I am getting my car (black) at the end of May and I need some help. I know that there is a lot of info on detailing Black cars on the site because I have just read them all. Yes, ALL. I went to the search and typed for it to search titles of threads with the word BLACK on them and ordered it to search under the Detailing Sub-forum and read every thread that came up as the result of the search. Reading them all did answer many of my question, but it also arose new ones. I hope I don’t bother you guys with another BLACK DETAILING thread. Hopefully, after this one, all questions will be answered and this thread be made a sticky.

First of all, I have read that many say Klasse is great and that Crystal Guard is great. Along with these appraisals, I also read that many have never used Zaino. I read that they use Klasse/CrystalGuard/Meguires as an alternate to the costly Zaino route. My first question is for those that want the Shine and Swirl-free car no matter what it takes or how much it costs or how much time it takes (I take 12 hours every other sunday during summer), 1) Is Zaino the best polish and swirl remover you can get (not counting those needing the use of buffers or orbital polishers as I have read that in hands of an inexperienced person, only disaster can occur… and I don’t plan on starting my practice on my G)? I have only used Zaino and I currently own a Silver G35 which I will trade-in for an 05 Black.

While reading all these wonderful suggestions, I came up with people saying that “the less abrasive products you use, the better.” Then I read others saying that “Carnauba is better than Synthetic.” GeoBau said ” Zaino and CG are both great products, and both have their merits. Having a car that's been around the block a few times, I'd go with Zaino. Having a brand-new finish, I'd go with CG.” I will be getting a new one so I wonder if this is something widely thought. Here come more questions. 2) What is the difference between Polish and Wax, I have read that some suggest doing a 3 step process involving ClayBar-Polish-Wax. Zaino only makes Polish, so what Wax should I use (if any) after 3 layers of Zaino Z2/Z5? (I read P21S is the best?) Attached to this question are two more (sorry to sound like an exam, but): 3) What is the difference between Carnauba and Synthetic (Zaino is synthetic right?) and Abrasive and Non-Abrasive (Give example of products that are Synthetic/Carnauba/Abrasive/Non-Abrasive). I know that you should not use abrasive formulas for tints, (Stoner Invisible Glass is non-abrasive) but what about for paint, what is good/bad about using abrasive stuff on paint?. And 4) What is the benefit of (is it worth it) applying car wax after 3 layers of Zaino Polish? (Is Crystal Guard wax or polish?)

After those questions (and several hundred of words), yet I have more. I have Zaino’s clay bar which I used on my Silver G giving great results, but I am afraid to use it on a black car. 4) Will Clay Baring the entire black car leave swirls? I also read “You have to wax this car a certain way in order not to get the swirls.” 5)Is this true? If it is, what way is it you need to wash/dry/wax/polish to avoid swirls and scratches?

And here is my last question. As you all black car owners know, having the dealership wash your car when you take it for an oil change is BAD BAD BAD right? Well as you also know, before taking the car home, they detail the car and you are asked to look around the car to identify scratches for them to fix. I want to avoid this free wash too and want to tell them “give me the car without washing and without taking the white plastic protectors (the one they have on as soon as they get them) off, I’ll do the washing.” This way I would avoid them EVER washing my car and also take some super new pics with those plastics on , but I am afraid that by doing this, I will find some scratch and not be able to complain about it. My theory is, the car gets scratched after they are test-driven or when they bring them from one dealership to another, but this car isn’t even in the US yet. The car is still on a boat from Japan. 6) Can cars be scratched even if they just got here from a shipment (having 4 to 10 miles on the clock)?

I thank any and everyone of you guys who took the time and read this long thread. As you can see, I really love cars and I know I will get some answers from people who are like me. Hopefully this one will answer everything so that next time someone wants info on black-car detailing, they find it here.

 

First of all your thinking too far into this.. just let them detail the car.. when you get home you can decide for yourself weather you'd want to remove the wax or just wax over it. I personally left the wax on and just washed my car regularly (2x a week) until it lost some of its shine.. then i did a dawn wash to remove whatever was on the paint and applied NXT on the smooth serface..

now because you have a black car.. swirl marks and minor scratches are pretty much inavoidable but its nothing the wax wont cover up as long as you get a good set of towels.. swirl/scratch remover and polish are not needed IMO.. i believe those products are used only when a car isnt properly maintained.. I wash my car twice a week, sometimes more if there is going to be a meet or something ineteresting comes up.. I go over it with two coats of wax every other week.. through my experience it doesnt really matter how you apply wax O.o.. alhtough i've heard that you should go in a up & down motion instead of a circle.. (i use a combo of both xP) anyways.. the whole dawn wash + claybar + swirl/scratch remover + polish + wax process should be a half a year thing IMO.. if your car is garaged and kept clean theres no real need to waste all that money.

and the dealer wont wash your car if you let them know ahead of time

and why do i use NXT, cause i get 25% off so i figure why not.. i prefer zaino tho

anyways if you have any questions IM me on AIM, riceboi104

 

Saw those pics in one of the many BLACK DETAILING threads =D Nice looking BTW. Thanx for answering and reading all that long post lol. The reason I am so affraid of this first carwash is because last time I went in, a black one got sold and the owner of it sent his wife to get the car. Well I went with them to pic up the just washed car and I saw SOO many swirls and SUCH a bad use of an orbital polisher that I almost cry. They sent it accross the road to have the car detailed (mazda dealership i think) and that wash was nasty. I saw all the bottles they use to wax and all the towles they use to dry and I really dont want them to touch my car.

As for thinking too much about it, I just love cars and if you were my roomate, you would see how crazy I am about cleaning. I really do take 12 hours cleaning. I have Zaino ZFX, Z2, Z5, Z6, Z12, Z10,Z9, lexol, connolly, and the list goes on. I just want to know the answers to those numbered questions up in my first post as I have no idea of the difference between caranauba and synthetic and abrasive and non abrasive and all those other questions I posted.

 

o, sorry u had a bad experience with the dealer.. when I got tot he dealer they still had the plastic covers on my car (looked like my car ran into a bunch of clear shopping bags).. it was just delivered in the morning with 6miles on it.. they took it to the back and gave it a wash and wax.. no swirls or scratches..

 

"Perfect Shine" (synthetic/natural combo) for Black/Red Cars
http://www.properautocare.com/klaskit.html

Perfect Shine explained
http://www.autopia-carcare.com/inf-perfect.html

Detailing tips
http://www.autopia-carcare.com/how-to.html
http://www.properautocare.com/detailingtips.html

 

thanx you guys. Im going to read those detailing tips.

About the Dealer detail, I've seen how they do it. They do it real fast and with one of those sticks that have a spunge at the end. That thing doesnt even look that clean. That is the reason I rather take her home dirty and take away plastics myself and wash her myself. Only thing is that I am affraid that they wont want to do a thing about any scratch I might find... then again... 4 to 10 miles on the clock, why would there be scratches right?

EDIT- BTW is anyone willing to respond the questions I did in my first post? You dont have to even read the whole thing, I numbered the questions. Can someone answer them by numbers please? I'd appreciate it GREATLY.

 

I use Klassie All-in-One (commonly referred to as "AIO"), Klasse Sealant Glaze (aka "SG"), and P21S carnauba wax. That combination seems perfect for me...I didn't go with Zaino or Crystal Guard 'cuz it seemed like they take such a long time to apply. The Klasse stuff is a lot easier to use, and I like the fact that you can go for months w/o reapplying (from what I've heard...I've only had my car for a couple months).

When I first got my black G, I applied the AIO and SG. It wasn't
'til I recently applied the P21S Carnauba that I said "wow". That really made it shiny and purty. I think I'm going to do AIO every 6 months and the carnauba every month.

Also, the Porter Cable random orbital polisher is really easy to use...I highly recommend it. If you use the right pads and speed for your application, you don't have to worry about burning or scratching your paint. I got mine at Lowes for around $100...it's model 7336, which is the same as the 7424 that most car detailing stores carry, except the 7336 has a bigger counter-weight in it for use with a bigger pad (7424 is designed for I think a 5"-5.5" pad, whereas the 7336 is designed for a 6"-6.5" pad...I've read a lot of people swap out the 7424 counterweight to be able to use the bigger pads).


My understanding is that polish is what cleans the car and gets out the blemishes in the paint (like water spots). Wax protects the paint (and seems to give it the shine and depth). I'm not familiar with Zaino, but I'm sure one of those products does the same thing that a traditional wax does. The Klasse AIO, by the way, is polish (with mild cleaning properties) and synthetic wax in one.

I did a ton of research on Autopia and my understanding is that carnauba waxes give cars an extra depth and shine that the synthetic products can't quite match (like in my case with the P21S vs. Klasse). Carnauba doesn't last as long though...maybe 30-45 days max. Synthetic waxes claim to stay on for 6+ months.

I think abrasive products are used to do heavier-duty cleaning (sorry, haven't researched that much on these products yet since I haven't really needed it yet). You'll also see people referring to "cutting power"...that refers to something's cleaning power (more cutting power = more abrasive = try not to use it too often).



That one I'm not sure...I'm assuming it would be to give it some extra shine/depth. As mentioned above, the carnauba really gave my car a "wetter" look.

I haven't used clay bar yet, but I think it's supposed to be safe if done correctly. I read somewhere that you're only supposed to do it every 18 mos. or so.


I've read you should use an "up and down" motion for washing/waxing the vertical panels of the car since it helps to cut down on the reflection of light. Don't know if that's true, but I figured it's better to be safe than sorry. Try to avoid circles though...that's how you get swirl marks, which show up REALLY well (as I've seen on other cars).

When washing, use a good carwash shampoo, the proper cleaning media (like a lambs wool mitt), and rinse your cleaning media often. Also use the proper tools for drying...I've had mixed results with the water blade (maybe I'm using it wrong) and prefer to just use a microfiber towel (I use "the big blue towel" from autopia). I also wash all my towels after use, and let them air dry (to cut down on lint).

Hope this helps...good luck with your new car!

Thomas

Oops, I forgot to add...get a quick detailing spray (not sure if one of the Zaino products is something similiar). That keeps your car super shiny in between washes!

 

YEY thanx so much for doing this tomheo! I was expecting one of the guys with over 200 posts to contribute in the way you did. New to the forums and already contributing this much! Much apreciated dood!

You convinced me about the carnauba wax and possibly about the Orbital polish. I mean, I have the silver one now so I can practice on it till I trade it for the black =D

 

I just did a coat of p21s carnauba wax and the results were amazing. It doesn't last that long but the shine is remarkable. Carnauba waxes are so easy to take on and off too. I'm a huge fan of Klasse AIO and HGSG as well. Probably the best one two punch on the market. Then I follow it up with the carnauba on top of the AIO and the HGSG. There is an amazing deal on the Klasse AIO and HGSG here, only $39 bucks for the 500ml AIO and HGSG and you get two free microfiber towels and two free microfiber applicators http://www.detailedimage.com/index.html.

 

If its not too late, keep your silver g35. my black is driving me crazy.....

 

LOL it is a little late, I left the deposit yesturday.

I want the challenge to have a Black. What problems are you having? Where do you live? (I live in Florida, lots of sun so I can wash frequently).

 

I live in Texas so plenty of sun, but I have scratches and swirls all over my car.

Im so frustrated I just bought a Porter Cable 7424 ROM. I'v been talking with the PRO's at Meguiars and they said with a Porter Cable and some Speed Glaze 80 I can safely buff it right out.

I've been told that a Porter Cable or any random orbit buffer is very easy to use, even by a beginner. Unlike a rotary buffer which generates a lot of heat by high speed spinning, these machines mimic hand polishing.

I should get it be the end of the week so I'll keep you posted.

 

Thanx, let me know how hard it was to use.

My washing ritual (during the summer) is wash 2 times a month, two sundays. I wake up at 6 am and mix ZFX with Z2 and Z5 (1 layer of z5 and 2 of z2). The instructions are that after activating Z2 or Z5 with ZFX, if you wait 6 hours, you get its maximum benefit. So I wake up at 6, mix, then I sleep 2 more hours and start washing at 8. Wash with dawn then rinse then use clay bar for whole car (in light colored paint you can see some little tiny black dirt stuck to your car, mostly on the rear bumper due to the tail pipes I suppose) and clay baring removes all the dirt. After doing all this, rinse again and dry. By this time it is 12pm so that means 6 hours passed and I start applying Z2 and Z5 using Z6...

Well in a nutshell, I dedicate a loot of time to washing, that is why I want the "black challenge"

 

my advice, get the meguires mist and wipe in the red spray bottle. it will shine like a diamond after that. i have sometimes not washed my car but just going over it with this stuff, and when im done it looks freshly waxed! get it, you wont be dissappointed.

 

I almost did this, but after applying a 2 more layers of Z-5 this weekend (for a total of 3 layers of Z-5 since i've gotten the car), the swirl marks have become so much harder to notice. Two more layers of Z-5 and I bet they will pretty much disappear.