Zaino Car Care Advice

I know someone posting some of this before, but I just got my Ultimate Car care kit from Ziano and it says that the first thing you should so after washing it of course, is Clay Bar the car! Even with new paint? Is it still wise to do to a brand new paint job? Thanks Russ

Clay bar isn't necessary unless the car has picked up debris in transit, for example rail dust from a train ride, in which case yes you should clay bar. If the surface is smooth then no need to do it.

I'll differ a little bit with K-man S here. The BEST results I have gotten with Zaino is when claying the car first......even if it is new. Remember its going to be sitting around outsidea lot of the time and even though a lot of the body panels will be covered it will still collect crap. Unless it was transported in a sealed bubble from the factory to you......it can use it and you won't harm a thing. 'Claying'scares a lot of people at first.......until they actually see and feel the clay......which is almost like a hard bubble gum in consistancy.It is so fine you won't think it will do anything. Use lots of the spray lubricant before andduring the process and work in small areas and rinse well or/and re-wash the whole car after it is done. You will be totally amazed on what is left behind.......a beautiful, baby butt smooth, pure paint base that will be ready for the next step. Yes it takes time........let it take time!.....you will be truly rewarded and your Cobalt Blue deserves it! Once you get going it really doesn't take that long......although I would hate to do a Hummer or the like. I once tried to bypass the claying part on a new Audi TT I had some years ago.......and it turned out very nice but I went back a month later and did it all again starting with the claying.......big diff IMO. You don't have to do it everytime you wax though.......maybe strip the whole car down once a year and do it. In-between you can just freshen up the finish with another coat of Z2now and then to keep it up. BTW.......Russ, if you fly me out there I would be glad to help out! Edited by - Atlas_Croc on 12/09/2005 08:31:26 AM

The last thing I would do is clay the car. I agree it does remove contaminants however it will likely put fine scratches on the finish. I've witnessed it. It's risky simply because the bar picks up small debris and you can never be sure that the debris you just picked up wont scratch the car. My best luck is Zymol HD Cleanse and Zymol wax. Since the invention of the microfiber towel Zymol is a valid option again. With regular towels, it's pure torture. If I use clay, and on a rare occasion I do, it's the last resort. This sounds strange, but I get a lot of new untouched cars (if I'm lucky untouched) and you can see it when you scratch them and it's a bummer. To dig a further hole for myself I'm not much of a Zaino fan. To quiet the debate, we simply do one fender with one product and one with another. Such as Zymol and Zaino. The Zaino has never lasted anywhere nearly as long in terms of beading up on various new Audis and VWs. -Pete Edited by - stratmosphere on 12/09/2005 09:27:29 AM

I can understand different people getting different results and having different opinions......its such a wide open area. There are also many different clays on the market with different goals. The Zaino clay was meant to be used to prepare the surface for polish/wax......not to repair anything. As far as which products are best?.......I've tried just about everything on the market and stopped at Zaino. I've used Zaino clay on over 10 cars now of various makes.....light paint, dark paint, metallic, and non-metallic. If used correctly and by the book none of them have ever been scratched and have come out looking absolutely fantastic. IMO.......the Zaino clay is not a 'last resort', but a pure beginning. Russ......I can understand your apprehension. I would urge you to try a bit of the clay process on another car.....someplace like under the rear bumper just to see how harmless it is and what a pure, smooth feeling it leaves behind. You will know what I'm talking about after your done.

Thanks Guys! I will do as suggested and try the clay on my wife's newCRV first. I do realize how important it is to keep the clay bar clean and free of any dirt particles. Thanks Russ

I decided I'm not going to clean the Cayman myself, so yesterday I went to a Meguiars retail store where they clean cars to inquire.The guysaid (of course I should tell the dealer to do nothing and bring it straight to them for thiernew car prep treatment. He said on a new car the goal is protecting, not cleaning. The store manager described the process as beginning with a clay bar, then a polish (which he said was not applied with a buffer and promised no swirl marks), then a silicone protectant. Hementioned that during the clay bar processthey were specifically lookingfor spots that needed it.Thewhole processcost about $200.

Chris, That is interesting. I still have not decided what I am going to do about the Clay Bar. I think I will call the tech dept. at Zaino and ask about new cars with new paint. [phone removed]. I just called, and they are all gone for the entire day attending a car show. I will call back on Monday. Russ

OK, I thought that I wasconfused about what to do about protecting the paint, now I'm sure that I'm confused. Advice is appreciated>>>> my preferences are> 1) Someone to do it for me (increased the probability that it will be done right, since I'll probably screw it up) 2)A great product that will only bring out the appearance with no risk of marring it. 3)Someone that I can lean hard on if there are problems later. I've never seen a Meguiars service location, but I can look for one. Any other suggestions? Why not use the dealer, at leastthey have alot of incentive to keep me happy ( I hope)?

<p class="MsoNormal" style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">But part of the fun of ownership is going to be waxing or polishing those sensuous curves...[/quote]

Really Kman-Went......it's not anything mysterious at all. In fact I wouldn't trust my car to any so called 'detailer' now.......I've seen some horrid things happen with them. Zaino is a great product IMO because it is so easy to use and has complete instructions. Follow them and you can't hurt a thing. Russ had a great idea......try it on some less 'appreciated' car and see how easy it is and how good the results can be. A year agoI was paying $$$ to have some simple A/C problems fixed on my older Porsche.......now I'm certified in A/C refrigerant handling and turned what would have been a recent $1000 bill into $60 worth of parts.....learned a lot in the process and now I do it myself with great success. Nothing is hard on a car, just those things that are unknown!

K-Man-Went, From what I have read Zaino is really user friendly and quite forgiving. I have to agree with the above, <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal">'But part of the fun of ownership is going to be waxing or polishing those sensuous curves...' [/quote] <p style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal">I am not letting anyone but me touch that body! Russ[/quote][/quote]

I used to spend a lot of time cleaning my cars. It waskinda fun, almosttheraputic. But I'm over it now, just seems like work.

chrism: We are sending over the guys with the white coats. Do not be afraid we just want to see if you are still alive./fckeditor/editor/images/smiley/MWPX/teeth_smile.gifActually I have some of the same feelings since I've moved to NM and live off of a gravel road. Keeping cars nice is very difficult but if I hired someone to clean mine as frequently as I do it I'd be able to afford the GT!

Hey everyone, I ordered myself the Zaino ZFX, Z-2 Polish, and Z-6 Gloss Spray. I'm new to zaino and after reading the instructions, I'm a bit intimidated to try it on my Cayman S (even though it seems that the best time to zaino the car is when it is new). Is it really as complicated as it sounds? From what I read, you have to mix the ZFX and Z-2, then put it on the car in the "allowed time." then buff off and spray z-6, and repeat. Are there any steps that I should be especially careful of? like the zfx mixing part? or the time I should leave it on the car before buffing off? or the time between coats? Does zaino have the same problem as wax when you hit plastic parts of the car (ie. permanent hazy white part on the plastic)? Sorry for all the questions. Just want to make sure I know all the hazards before I start on mine. Thanks.

eecsdude, I have to laugh! That is exactly what I thought when I read those instructions. I have my complete kit but haven't used it yet. First of all I have decided not to clay my car. This was tossed back and forth on another thread we had going and I felt that it was not necessary to do this to a new paint. I wil try to find that old thread because it is loaded with good advice. Many people here us Zaino and think that it is the best, so I am sure you will get some good feedback soon. ALoha Russ

Dude, Here is the thread, just read the whole thing. http://www.planet-9.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=500&FORUM_ID=1&CAT_ID=1&Topic_Title=Your+Favorite+Car+Polish%3F&Forum_Title=Cayman+Chat