I have some minor swirl marks on my black a4 - i am on the fence between the Zaino Z5 or 3m IHG.
03-04-2003, 02:25 PM
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I have some minor swirl marks on my black a4 - i am on the fence between the Zaino Z5 or 3m IHG.
I can not make up my mind - should I use Zaino Z5 then Z2 or 3M IHG then Gepc? Is IHG then Z2 a bad idea? It seems as if everyone is very happy with Zaino products. I would like some info first to be sure that i am ordering the right stuff. I also plan on starting with a wax stripper/cleaner of sorts to remove all residue and wax currently on the surface.
03-04-2003, 02:59 PM
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No simple answer for you...
If the swirls are minor, 1 or more layers of Z5 may be the answer for you.
Regarding mixing IHG/IMG with Zaino products...Sal at Zaino does not recommend the use of carnauba waxes with zaino because the oils in carnauba waxes inhibit the "bonding process" in the Zaino process. (something like that) Personally, I use IMG with Zaino. The only reason I use it is because Zaino doesn't really sell something that *cleans* the paint well. IMG does. IMG contains oils though, so it may be possible that I'm shortening the life of Zaino by doing this (by all accounts, the Zaino still lasts 2X's longer than a carnauba). Would I use IMG/IHG for swirl removal? No. It will temporarily mask the swirls, but the swirls will become apparent again. It's not worth the effort.
For removing heavier swirling...I might suggest 3M Swirl Remover. Perhaps this product should be reserved for a once a year detailing (spring). I believe it is suspended in an oil based carrier, so previous comments regarding "oily" products and Zaino may still apply. I'm curious to try Menzerna Final Polish. It's advertised as being suspended in a water based carrier. The benefit is that it might work better with the Zaino process, and without oils, it contains nothing to superficially improve the paint. What you see when you're done with Menzerna should remain after you wax, and after repeated washings. This is my theory at least...I have yet to try and test the theory.
In a nutshell, anything that 2-3 coats of Z5 can't cure will need to be cured with some sort of mild abrasive product like 3M SMR or Menzerna Final Polish.
As far as stripping wax...Sal says Dawn dish detergent should do the trick, so I would take his word for it. Dawn won't strip previous layers of Zaino though. There should really be no need to strip Zaino, unless you're switching to a different product altogether. If you want to strip Zaino, you'll need a heavy duty solvent. I imagine the abrasive polishes mentioned above would probably strip Zaino as well.
Regarding mixing IHG/IMG with Zaino products...Sal at Zaino does not recommend the use of carnauba waxes with zaino because the oils in carnauba waxes inhibit the "bonding process" in the Zaino process. (something like that) Personally, I use IMG with Zaino. The only reason I use it is because Zaino doesn't really sell something that *cleans* the paint well. IMG does. IMG contains oils though, so it may be possible that I'm shortening the life of Zaino by doing this (by all accounts, the Zaino still lasts 2X's longer than a carnauba). Would I use IMG/IHG for swirl removal? No. It will temporarily mask the swirls, but the swirls will become apparent again. It's not worth the effort.
For removing heavier swirling...I might suggest 3M Swirl Remover. Perhaps this product should be reserved for a once a year detailing (spring). I believe it is suspended in an oil based carrier, so previous comments regarding "oily" products and Zaino may still apply. I'm curious to try Menzerna Final Polish. It's advertised as being suspended in a water based carrier. The benefit is that it might work better with the Zaino process, and without oils, it contains nothing to superficially improve the paint. What you see when you're done with Menzerna should remain after you wax, and after repeated washings. This is my theory at least...I have yet to try and test the theory.
In a nutshell, anything that 2-3 coats of Z5 can't cure will need to be cured with some sort of mild abrasive product like 3M SMR or Menzerna Final Polish.
As far as stripping wax...Sal says Dawn dish detergent should do the trick, so I would take his word for it. Dawn won't strip previous layers of Zaino though. There should really be no need to strip Zaino, unless you're switching to a different product altogether. If you want to strip Zaino, you'll need a heavy duty solvent. I imagine the abrasive polishes mentioned above would probably strip Zaino as well.
03-04-2003, 08:01 PM
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Your theory is sound...I've washed my car twice since using Menzerna and it looks as good (if not
better) than when I first used it. All I did was cover it with a layer of P21S wax. I may have GEPC'd the hood (I can't remember if I did the whole thing), but the trunk was just done with Menzerna FP and it is still looking great.
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