DISCLAIMER: To the Zaino believers I remind - this is America and every one is entitled to their opinion - don't bother flaming. Don't agree with me, that's fine.

AM 2004 TL experience:

I waxed my TL this past weekend with Zaino. Washed with Dawn, little claybaring, washed with Z7, then Z2(with ZFX) -Z6-Z2(with ZFX) -Z6-Z2 (with ZFX).

I have to tell you, based on everything I had read about I would have expected dramatic results. Sure, the car looks nice but I do not see much (if any) difference from other high-quality polishes such as Meguiar's.

Zaino is a lot of work. I started at noon and was not done until around five. For that much effort I would have expected much more dramatic results.

I will have to say that the Z7 car wash is an outstanding product, though. As for the rest of the $120 system, IN MY OPINION, it is not worth it.

BLACK 1994 Integra experience:

After finishing my TL, I decided to tackle my Integra. I had heard that Zaino was fantastic on a black car. Did Z7, Z5 (with ZFX) - Z6 - Z2 (with ZFX). After three hours the car looked nice but again similar than the results I have gotten with other products. Nice, that is, in the garage.

When I took it out in the sun - whoa, Nelly! - streaks everywhere. Likely from the Z6. I followed the instructions to the letter, dime sized amount for a 1 foot squared area. I tried to remove it by using Z6 and, after 15 minutes, I had half my hood done. LOT OF WORK. I finally realized I have much better things to do with my time. Washed the car with Dawn to get all the Zaino off and will use NXT this coming weekend.

AGAIN - THIS IS MY OPINION. Some folks swear by the product and I am glad. However, for me, the product is not worth the effort and the price.

 

I have found that you get much more dramatic results after multiple coats of zaino. I currently have 11 coats. I wash my car a couple times a week and every 5 or 6 washes, I put another coat of Zaino on. It only takes about 30 minutes to put it on and I wipe it off the next morning when I get up. I then follow up with the z6 spray.

 

11 coats !?
If so good, why so many coats ?? I really have a problem with any product needing 11 applications for either proper durability (which im sure you now have) or the best visual results......I'll continue to use my Blackfire or Platinum....

 

Because Zaino builds coats overtime... he didn't apply 11 coats at once. You do 2 or 3, and then add coats when you wash your car as you deem necissary. The 2 or 3 you added won't be going anywhere, so it just builds on top of it and gives it a deeper shine and better protection.

If you're getting streaks and stuff I think that you might be doing something wrong, but I'm no expert. As for other waxes and polishes, I think someone posted a wax test up a while ago. Zaino was the only wax that didn't turn yellowish, didn't start to let water sheet, and didn't stop shining.

 

I have had my car since 03/28. So it has taken me 5 months to get my 11 coats. I am due for another next wash. My TL is WDP, it is not the best color to show what Zaino can really do for you. A good friend of mine has a dark gray S2000 with about 28 coats of zaino. The depth and clarity of his shine is astonishing. Now I am not advocating putting 28 coats on your car, but try a few more coats and see what you think. The difficult process is putting the first coat on, Dawn, clay bar. After that you just wash you car and throw another coat on. I think you will be happy with the shine. I enjoy washing and waxing my car, so a extra hour of my time is all it takes to put another coat of Zaino on.

 

Washing the car with dawn will not remove the Zaino IMO. If anything, it'll weaken it. If you plan to do the Teg with only NXT, you should use a cleaner before applying the NXT. I don't want to get into the cleaning abilities of NXT, how it's applied, etc.

With your comments in mind, I think you'll like NXT after this past Zaino experience. There is a learning curve with Zaino. NXT is really easy to put on and remove. I used NXT in the spring and most of the summer. It is a great off the shelf product.

For a truely jaw dropping look, you really need to polish the paint. Meguiars does make some really great polishes and cleaners.

As far as coats, 2 coats of Zaino works for me. I like Zaino best during the winter because it holds up so well.

 

Zaino works pretty well on the NBP. Very very Nice. The Z5 (for Swirls) works quite well, removing some swirls from the hood. If Zaino was cheaper, its a great product.
I've noticed that the Z2 is harder to remove than the Z5

 

Hey SK - I don't think you need to use a cleaner when using NxT over Zaino - I saw a demo Mike Phillips posted on a vette that had 4 or 5 (if I remember) coats of Zaino and all they did was apply Nxt on top of it - I think the concensus he got from autopia was that Nxt is all you need to remove the zaino??

 

Three threads come to mind, but only two for the vettes.
I guess you're refering to the black corvette that had "12 coats" on it. The one with a whole lot of swirls and the thread that got closed. If I recall correctly, that was the one where the user (not Mike) applied it. I didn't read it at first and Mike pointed that out He sure pays attention to details...hehe

Or maybe it's the thread with the maroon vette where Mike (not the user) applied NXT to the car with a PC (Again, the user had multiple coats of Zaino on it).

You are right, NXT does have some of the cleaning abilities. I guess the point I'm trying to make here, is that if you wanted only NXT on it to see what it is like on it's own, you should clean it.

In the case with the maroon vette and NXT, I'd bet that the Zaino was gone and that NXT was the only thing standing. On the Black vette, I would guess that some of the Zaino was removed, but I would think some of the NXT "sat" on top of Zaino. Kind of like how you would put a carnuba over a sealant. So in that case, you would see the effect of NXT "on top" of Zaino. This is why I (personally) would clean the surface (if it had Zaino on it) prior to NXT.

 

I knew I would get my chops busted....hehe

 

no chop busting - only reason I thought it removed the zaino was the swrils on it (yeah it was the black one with 12 coats) - I would guess a sealant would fill those swirls (not filler but fill) so that 12 coats would probably provide an even surface??

I know NxT has fillers in it that hide swirls - that's why I thought it removed the zaino...but yeah your right 12 coats - maybe 2 or 3 were left -

 

Zaino should be called Insaino. Wash car 3 times wax 11 times it SHOULD look good. Name a wax that after 11 waxes the car doesn't look good. Does not last for every day driving last as long as it take to apply it. It is truly a SHOW car wax.

 

the streaks are most likely from you not letting it cure long enough. Zaino is a good product, is it the end all, be all of all waxes? Not in my book

 

I used ZFX, day was not humid at all, 75 degrees. According to the "Insaino" instructions (thanks KingBrad!) drying time should only be 20 minutes at most. I actually let it dry 30 - 40 minutes to be safe. Never again.

 

Hey I like Insaino!

 

Agreed groebuck. NXT does a good job at filling in swirls. I had a few on my hood earlier this year and was playing around with NXT. Totally forgot about them until the NXT was gone.

 

I agree with you both as long as it is based on the hiding of the swrils, which is a temp fix at best. Ovbiously the best scenario would be to remove the swirls entirely, but if time doesn't allow it, NXT is amazing for swirl concealing and it brings "life" and depth to the paint.

And it basically falls off the paint..

 

Zaino id God

See the picture in my sig below.

 

After 35 coats? Just kidding!

Glad it works for you. I can recommend the car wash but little else. The wax is way too much work for (what I consider) normal results. The leather in a bottle is just OK (instructions say do not wipe - BS - wipe away or you will get spots). The Z6 is a pain in the ass. The tire dressing sucks big time - tires do not look any better. The claybar is useful but you can get them cheaper at Pep Boys ($17!?!? Come on Sal!).

Overall, I personally would not recommend it.

From now on I will take it to my detailer as I do all my other cars. $50 bucks for a complete outside detail (two full coats) that looks as good as jorgjani's car, last six months (at least), and allows me to not lift a finger (other than to count the money). If I want an interior detail as well (lexol the leather, shampoo all rugs including trunk, etc...) it's $90 total.

 

becuase your car looks awesome but it's not that hard to get black to look awesome - well new black




that is Menzzerna FMJ (their sealant) -

I don't have anything against Zaino - people love it for a reason - I do think there are much easier products to use that produce the same (some might say better ?? - but that is objective) results. I think the ZFX is a cool idea so that you can do multiple layers in the same day.

 

I just did my girls accord w/ zaino and am definately NOT as impressed as I was last time I used it. I dawned and clayed then did Z1->Z2 then a coat of Z5, then a coat of Z2. The car is definately not as slick as the past NXT applications had been. The shine is good though.

 

Really ? Comparing Zaino (Z5 or Z2) with NXT, I've noticed that the slickness in NXT really dropped off after about 2 weeks. This was after 2 washes with Meg's Gold Class and then QDing it with Meg's FI after each wash. The depth was still there, but when I felt the paint it was a little "grabby".

Whenever I do any Zaino, I Z6 in between coats and then finish the car off by using Z6 on the car. Then I can wash for weeks with Meg's GC (QD with Meg's FI after each wash) and the slickness holds up.

 

Does Zaino prevent water spots when it rains and/or when you wash your car w/out drying it? Do you need to dry your car in order to not have any spots? Does one microfiber towel dry an entire car? Do you wash your car from top to bottom, bottom to top, or in random order?

carcar

 

Soo many questions - Nothing prevents water spots - even the Mr. Clean thing leaves some (not many but there is a trade off there too), yes you need to dry your car to not get water spots - A Waffle Weave Microfiber drying towel will do a car no problem - Wash your car from top to bottom doing the lower sides and bottoms last as they tend to get the dirtiest. A great trick to minimize water spots is after you have washed and rinsed your car, take off the nozzel on your hose and run a slow steady stream of water starting with the roof, hood and trunk and work your way down the car. The slow steady stream will sheet water off the car and should minimize the water left...the rest you can dry off with a Waffle Weave or if you like a leaf blower (I use it sometimes to get all the water out of the wheel wells, doors and mirrors etc...)

 

Yes, that "dry with water" technique groebuck's talking about works really well. If you have good zaino coverage (or any other product) on your car, the sheeting action will dry the majority of your car. After that I'm able to dry the rest of the car with a WW MF towel.

 

I've noticed on a couple of these posts that people are appling Z2 first in stead of Z5. The procedure I use, is wash with Z7, then 2 coats of Z5 and 1-2 coats of Z2. And of course I use the ZFX and Z6 between applications. The reason I use Z5 is that it give the paint that "deep" look and hides swirls. The Z2 is more for the shine. It gives it that "wet" look. I always start with Z5 and end with Z2.

I have been using Zaino for awhile and I've had no problems with it. And one of the cars I've Zainoed is on there website. First pic.

 

Lucid,

You are right for the older car. But when you do a new car you can skip Z5 since there would'nt be any swirls. The first time I did my new TL I skipped Z5 and then second time I did slap Z5 on first. Also, can you elaborate on;

Z6 I can understand but ZFX you need to add to the polish. How can you use between application?

 

the initial slickness was much smoother w/ the NXT. The NXT on her car was still some what smooth after 7 weeks. We'll see how hte Zaino holds up.

 

I use NTX and then Z-6 after every wash. Looks awesome, I always get compliments. I dilute the
Z-6 1 to 1 and get great results.

 

I ran out of Zaino Z-2 and decided to give the NXT Tech wax a try.

To sum it up in one word, WOW!

I am now a convert for the NXT Tech Wax. The only gripe I have is that the NXT Tech wax does not leave a slippery feeling to the paint after the wax is rubbed out.

I decided to also use the Zaino Z-6 as I'm hoping that it will work too with the NXT Tech wax to shine as well as leaving a slippery feeling to the paint.

 

I am sorry. Thats what I meant to say.

You should have used the Z5 from the beginning. It really don't matter if the car is New or Used. My car was brand new when I started using Zaino. And I am extrememly satisfied with my results. My cars paint has a deep shine and always looks wet.

 

I think I would like to do a side-by-side comparo of 2 detailing systems.

The Perfect Shine (as featured on BetterCarCare.com )
-- VS --
Zaino.

I could get an old hood or deck lid from a junk yard, and put a strip of tape right down the middle. Then start from scratch and do both sides with each system respectively. Wash, clay, whatever, etc...

Then, let the hood sit outside unprotected from the elements and see what happens. I could take pictures as periodic intervals of both sides and hope that a digital image is able to show the pro's and con's of both systems.

The 2 competitors could be judged on: cost, ease of application, shine, durability, longevity, etc...

This may have been done by someone already, I don't know.

What do you think? useful or not?

 

wow you guys have alot of time on your hands.

 

yano_jl,
David's "Perfect Shine" article is more of a method, not a product. He does mention some products in the steps outlined. You'll find that a lot of enthusaist detailers who use Zaino, will do the same steps outlined and then use Zaino as the final product.
Zaino on a poorly preped surface will not look to good.
...unless you were refering to comparing the "Perfect Shine" method to the steps listed on Zaino's site.

 

When I read the article: "Perfect Shine", David describes each step and the product(s) he uses for that step. I re-read the article, and I added the products he recomends to my shopping cart. I ended up with over $120 in product in my cart, not including the MF towels or buffing cloths, swirl remover, or any interior detailing stuff.

Zaino sells a complete kit for just over $100 which also includes applicators as well as interior products (leather cleaner/conditioner for example).

I thought Zaino was expensive at first glance, but after reading the "perfect shine", Zaino doesn't look as expensive anymore.

So I was thinking of a comparo between the methos/products in David's artice, and the methods/products from Zaino.

 

Ok, I am understanding you correclty then.
Yes, if you add up both they do get up there in price. If you want to keep you prices low, Meguiar's product line is very good IMO.
Personally, I'm over the $1000 mark in detailing stuff....it's kind of a habit

 

My wife complains that I crossed the "habit" line long ago... I'm well into full blown obsession.

 

I feel for you guys. I am now into using the Machines. I have a Porter Cable 7424. But now I am looking into buying a Dewalt Rotory Buffer. Whats funny is that I love Zaino products. But Meguires makes some really awesome products for machines. If you go to Autopia.com they have alot of information about the different products.

 

Yeah, my original plan was to buy a TL that would be a daily driver and kept in good condition. Maybe wax it a few times a year. Now it's almost 2 years later and it's babied for a car that sits outside.
I luv my PC 7424. I also bought a pop up tent for when I use those "don't use in direct sunlight" products. People think I'm hopeless.
Bottom line. The forums have made me do crazy things.

 

Thats actually a great idea with the tent. I think that my neighbors will think I am nuts. But I might try that.