It's been a while since I bought Zaino. I've been using the old Z2 on my cars while maintaining the gloss with the Z7 wash.

I'm finally out of the wash and it's time for the fall Zaino application on my 6-month-old CTS-V. I went to the Zaino site to look at products to buy and am wondering which I should start with.

I'm going to clay the car after a nice wash with Dawn....always the best foundation for a great day of Zaino!

They've got this new Z-CS (clear seal) that seems easy to apply and lasts "up to 9 months". I'm leaning toward going this way, but do I still need to use the base stuff first? They call it Z-AIO (all in one) nowadays, and it replaces the Z1 I was using before. Should I use both?

The sheer number of Zaino products is simply bewildering and I'm not a guy who has all day to detail his cars, so I could use a little expert help...

Thanks!

 

I used to be a Zaino Zealot but have migrated away from some of their products recently. However, I do use Z-AIO as a base as it works well at cleaning the paint if I don't want to go through the whole clay, polish, and seal process. The Zaino Clear Seal is ok. It does have very good durability but I find the Optimum Optiseal to give a better look plus is less expensive. My main sealant is now Four Star Ultimate Paint Protection. While it doesn't give the same level of durability as Z2 plus the ZFX (I haven't used a sealant that gives better durability then that combination), it has a deeper gloss than Zaino in my opinion. Four Star UPP has a carnauba look to it. I still use Z8 Grand Finale spray sealant - awesome stuff.

That said, if you want to stick with all Zaino, here's what I would recommend:

Z2 and ZFX combo.
Z8 Grand Finale spray sealant.
OR
Get Z-AIO if you just want a quick cleaner/sealant (don't need Z2 and ZFX) then use Z8 over that.

By the way, using Dawn soap is not something I would recommend if you have sealant on your paint already. It really only removes carnauba wax and tends to dry out plastic/rubber seals on your car. If you clay, you'll remove any remaining sealant/wax anyway.

Good Luck!

 

Bob, I can't speak to the Z-CS, but Sal told me-for my light colored Silver Type S (everyday driver) to use one coat of Z-AIO and as many coats of Z-5 as I like. I have tried their Z-7 wash-good stuff. I've also used their Grand Finale, which is very good stuff.

Next time, I'm going to try some other stuff-just because I want to try something different. I want more sparkle out of my ASM. So I got some other stuff-we'll see how it looks.

 

Thanks for the comments. I can't say that I'm a Zaino zealot but it certainly has worked well for me over the years.

Honestly, I work so much (I put in 10-12 hours a day at work) that I'd love to have something that looks good, lasts a long time, and doesn't require a half day to do right, so if you have other ideas, I'm all ears. It sounds like the Z-AIO meets that criterion, and I certainly don't mind putting on a layer of Z5 or spraying with Z8.

I use Z7 to wash all my cars. It looks AMAZING even when there's no other Zaino product on the car.

 

If your not prepping the car , and it doesn't sound like you are .. 4* UPP will do about the same.

 

^^^^

Nah, I slept on it and decided I'm going to do it right. I've got a clay bar...so I'll go through the usual process...it takes so much time but I'm only going to do it 2-3 times a year, so...

Dawn wash
clay bar
Dawn again
Z-AIO
Z2
Z6 and then Z6 weekly or biweekly after maintenance wash with Z7

I notice there's a lot of people here using 4* UPP, maybe I'll try that on the Pilot just to see how well it works. Thanks for mentioning it!

 

When I was referring to prepping I was meaning polishing it out .. getting rid of the imperfections and swirling.

Applying Zaino over a swirled car just produces shiney swirling.

 

Oh comon Dale, Ive heard you use other terms before.............lmao

 

I was being polite

 

yeah where is the shiney pile of shit!!!! lol



FS UPP!!!! FTW!!!

 

OIC! Thanks for clarifying. And LOL at what happens with applying over swirls!

So far I haven't had any significant imperfections in the V's paint...though they'd be hard to see on silver anyway.

My S2000, OTOH.....that one has minor chips in the clear coat from the wife banging her car door on mine. That one I am planning to have professionally and fully detailed at the end of the driving season this year prior to winter storage as I don't think I have the skills to properly care for the clear coat prior to putting on a sealant.