[Pete04222]

I don't know how many of you remember my review of the Mother's California Gold wax system. http://www.ferrariforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2926&highlight=product+review I was happy with it but not jump up and down estatic. I had always steered away from Zaino because of the price. I had however always heard good things about it. Well I finally got sick of looking at those fine swirl marks in my car and said screw it. I'm gonna see if the Zaino is as good as everyone says it is and I sent away for their Ultimate show car kit.

Let me tell you, this product does live up to it's claim. My car has always looked good from 10 feet away, now it looks good from 1 foot away. The finish is just about flawless. A week ago I thought the only cure for my car was new paint. Now I feel comfortable going years before paint (And I think then it will be to address a few minor rust issues rather than paint issues). Here's the link to the Zaino site: http://www.zainostore.com/

Here was the process:
I washed the car with dishwashing liquid to strip the old polishes off. I gave the whole car the Z-18 Clay bar treatment, washed it again with the Z-7 show car wash and gave it an application of the Z-5 polish for swirl marks with the ZFX flash cure mixed in. After this first coat I was still seeing the swirl marks and kind of thought maybe this Zaino was just some more of the magic snake oil stuff that makes wild claims. I went and got some 3M fine cut rubbing compound and applied it to the entire car with a random orbital polisher. Washed it again and then I went back and did 3 more coats of the Z-5 with the Z-6 gloss enhancer between each coat. After that I did 2 coats of the Z-3 Show car polish with the Z-6 between the coats and then topped it off with the Z-8 Grand finale spray seal. Wow! You want to talk about a flawless mile-deep shine! I used the Z-12 clear view glass polish and that stuff made all my windows practically vanish.

So I am sold on this stuff. It sounds like a lot of work and it was, but don't forget I was trying to correct problems and it did the job. My buddy Pete came over with his 2003 Ford Ranger and within 2 hours we were able to wash, clay, polish and gloss enhance his solid black truck and even he says it looks better than the day he bought it. Looking into his fender is like looking into a mirror.

 

[Andrew]

Yes their product is amazing and I tried to get them to sponsor the site. I was told they don't spend any money on advertising, that all their marketing is via word of mouth.

 

[backindauk]

Is it a long wearing product?

I currently use Meguiars products on my car and i get a reasonable shine but it is long lasting... I'd like a product with higher shine but also long lasting so i do not have to continously re-polish it!

 

[Pete04222]

It is too early for me to tell how long wearing it is. But they say it is the longest wearing and I'm inclined to believe them because they also said it was the ultimate shine and that turned out to be true. Unlike the others.

Like you said, Meguairs is a reasonable shine. I used to swear by that. I liked the Mother's products too; I've used Nu-finish and Liquid Glass. But none of those gave my car the look I wanted. My buddy Rick always noticed the swirl marks in my car because I had been bitching about them for 3 years and had a whole shelf full of polishes I've tried. After I used the Zaino I invited him to take a look and he put his eyes 6 inches from the surface and said the finish was perfect and he is getting Zaino for his car. And mind you, my car is solid red with no clear coat. You can't hide imperfections like you can with a metallic clear-coated finish.

I'm sold on the Zaino. It is expensive, but hey, you want a $100 shine on your car or a $10 shine? I've spent well over $100 on $10 shines.

Now keep in mind that I was trying to fix a problem (and was successful). If you have a decent finish and just want to give it that wet look, here is what I would recommend based on my experience:

1- The Z-18 clay bar. That is a must. You can't get a mirror finish without a smooth surface and you can feel this stuff working.
2- The Z-2 show car polish for clear coat finishes and the ZFX accelerator.
3- The Z-8 Grand finale spray seal
4- The Z-12 Glass polish. Best I've used.

Total cost for those 5 products would be $85. Best money ever spent.

 

[Pete04222]

Just did the full Zaino treatment on my wife's car. Took me all day. She was like "Wow, Honey! That definately looks better than new! I can see my shoes!"

One thing I learned - A Mercedes E-Class sedan is WAY bigger than a Ferrari 308.