Chrisnl.....gotta like The Dude in that movie!!

 

wow - is this using the klasse twins? ie AIO and SG?

 

Yes, just one coat of each, but to be fair, the car is also only a month old, so that doesn't hurt, either.

 

Result from using Megs NXT gen wax


https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...sort=1&cat=500

 

I'm lost on the "too many steps for Zaino" thing...

I Zaino'd Ollie yesterday (it's all he's ever used, so I don't bother with the Dawn) and the process was:

wash
clay bar
dry
(3M swirl mark remover, for minor spot hazing -- hadn't polished the car all summer)
polish for swirls w/ accelerator
play with the cat
buff off
polish for swirls w/ accelerator
drink 1/2 a beer
buff off
show car polish w/ accelerator
finish the beer
buff off
detail spray
oogle
oogle
oogle
drive to show him off

All told, from start to finish, it took my boyfriend and I 3.5 hours. And 1.5 of that was consumed with playing with the cat and drinking beer while the polish sat. When I do it myself it takes maybe 1/2 hour more.

 

I have to agree here. I washed and Zaino'd Jack yesterday. I added the clay bar, 'cause when I started to dry him, there were lots of little weird spots of orange and brown that appeared (but I digress). I'd say it takes between 5 and 10 min to apply each coat, it was so hot, I only put on one; and at most 15 min to buff off, I've never had an easier product to apply, remove, or use. I've never used a product as simple as this. I've never been happier with a product. But if YOU like something better, more power to you, and I hope you're just as happy with your product and its results.

 

Couldn't agree with you more about the Zaino application difficulty misconception. With ZFX, Zaino's own instructions are a simple four steps (and repeat a couple if you're layering it on). For my first Zaino'ing, I washed, clayed, Z5'd, buffed, Z5'd, buffed, Z2'd, and buffed again in just a few hours. I didn't see how that was different from applying any other wax/polish other than the 5 minutes it takes to activate the polymer.

And a Zaino'd car just looks so dang SHINY!

 

The difference with say NXT is the fact that you:

Wash
Clay Bar
Dry
Apply NXT
REmove NXT
GO inside

That is many fewer steps.

Now, teh Zaino does seem to last longer so the extra steps may be worth it, but there are definitly more.

 

Well clay bar isn't something that's needed all the time. You only do it if you have lots of above surface contaminants that can't be removed by washing the car. I've detailed a LOT of MINI's and have seen them in all sorts of conditions. If the paint feels rough after you've washed it, then clay bar.

I clay bar maybe once every 8 months to once a year because I do daily maintenance with Quik Detailer to keep my paint clean.

So for NXT, it's:

Wash
Dry

Buff on NXT
Buff off

No need for ZFX to make it dry faster, no mixing needed, no multiple coats needed. If you use NXT Speed Detailer often, the slickness remains for a long time. For the fine swirls that you guys are using the 3M product, NXT will do that as well. If you want to add an extra step for additional swirl removal, try a DACP (Dual Action Cleaner Polish) before NXT.

Total time to wash and wax, maybe about 45 minutes to an hour.

I just love how the Zaino fanatics are so quick to defend their favorite wax about how easy it is to use. I mean, that's great! But be realistic atleast!

I detailed this 2004 MCS on Saturday at a clinic we did for Autobacs and Meguiar's. It had never been detailed in it's 24,000 miles and we claybarred and NXT. I did use M83 (DACP) for the bonnet to remove the major cobwebs and swirls it had. The deep shine is from only 1 coat of NXT. The owner said he had never seen it look so good even when it was new.



Richard

 

I agree with your assessment.

The extra effort Zaino requires is measured in hours. The extra time that Zaino shines and protects the paint is measured in months. This makes the choice easy for me.

 

How about a side by side comparison?

To be honest, I love Zaino. I also used a product very similar to NXT for several years and it was great. I'm trying very hard to be non-biased, but I'm revealing my bias up front...

1 Claybar / polish if necessary (NXT=YES Zaino=YES)
Your decision to claybar/polish is a personal pref. and has no bearing on sealant... It is the same process for either product

2 Wash the car (NXT=YES Zaino=YES)
You gotta wash the car before using either product. With NXT you use an auto shampoo. With Zaino, you use Dawn. No real time difference here

3 Dry the car (NXT=YES Zaino=YES)

4 Prepare the sealant (NXT=NO Zaino=YES)
With Zaino, you have to mix 2 products together, shake and wait 15 minutes. It isn't 100% necessary, but helps on dry time and
lets you do more than 1 coat per day if you want. NXT is ready, straight from the bottle.

5 Apply the sealant (NXT=YES Zaino=YES)
With either one, you gotta put it on for it to work. No huge differences here.

6 Wait (NXT=YES Zaino=YES)
With any product, you have to wait until the sealant has dried. This depends on the humidity and temp, no matter what product you use. The addition of ZFX to Zaino will speed it up a bit. Zaino MIGHT be a bit slower to dry, but I'm only guessing... I've never done a side by side, but I've also never had the front of my Zaino-d car still be wet when I finished applying
to the back and was ready for the next step.

7 Buff off (NXT=YES Zaino=YES)
Both products buff off fairly easily from a well-preped surface

8 Final Detail (NXT=MAYBE Zaino=MAYBE)
Both products will get a better shine if you use the recommended detailing product, Z6 for Zaino, NXT QD for NXT product line. This also makes you do a once-over the car again, catching any stray dried sealant that you missed.

9 Layering (NXT=NO Zaino=YES)
Zaino looks better and better with additional coats as each subsequent layer builds on the previous one. With NXT, your second coat is blended into the first, yeilding a singe coat again. NXT does have some abrasive in it, giving the second coat a chance to polish the paint a bit more, but if your initial surface prep was good, this isn't necessary and additional coats shouldn't have any effect, given that you didn't miss spots with your first coat. Both Zaino and NXT look good and give good protection with 1 coat.



So, looking back on the list, I can see that Zaino has the additional step of preparing the sealant (step 4 above).

The big difference I can spot comes in step #9... layering the sealant. With Zaino, you can Finish step 8 and go back to #4 as many times as you can (up to 3 times in a 24 hour period), continuing to build up the shine. Zaino freaks, like myself, will do this several times in one day, adding 45-60 minutes per coat to the total detail time. NXT users don't do the repeat because it doesn't provide any (or little) additional benefit because it doesn't layer. HERE IS THE REASON FOR THE BIG TIME DIFFERENCE BETWEEN NXT AND ZAINO USERS.

I'm not advocating the use of Zaino over NXT in this post. I've told you what I chose. I'm simply agreeing with all of the people who said that the Zaino process takes longer than NXT... about 5-10 minutes longer per coat for the sealant preparation step. The process is basically the same for everything else.

 

Great Comparison, agranger

I still firmly believe that no matter what you use on your MINI, it is time well spent

 

Ditto. Time spent on the MINI is time well spent

 

My extended application process was by no means my normal wash routine -- I'll go through "all that" maybe twice/year.


So usually the process goes something like this:

Wash
Dry
Polish
Buff

4 steps. I can do that (save for "hazing" time) inside of an hour.

Octane -- you make it sound like there's mad chemistry involved in mixing the ZFX. Pour polish into bottle, add couple drops ZFX, shake, apply!

 

He's a recovering Zaino-holic. He's onto the less intense stuff now.

I just hope and pray he doesn't slide into the depths of Turtle Wax.

 

I agree with OM.....


and not too mention an ounce of product is usually enough for me to put on three coats..

my .02 from my '02....

 

JB... that pic is pure hotness! Very cool... Zaino, Klasse, NXT or whatever.

 

sorry..this is not MINI. its Mercedes E55 AMG sedan I detailed on Saturday before C3's Autobacs event.



I used
1) NXT wash
2) Meguiar's Blue Clay
3) #80 with Rotary
4) #83 with DA
5) #21

If I had time, I would come back with NXT wax.

 

Wow Cafemoc,
That's one sharp reflection!!! Nice job!!! In case anyone doesn't realize it, these are all Meguiar's products.

Richard

 

I've read around here a lot and I'm going the Zaino route, does my MINI have a clear coat or 'normal' finish? I see with Zaino I need to purchase accordingly...

Thanks,
Mark

 

Every production automobile made after the 80's has a clear coat. Yes your MINI has a clear coat. If it didn't everytime you waxed your car, your "rags" would pick up the color of your paint, and you'd know you don't have a clear coat.

 

I was pretty sure that was the case, but have another browser window open ready to order. Sure as I assumed I was right...

Thanks

 

It has been one month exactly since I zaino'd umberto.....chilli red/black MC

I had used NXT previously and was very happy with NXT at first but for me it did not last long...so I decided to do a very unscientific study....I put 2 coats of NXT and gave a somewhat arbitrary assessment of two criterion: slickness and water beading and did this assessment right after applying and then one month later......then after that month, since the NXT faired poorly, see below, I then stripped the NXT with Dawn and applied 2 coats of Zaino Z5 and 3 coats Z2 and did the same assessment, right after and now a month later.....I tried to be impartial and consistant, and I suppose I could have come up with some sort of objective measure......but heck, I just wanted to wax the freakin' car, admire it a little and drive on


results:

right after:

NXT: slickness....10 ; water beading.....10
Zaino: slickness.....9 ; water beading.....10


one month later:

NXT: slickness....1 ; waterbeading.......0
Zaino: slickness...6 ; waterbeading........10



There was an absolute winner here in my sampling of one, so I am happier with the zaino so far.....but will report back in one more month for the 2 month update on how the zaino holds up


Russell

 

If you want to get that"Slickness" back, hit her with some Z-6 Will only take a couple of min.

 

That's a fact. And if you want "knock your socks off" shine follow that with Z-8. Good stuff.