Can someone tell me more about these Zaino products I keep hearing about? Comparible to Meguiar's?

 

I've started using these after reading very favorable comments on this and other message boards. The series of products seems to inspire really fanatical support. I've not tried the Mequiar's products but have some familiarity with the Mother's products. The Zaino stuff is not really a wax - it seems to be more of a polymer. The combination of products produces a very high shine with relatively little effort. The quality you can get with Mother's is not quite as good (but is close) - even with considerably more elbow grease.

The application of products goes as follows:
1. Polish Lock Z1 - provides a surface for the later layers to bond against
2. Z5 - a clear coat "polish" that hides swirl marks - 0-3 coats
3. Z2 - the final "polish" that provides the wettest looking polish - 0 - 2 coats
4. Z6 - a detailing spray for use after washing or Z2/Z5

The maintenance cycle is wash, dry, Z6. I'm impressed with the results so far and I'm on my second coat of Z5. The process sounds complicated but is actually very simple.

The Zaino stuff is moderately expensive and must be mail-ordered. My car looks great but this stuff is not magic - my car is not glowing in the dark or anything. The results on Ming Blue are great - the paint looks like it is about 3" deep in the sun. The car throws water off when I rinse after washing - very little to dry. This is a very good system for the dark colors.

The Edmunds web site has a number of discussion forums on waxing and polishing - Zaino draws a lot of comments. A rough consensus view might be that Zaino produces excellent results with fairly modest effort but can be matched with the highest quality waxes when applied properly.

Peter<ul><li><a href="http://www.zainobros.com">http://www.zainobros.com</a</li></ul>

 

Consumer Reports tested it and Mothers products in the May issue. They rated mid to low in comparison to others for what it's worth. #1 was Zymol.

 

<p>JTM
2000 2.7T
Ming Blue/Tungsten Gray
Stow, MA

 

The consumer report refers to the single step systems. Both Mother's and Meguiars have a 3 step system that works better. Consumer Reports mentions this - on a dark shine the multi-step works better than the Zymol. The Zaino is better than this.

Peter