vraa

I'm excited to see how it'll turn out.
I won't be able to start until later though because I have rockets to launch and I'll be driving quite a lot. Might as well just save the time and prep to show off for school tomorrow

MBE55AMG

I recommend the Meguiar's Hot Tire Shine spray. Has an adjustable nozzle which sprays perfectly along low-pro tires. Goes on clear, so no dripping or accidental splatter on the wheels.

Julien321

I have been using Zaino for years and live it. Here is my 2001 S-2000 right before I sold it in 2005. Next is my 2005 SLK350 and my new SLK55.

vraa

Rained today right before I got ready to wash my car.
Until next week for NXT.

MBE55AMG

Bah, doesn't that annoy the hell outta ya? I would be washing and then drip, drop... rain would come pouring down on my bad days.

[180]

For the "lower priced" waxes... Natty's / Natty's Blue also Poorboy's PWC (not really a wax)

If you don't mind the work & cost: Pinnacle Souveran.


Personally not a big fan of the Souveran... IMO it produces the best shine (especially when it costs $70 a can!) however it is also very easy to get dirty.

RYNZ 00 CLK

i use meguires paint cleaner 1st, then just tried nxt wax 1x. The paint cleaner leaves the paint like squeaky clean. The nxt wax if you put on a light coat and leave it for about 5min to dry suprisingly came off with ease left a really deep mirror shine. Gotta do it about once a month to keep it nice. i use the paint cleaner to minimalize the hair line scratches that come with this terrible color. i read alot about Zaino products an might be giving them a try next summer.

MBE55AMG

Hey, nice result! Thanks for the tip. As for Meguiar's Paint Cleaner, it's the one that comes in a maroon bottle, correct? If so, I have just the right tool for my cars.

RYNZ 00 CLK

Yeah i thats it, i been trying all different waxes and products over this summer so far ...mothers, zymol, etc..the meguires paint cleaner/ then wax combo been by far the best results for black for me + there pretty inexpensive. I heard all about the zaino products being like a chemistry set, with great results though. I want something that comes right off that dont leave oily streaks or swirls. For next summer i will be trying zaino. never know till you try it yourself everybody has there own favorite, try the meguires though. Good luck.

benzdetailer

The AIO/UPP combo rocks!! On your silver I bet it looks like a pool of water... on my black its never-ending deep. With Nattys Blue as LSP the reflections are insane!! Funny thing, I did a side-by-side with Nattys Blue and Pinnacle Soveran topping AIO/UPP. The $15 Nattys Blue killed the $65 Soveran... I like that!

Interesting choice with the Ultimate refresher... nice way to refresh!! Since you're familiar with 4* you might want to try their pro-series spray wax as a refresher. Its one of their hidden gems, and really is nice for both price and quality. I take it to car shows all the time and its so slick it just blows people away. Plus it plays nice with carnauba so you can continue layering the Nattys.

FAST FRED

I have a question,
how long do you have to wait to apply UPP over AIO and then how long between UPP and Nattys ?
Thanks,
Fred

Julien321

Over the years I like you had tried many deferent products so it is easy for me to say: Once you try Zaino it is highly unlikely you will ever use anything else. BTW Zaino is water based and contains no oil or silicones so it can't leave an oily streak.

benzdetailer

No wait at all after AIO... its constructed as a polish, and sets-up immediately. With UPP (or any polymer sealant) the rule of thumb is to wait at least 24 hours before applying anything else. The polymers need time to cure properly. There's no harm in applying the sealant one weekend, waiting a week, and next weekend wash your car and then apply another layer of sealant or carnauba topper like Nattys. Only catch is once you've applied carnauba you can't go back to a polymer without starting the whole process over... carnaubas will bond on top of polymers, but polymers will not bond on top of carnauba. With that in mind, don't apply carnauba until you're done with the sealant layers, and once you've applied carnauba only refresh with carnauba-based products.

Good luck... post some pics when you're done!

FAST FRED

Thanks benzdetailer,
I appriciate the tip. The car is my wifes silver Ford 500. I used Zaino on my C55. My wifes car will be an experiment for me to see differance between the Zaino process and results from the AIO, UPP, and Nattys Blue.

Fred

RYNZ 00 CLK

Zaino will be next on the list....is the process really an allday thing to do by hand?

benzdetailer

My .02 cents... if you're doing the entire 500 with AIO/UPP, try AIO and UPP x3 or 4 layers first, before doing anything with Nattys. UPP really pops when layered on lighter colors, especially silvers. It might take a few weekends to get the 3 or 4 layers, but you won't be disappointed. In the meantime you can use Nattys Blue where it was made to work best, on that nice red C55!

FAST FRED

I don't think it is an all day thing,
It will depend on the condition of your paint. If you follow their directions to the letter; wash with dawn 1st
clay bar
wash again using Z7
Z5, Z6,Z2,Z8 you will not be disapointed. You can layer the Z2 a few times in one day as long as you use ZFX. I t took me roughly 5 hous to do my C55.

Fred

Saleen

For years I have used a wax that works out of this world ,, at least for me , found this at the street machine nationals , ever since I have been using it . Its called First Finish and is around 20 bucks for a pint , real easy to use and take off . Dont like it for some reason , Please send the rest of it to me . Not found in the auto stores , try on line . Good luck with it , DW

joe1388

My son introduced me to NXT this year and it is awsome. Very easy to apply and polish, almost effortless. Betwen waxes I use Meguair's quick detailing wax and it works incredibly well to maintain the same gloss as NXT.

M.J

what is the diffrent between spray wax and liquid wax. personally i didn't use any kind of wax before i think i will go for maguires product do i have to use the 3 step or there any other type ??? i have cls black brand new . as for micro fibers to clean with i didn't ind any over here any other sugestion to clean with ???

moa4r

agreed. took me about 4-5 hours to do the whole process. start off with dawn, claybar, z7 wash. then, 2 coats of Z2, 2 coats of z5 (all with zfx) with a single coat of z6 in between every coat of z2 and z5. The stuff really is amazing.

Now, I'll do a coat of z6 after almost every wash and on occasion throw on a few extra coats of z2 or z5 when I feel the need.
Will probably do another full process with the dawn/claybar, etc after winter.

razorfish228

Dude, this is a sick looking shine I'm trying to get the same result myself. I bought Meguires #83 and #80 cleaner from the internet and than purchased the NXT wax from the local auto shop and hopefully I can get the same or better results. I purchased the #83 to get rid of the hologram effect I got on the hood which I mistakenly used lambswool buffer to take some wax off and which is a no no and I regret it. I was experimenting and thats how a amateur I am but I learned from my mistake and going to fix it with the #83 and than use the NXT. The #80 is another type of swirl/paint cleaner which does wonders also.

Can Drive 55

I agree with you about Zaino. Good products. Good customer service.

joe1388

I use the Meguiars spray wax to freshen up between full clean-ups. As for the microfiber towels I use nothing else on my 3 Mercedes. Meguairs NXT products are in my humble opinion the best. Good luck, JOE

RunInColorado

I have used Zymol for a while now and have been happy with the results. It seems like it is harder to remove though. After reading some of the posts, I am tempted to try Meguires NXT and if I like it, maybe moving to Zaino.

Does anyone have experience using Zymol and then moving to one of the others? I am curious if the comparison is worth it. I found a post that had an article that compared the Zymol (from Walmart) to Zaino and Meguires and the Zaino was best, followed by Zymol, and Meguires (liquid gold) came out on the bottom.

Is there any major difference between say a cleaner wax (zymol) and NXT? I know the cleaner wax has some abrasive particles and the NXT is a sealant?

Thanks.