Ok, I have an 06 MB in black that I bought used a while ago and since then have used Blitz Polish and Blitz Wax (carnuba) on it and it looked good. I decided to go Zaino for better protection and had a local detailer do a full fob on it:

1. Dawn Wash
2. Claybar 2x
3. Dawn
4. Z2
5. Z5 3x
6. Z6

The car overall looks great and the black is deep and reflective but the hood has lots of rock chips and swirling that were not visible before. The detailer said that as Zaino has no fillers, they were most likely filled in with dirt/wax/etc. . .and that Zaino is not going to hide them.

So, my question is. . .do I abandon Zaino and go back to my old products or what? I guess I could go over it with ZPC and then redo?

I don't know the answer but will be interested to see what the pro's have to say... My mobile detailer always uses Zaino on my Bright Silver and it always looks great, but I know black is the toughest color to get right. I think using Dawn on a car's finish is a big mistake. It belongs in the kitchen, but I'm not sure it would cause the problems you describe.

I admit, I am a newbie at detailing, but it strikes out to me, that he didn't use a real polish.
As far as I can tell, both z2 and z5 are in fact sealants.

i am of the belief that the judicious use of Dawn can be very appropriate, as
long as you are clear as to the cleaning properties of this detergent. the
recommendation for this has to do with deep cleaning and removal of old wax
so that you're back to a solid foundation of clear coat....then atop that,
your preferred protectorant(s). just don't use this on a regular basis

I think my guy uses Z Fusion--a dual action paint cleaner and swirl remover.

This is going to sound crazy but it works. I had a black Z06 that got damaged from a lawn sprinkler that sprayed on the car and then dried in the sun. Needless to say I had really bad water spots with lime and other minerals that etched into the clear coat. I always used Zaino products and loved them. The only thing that really cleared up the spots was the use of cheap, Turtle wax "color" wax. I bought a bottle of the black liquid wax and mixed it in with either Z 7 or 5, I can't remember...point is it worked AWESOME! Give it a try. It is thick and glossy and fills everything in.

How long did you do that and to what kind of weather has it been exposed. I have read horror stories about those "color wax filler type coatings." They look fantastic for a while, but wear very badly, and often permanently damage the clearcoat finish after a time and after bad weather. I hope that doesn't happen to you, but you might want to check w/ a detail pro before too long.

sounds like a rotary buffer has fallen into the wrong hands, if you ask me.



from the zaino site.. do i see fillers?

Z-5 PRO is the perfect choice for detailing enthusiasts, amateurs, and professionals alike. Thanks to its advanced, non-abrasive, micro-filler polymer technology, Z-5 PRO fills and hides minor surface imperfections even better than before - owners of dark cars (black, blue, green, red) will take delight in knowing that with just a few simple applications, swirl marks, spider webbing, and other surface headaches will become nothing more than a distant memory.

get a pc and fix it yourself

PC= porter cable?

Can you direct me to a site with some info on properly using one to fix this?

Thanks
Adam

Exposed to zero weather and was always garaged. I never took the car out in bad weather, including rain. The color wax was applied after all else failed to get out the water spots, including compounds. I used it sparingly when mixing it with Zaino. The clearcoat had damage from hard water so I really didn't see an issue using a color wax...couldn't get much worse. The detail/pro who who buffed out my car suggested I try it. He is specializes in Corvette finishes. The color wax was a one coat application in a 7 or 8 step waxing process. I usually applied close to 5 coats of wax on my vette. I upgraded to a CL500.

you will find a ton of info here.

http://www.autopia.org/

this works very nice as well

http://www.griotsgarage.com/product/...rrivals&page=1

in a nutshell, the rotary can remove defects at blazing speed when compared to an orbital. but whereas the rotary can cause damage on its own, you have to try very hard to screw up something up with the orbital.

i buff first with rotary to remove defects, second with rotary and polish, and lastly pc/griots to remove micro-marring/light swirls. of course, this is on a car with deeper defects. on near perfect cars, i might leave the rotary in the cabinet

some of my favorite rotary juices:

http://optimumcarcare.com/optimumpolish.html

See Rotary - http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show....php?t=1823206
and http://www.detailuniversity.com/foru...orrection.html

Ive used Zaino for years. Primarily on my vettes before coming over to the E55.

I love Zaino, but if you have flaws, it will show them. It is a polish primarily so it will show.

Black is tough. Zaino wont hide imprefections, you have to fix them first, then the zaino shine is a hard one to beat.

This is correct. I have a black car that looks incredible in the shade or off direct sunlight. Everyone thinks its brand new. It has had nothing but Zaino for 5 or so years...BUT put at the right angle, swirls, fine scratches, and all kinds of stuff come out ( at least I notice )

swirls are a result of a mediocre job on the detailers part. IF you want a detail done properly, i suggest sitting down and doing some SERIOUS reading.

If your guy did Z2x1 and Z5x3 in one day then he should have used the ZFX. If he didn’t, you have one coat on the car since each application wouldn’t have had time to cure....dry yes, but not cure.

Z5 can act as a filler for swirls but not rock chips and Zaino recommends only 3 coats of anything in one day even with the ZFX.

He did use Z-FX.

I think I am going to touch up the chips and then do Z-All In One which does have mild abrasives to get rid of swirls. If that doesn't do the trick I will try ZPC Fusion to go after the swirls.

Thoughts/comments?

The ZPC will work better on the ceramic nano paint than the AIO.

The thing that I found to work best in removing swirls on the Nano clearccoat has been Menzerna, specifically 106FF. It is best used with a machine---Rotary is best but will work with a Porter cable type. ZPC comes in a distant third in my opinion.