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Maintenance & Repair Zaino Car Polishes/Products--Your Experiences (Part 2)
6239 messages, Last post on Sep 25, 2008 at 2:05 PM
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Replying to: c5_4fun (Aug 27, 2007 3:51 pm) First question: Do you have swirl marks?
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Z-12 Glass product: This is a great product that I highly recommend. We have used it on our cars, shower and for other purposes. Compared to other glass cleaning abrasives, Z-12 is much easier and cleaner to use. The only issue, Z-12 tends to leave white residue in the pits of a pitted windshield, it’s not a major issue and the residue will wash out. Keep that in mind if you plan to coat your windshield with a surface sealant. Z-9 Leather cleaner: Another great product, I prefer it over Lexol. My GF bought her car from my parents and prior to the transfer my father wiped down the seats with Maguire’s leather wipes. The result was a greasy surface and the seats were still dirty. We cleaned the seats with Z-9, which removed the Maguire’s and made our towels black with dirt and grease. My only criticism of this product is the smell. I would prefer a more neutral smell rather than the so called leather sent that smells more like vinyl to me. Z-10 Leather conditioner: Yet again another great product. The seats look better then they have in a long time. Also again I am not a fan of the smell and made me hesitant to use it on my new car. Z-16 perfect tire gloss: I have used many tire dressing products and I prefer Z-16. As the name suggests Z-16 does result in the perfect tire gloss, not greasy or overly glossy, a nice satin sheen. One nice feature is that you can control the level gloss by applying multiple coats. I have used Z-16 on clean and dirty tires with similar results. After using Z-16 I trashed all the other tire dressing I had collected over the years. The only other product I might consider is Lexol Vinylex. Z-7 car wash: Of course I use Z-7 and have no complaints. Z-6 spray: Back when I used the original Z-2 I also used Z-6. At this point, with the method I now use, I do not believe this product is essential. Next installment, my conclusion regarding Zaino products place in the confusing and overcrowded car care product market. |
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| Can't wait to hear this one. Not to mention your conclusion. | |
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Replying to: orange606 (Aug 30, 2007 6:19 am)
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Replying to: laurasdada (Aug 30, 2007 9:58 am) I consider myself lucky as I have a Zaino distributor who lives less than 5 minutes from my residence. What does that mean to me? No freight charges, running out of Z2 on a Sunday afternoon and picking more up with a phone call and a 10 minute drive. Not to mention the wealth of knowledge he has regarding the products that he sells.
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Replying to: obyone (Aug 30, 2007 11:03 am) |
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Replying to: obyone (Aug 30, 2007 11:03 am) Lucky you, being so close to the product distributo. The "only" $8.95 S & H charge doesn't seem too much the bargain to me. Another example of the financial cost of an addiction! |
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When I first used Zaino products they were truly unique. If I remember correctly, at that time most Zaino comparisons were between Zymol and Meguiar's. The common outcome was that immediately after application Zaino may have not been more reflective or slick, but months down the road Z-2 was still in effect when others had quit. 8 years later I now think other products have greatly advanced and may have eliminated the endurance gap. The recent consumer reports article covering auto wax/sealants highlights the progress the industry has accomplished. While Meguiar's rated middle of the pack, black magic and turtle wax led the group with products costing less than half Z-2. The mind altering chemicals in Zaino products that spawned the fanaticism associated with Zaino users may no longer have an effect on me. I now feel that Zaino is not light years ahead of the competition. My father waxed his car with the aforementioned black magic cleaner wax. The result was a slick, highly reflective surface that rivaled the multi step process I detailed in a previous post. Consider that his 4 year old car has never been clayed or subjected to other types of paint prep. I was astonished how slick the surface could feel without meticulous preparation. My point, I still believe Zaino products are excellent products designed and manufactured with great care. Furthermore, Zaino appears to be more interested in performance over marketing and gimmicks. That being said, I would have a hard time justifying to a friend why they should invest time and money into the Zaino system. In fact I would probably recommend they use locally available products. Again referring to the process I previously reported, I could replace Z-18 with clay magic, Z-PC with Meguiar's #9, Z-AIO with Black Magic Cleaner Wax, and omit the Z-CS step. In the end I would have more money in my pocket and not have to worry about ordering or running out of product. The Black Magic Cleaner Wax may not match Z-CS in endurance, but currently there is no evidence either way. Ultimately I will stay with Zaino mostly due to products not mentioned above. While Lexol Vinylex could replace Z-16, I cannot think of replacements for Z-12, Z-14, Z-9, or Z-10. I am trying to convey that you can go with Zaino or local products and achieve similar results. Also, let’s not forget the wide range of other products available online. As always your mileage may vary and let your conscience be your guide. |
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Replying to: obyone (Aug 29, 2007 9:14 pm) Right now I bought Z-AIO, Z5, Z-CS, and Z-8; I just have to figure out what the proper sequence is which I'm thinking is AIO, CS and 8 for the Vette, and 5, AIO, CS and 8 for the M35........any input?
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is that the products work so well with each other. While there is a preferred methodology of its use in sequence, out of sequence will have no ill effect. Your sequence will work. The reason I asked about swirls is that without proper preparation you will not benefit from the use of Zaino products. While Z5 will fill in some of the swirls, in doing my friend's vette, I found the use of a Porter Cable 7424 as an absolute must to rid the swirls. It is against the house rules to post links to other sites so all I can say is to do a google on the porter cable which will lead you to various swirl removal kits available. Also the removal of old wax products with the dawn, clay, dawn procedure is an absolute must on the vette and M35. |
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