it was too late.. I'm now learning about the Lexus experience, and it has had its own set of challenges, and a whole new departure from the boys in Munich, but it has been ok for now. Notice I said "for now".. I love the M/L higher end stereo in the Lexus, but the Nav is way behind the one I have in our '05 Acura RL. We still have a '97 540i and an '03 540iT with all the M-5 accessories including wheels., so I'm having the luxury of enjoying both marques. I have used Zaino for a few years now, and have finally figured out I really dont need more than a little over 1/2 oz to do about any normal sized vehicle by hand. I like to now do the normal clean up/clay, etc., followed by AIO, 3 x Z5 or Z2 ZFX'd, followed by 2 x C/S with 24 hrs, between coats of C/S. I have used a P/C 7424 and a new Flex XC3401VRG and love the ease of use to get vehicles ready for the Zaino treatment. Here in the Northwest where its really rainy in winter and crap falling out of all these trees 24 x 7, Zaino has been a great product to keep the poor guys who have to stay outside beautiful all year long. Enjpyed your post and website ! DanF
Another Zaino user since ~ 2001. The Grand Finale detail spray is incredible IMO. RE: BMW & Vette owners... I also use the Liquid Glass Polish on my RV (fiberglass) with great results. Both Zaino & Liquid Glass are similar products and located in North NJ...wonder if they are/were related ???
Yes, the toughest part of learning the Zaino system is "a little dab will do ya" with just about all their products. It's a bear to take back off if you put on too much material and does not do as good of a job as when you apply a sparing amount. My friends that have converted typically make the mistake I did with applying too much product the first couple of times, and almost always balk at the cost of a bottle until they really see how many applications you can get when you do it right, and the total time it saves you in the end. Glad you liked my site. Interesting you are having similar feelings about your Lexus. Tough decision for me to make the switch after so many years with the brand. My garage bay may be empty without a coupe at the moment, but I'm pretty stoked having just gotten word I have a "first week in September" production date for my 2009 E93. Only gotcha so far is my "graphite metallic" color selection was not orderable so will have to wait until the real US announcement happens next month and make a final decision on color before they start manufacturing. Yippee.
How soon to use Zaino? I used Zaino several years ago on my Chevy Avalanche and loved the results. I just got a 2008 335Xi Coupe and was curious if I should go ahead and put a coat on right away or should I wait till the "new car" finish wears awhile. Any thoughts?
I stripped off the wax with Dawn and proceeded with my Zaino ritual the day I brought home my last 2 vehicles (both Lexus), and plan to do the same when my E93 vert arrives in October. I encountered no problems, only a bigger smile on my face with that deep shine that multiple layers of Z2/Z5 give to darker colors.
Thanks, I will proceed accordingly! I didn't get the Z5 though, just the Zfx/Z2 and the Z6. Damn, the Metallic Sparkking Graphite is just beautiful to look at......
