StangDriver5650
11-08-2004, 11:18 PM
Holy crap thats one clean car, is it garaged or daily driver? also you use Meguiars?
That's sweet man... how do you keep it looking so wet? My paint is about 2 years old now and is starting to show it's age... any suggestions? I was thinking clay bar it and maguiars 3 stage. Let me know guys.
It's daily driven, 71,800 miles on the clock. :) Those pictures were taken two days after I had applied a coat of Vanilla Moose Hand Glaze, which helped to get rid of some of the minute scratches on it as well as make it look pretty slick/wet. I find that the ClearKote Quik Shine quick detailer however is excellent at keeping a wet/dark look to the paint. It's the best quick detailer I've ever used. I highly reccomend the Clearkote.com line of products.
I posted this on another board a while back.
I haven't applied another coat of Zaino since summer '03 (I'm pretty sure that a few of the 7 layers I put on then are still on the car). I have since then kept a topping of S100 paste wax on it (refreshed every 2-3 months or so) and hand detailed it every other day or so with microfiber towels and ClearKote Quik Shine. I always try to dry it off if it's been rained on, especially down the sides of the doors and the top of the rear bumper, as that's where most of the crap will end up drying. If it's already dried on there I will mist it moderatley with the QuikShine and go over it lightly once or twice with a MF towel to get the main part of the crap off, then let it dry, mist again and get the rest of it off/shine it up.
I have only soap and water washed the car 3 times since I've had it (Jan '03.
Here's what I did.
1. Wash with dish detergent (strips off any old wax)
2. Claybar (removes any dirt/road grime/sap)
3. *Wash with Zaino Bro's Car Wash http://www.zainostore.com/Merchant2...uct_Code=ZKIT-1
(I bought that kit, it's worth it)
4. Apply your coats of Zaino (Z2/Z5) (3 coats Z5, 4 coats Z2 is what I did)
The kit comes with some stuff called ZFX Accelerator. You add a few drops to your Zaino and it greatly reduces the drying / curing time. You're able to apply about 3 coats per day. I applied 3 coats one day, 3 coats the next, then a 4th coat the day after.
5. Make sure to quick detail with the Zaino Z6 Quick Detailing Spray in between each coat of Zaino.
6. Top your Zaino coats with S100. http://www.hawg-wash.com/s100pastewax.html Awesome paste wax, excact same stuff as the German Pinnacle Souveran P21S wax only a lot cheaper.
7. *Maintain the deep/wet shine with ClearKote's Quik Shine http://www.clearkote.net/products.htm
Zaino is not excactly a wax but more of a molecular compound / polish that actually bonds to the paint surface and then on each layer of Zaino. It's the only "wax" that you can truley layer and increase depth and clarity of the reflection. Zaino gives a nice sharp/crisp clear reflection but I think it's a little too flat and not dark enough. Remeber that if you apply any other wax or polish other than Zaino, you can't add anymore layers of Zaino until you strip that layer of wax off (wash with a dish detergent, the Zaino should stay). Zaino is designed to bond only to other layers of itself.
This is when you want some caranuba wax. *I use S100 (http://www.hawg-wash.com/s100pastewax.html)* It is a VERY good caranuba wax. This same wax is also what is found in Pinnacle P21S which retails for somewhere in the area of $60 per 8 fl. oz. S100 however is what it is called in the motorcycle shops. It's kind of a little secret. It's the excact same wax but for $14.95. It goes in incredibly easy and requires no drying time. It wipes off very easily with no white residue. It leaves behind a dark/wet/deep shine that I haven't been able to match with any other wax/polish I've used.
The ClearKote Quik Shine is THE best quick detailer on the market. It's almost like wax/polish in a bottle but it's so easy to use. There is no smearing or residue. Just mist it on and wipe it off with a microfiber towel. It is a color enhancer so it makes the color look much darker and wetter. It fills in light scratches as well (this is good stuff).
I ordered all my products from the sites I listed. They all have excellent service and I received my stuff within just a few days. This is an awesome combo for any car; especially darker colored cars.
*Micro Fiber Towels*
These are a must. They are the best thing in the world to use for quick detailing / waxing. They really reduce any streaking and do not scratch the paint surface at all. I ordered mine from ClearKote's site. You can find them in most car stores though like PepBoys. It's all I use. You can wash and reuse hundreds of times and they still work just fine.
I maintain my shine by just quick detailing with the Clearkote's every few days or so when it hasn't gotten really dirty. I have not actually washed my car (soap & water) in about 3 months and my hood is near scratch free, even under direct sunlight. You just have to be careful when getting off any dirt, wet it down with the detailer (it helps lift it off the paint surface) then go over it once lightly with the micro fiber towel to get rid of the main part of it. After that you can mist again and get whatever's left over.
And that's how I keep mine clean. It may seem pretty time consuming and involved but it really isn't. Once you get those layers of Zaino on, they are there to stay for a good year or so, probably longer, especially if you keep a topping of S100 on there (refresh every 2 months or so). Just 15-30 mins a day keeps it clean.
http://r1329776.hostultra.com/Upload/data/media/2/VanillaMooseHood.jpg
http://r1329776.hostultra.com/Upload/data/media/2/SteedaHangar.jpg
http://r1329776.hostultra.com/Upload/data/media/2/VanillaMoosePanel1.jpg
http://r1329776.hostultra.com/Upload/data/media/2/Steeda02.jpg
http://r1329776.hostultra.com/Upload/data/media/2/Steeda03.jpg
http://r1329776.hostultra.com/Upload/data/media/2/Steeda04.jpg
http://r1329776.hostultra.com/Upload/data/media/2/Steeda05.jpg
http://r1329776.hostultra.com/Upload/data/media/2/Steeda06.jpg
http://r1329776.hostultra.com/Upload/data/media/2/Steeda07.jpg
http://r1329776.hostultra.com/Upload/data/media/2/SteedaCub1.jpg
http://r1329776.hostultra.com/Upload/data/media/2/Rearquarterpanel.jpg
http://r1329776.hostultra.com/Upload/data/media/2/Rearquarterpanel1.jpg
Now that MeGuiars NXT is out, I think I'm going to strip everything off and start over. This time I'll do several coats of Zaino followed by NXT (not sure if you can layer this or not) then a topper of S100 to give it that rich, dark, wet look that only a pure caranuba can do.
This process might take some time to get started, but once you have all the layers of wax / polish on it is easy to maintain. I just quick detail mine with the ClearKote Quik Shine and microfiber towels once every other day or so. Quik Shine also cleans wheels / windows / plastics etc.
That's sweet man... how do you keep it looking so wet? My paint is about 2 years old now and is starting to show it's age... any suggestions? I was thinking clay bar it and maguiars 3 stage. Let me know guys.
It's daily driven, 71,800 miles on the clock. :) Those pictures were taken two days after I had applied a coat of Vanilla Moose Hand Glaze, which helped to get rid of some of the minute scratches on it as well as make it look pretty slick/wet. I find that the ClearKote Quik Shine quick detailer however is excellent at keeping a wet/dark look to the paint. It's the best quick detailer I've ever used. I highly reccomend the Clearkote.com line of products.
I posted this on another board a while back.
I haven't applied another coat of Zaino since summer '03 (I'm pretty sure that a few of the 7 layers I put on then are still on the car). I have since then kept a topping of S100 paste wax on it (refreshed every 2-3 months or so) and hand detailed it every other day or so with microfiber towels and ClearKote Quik Shine. I always try to dry it off if it's been rained on, especially down the sides of the doors and the top of the rear bumper, as that's where most of the crap will end up drying. If it's already dried on there I will mist it moderatley with the QuikShine and go over it lightly once or twice with a MF towel to get the main part of the crap off, then let it dry, mist again and get the rest of it off/shine it up.
I have only soap and water washed the car 3 times since I've had it (Jan '03.
Here's what I did.
1. Wash with dish detergent (strips off any old wax)
2. Claybar (removes any dirt/road grime/sap)
3. *Wash with Zaino Bro's Car Wash http://www.zainostore.com/Merchant2...uct_Code=ZKIT-1
(I bought that kit, it's worth it)
4. Apply your coats of Zaino (Z2/Z5) (3 coats Z5, 4 coats Z2 is what I did)
The kit comes with some stuff called ZFX Accelerator. You add a few drops to your Zaino and it greatly reduces the drying / curing time. You're able to apply about 3 coats per day. I applied 3 coats one day, 3 coats the next, then a 4th coat the day after.
5. Make sure to quick detail with the Zaino Z6 Quick Detailing Spray in between each coat of Zaino.
6. Top your Zaino coats with S100. http://www.hawg-wash.com/s100pastewax.html Awesome paste wax, excact same stuff as the German Pinnacle Souveran P21S wax only a lot cheaper.
7. *Maintain the deep/wet shine with ClearKote's Quik Shine http://www.clearkote.net/products.htm
Zaino is not excactly a wax but more of a molecular compound / polish that actually bonds to the paint surface and then on each layer of Zaino. It's the only "wax" that you can truley layer and increase depth and clarity of the reflection. Zaino gives a nice sharp/crisp clear reflection but I think it's a little too flat and not dark enough. Remeber that if you apply any other wax or polish other than Zaino, you can't add anymore layers of Zaino until you strip that layer of wax off (wash with a dish detergent, the Zaino should stay). Zaino is designed to bond only to other layers of itself.
This is when you want some caranuba wax. *I use S100 (http://www.hawg-wash.com/s100pastewax.html)* It is a VERY good caranuba wax. This same wax is also what is found in Pinnacle P21S which retails for somewhere in the area of $60 per 8 fl. oz. S100 however is what it is called in the motorcycle shops. It's kind of a little secret. It's the excact same wax but for $14.95. It goes in incredibly easy and requires no drying time. It wipes off very easily with no white residue. It leaves behind a dark/wet/deep shine that I haven't been able to match with any other wax/polish I've used.
The ClearKote Quik Shine is THE best quick detailer on the market. It's almost like wax/polish in a bottle but it's so easy to use. There is no smearing or residue. Just mist it on and wipe it off with a microfiber towel. It is a color enhancer so it makes the color look much darker and wetter. It fills in light scratches as well (this is good stuff).
I ordered all my products from the sites I listed. They all have excellent service and I received my stuff within just a few days. This is an awesome combo for any car; especially darker colored cars.
*Micro Fiber Towels*
These are a must. They are the best thing in the world to use for quick detailing / waxing. They really reduce any streaking and do not scratch the paint surface at all. I ordered mine from ClearKote's site. You can find them in most car stores though like PepBoys. It's all I use. You can wash and reuse hundreds of times and they still work just fine.
I maintain my shine by just quick detailing with the Clearkote's every few days or so when it hasn't gotten really dirty. I have not actually washed my car (soap & water) in about 3 months and my hood is near scratch free, even under direct sunlight. You just have to be careful when getting off any dirt, wet it down with the detailer (it helps lift it off the paint surface) then go over it once lightly with the micro fiber towel to get rid of the main part of it. After that you can mist again and get whatever's left over.
And that's how I keep mine clean. It may seem pretty time consuming and involved but it really isn't. Once you get those layers of Zaino on, they are there to stay for a good year or so, probably longer, especially if you keep a topping of S100 on there (refresh every 2 months or so). Just 15-30 mins a day keeps it clean.
http://r1329776.hostultra.com/Upload/data/media/2/VanillaMooseHood.jpg
http://r1329776.hostultra.com/Upload/data/media/2/SteedaHangar.jpg
http://r1329776.hostultra.com/Upload/data/media/2/VanillaMoosePanel1.jpg
http://r1329776.hostultra.com/Upload/data/media/2/Steeda02.jpg
http://r1329776.hostultra.com/Upload/data/media/2/Steeda03.jpg
http://r1329776.hostultra.com/Upload/data/media/2/Steeda04.jpg
http://r1329776.hostultra.com/Upload/data/media/2/Steeda05.jpg
http://r1329776.hostultra.com/Upload/data/media/2/Steeda06.jpg
http://r1329776.hostultra.com/Upload/data/media/2/Steeda07.jpg
http://r1329776.hostultra.com/Upload/data/media/2/SteedaCub1.jpg
http://r1329776.hostultra.com/Upload/data/media/2/Rearquarterpanel.jpg
http://r1329776.hostultra.com/Upload/data/media/2/Rearquarterpanel1.jpg
Now that MeGuiars NXT is out, I think I'm going to strip everything off and start over. This time I'll do several coats of Zaino followed by NXT (not sure if you can layer this or not) then a topper of S100 to give it that rich, dark, wet look that only a pure caranuba can do.
This process might take some time to get started, but once you have all the layers of wax / polish on it is easy to maintain. I just quick detail mine with the ClearKote Quik Shine and microfiber towels once every other day or so. Quik Shine also cleans wheels / windows / plastics etc.