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Comments
However, I just got back from a road trip and find that it's a little hard to get some of the bugs off the paint. I certainly don't want to use anything harsh, and have so far only used a cotton towel and the Z7 wash, yet a few stubborn spatters remain. (Maybe these are the bugs I hit at 110 mph in North Carolina.)
What's the best way to deal with stubborn spots like this; does anybody have experience with removing bugs without harming the z?
(On a new black finish, I did Dawn, Z1, Z5, z6, then several coats of z2 and z5, with z6, of course, in between, finishing with z2, as Sal suggests, so I think I have a pretty good 5 layer coat of Z on there.)
Thanks for your help.
Let us know how it went/how it goes.
Shine on!
Good Luck
Thanks for your help!
Thank you very much for that towel info regarding the Fieldcrest site. I ended up calling their 800 number because I couldn't believe the low prices! 'Just ordered 2 bath, 2 hand, & 2 wash cloths for a total of (get this...) $28.81. My wife won't complain this time! BTW, I'll use the hand towels for Z6 application and the wash cloths for Z7 washing purposes.
squidd99:
Clay will work, but before you break out that stuff try some 'bugs so soft'. I mean Avon "Skin So Soft". Really, it works. A little WD40 will also work. Most of the time, a little Z7/water mixture (which I keep in a small spray bottle in my trunk) should cover about 90% of the bug splats.
Sal also emailed me with some info, and indicated that some bug guts can eat right through the clearcoat, so try to get them off as soon as you can.
Based on all information and experiences, it seems that if a washing with Z7 (and the usual white cotton towels) does not remove the bugs, try a 50/50 Z7/water spray; if that does not work, try 100% Z7; if that does not work, try WD-40, (which works really well): let the WD-40 soak for about 40 seconds, and remove with a clean dry 100% cotton towel. Repeat if necessary. Then rinse with water to remove any oil residue from the Wd-40. Do not do this procedure in direct sunlight! (I'm not sure why, but Sal knows best.)
If all of this fails, go to the clay with lubricant. Based on my experiences today, that should be rarely necessary. Most of my bugs came off when I went to the 50/50 mix (which is also great for bird-droppings, which can also eat through your finish). I bought a little spray bottle at the drug store and keep it handy with the 50/50 mix.
As always, do not use any abrasive polish or compounds. If you use a product that contains abrasives you will put swirls and fine scratches in your paint finish.
I did not get a chance to try Avon Skin So Soft.
I was concerned about sending a check in the mail, but even if paying by personal check, the turnaround time is very fast - both my orders were recieved in just over 1 week from the day I mailed the order.
I will take some new pics of the white car this weekend and post for you white car people.
What are you talking about?? No such thing as a permanent Rain-X coating.
Maybe if you accelerate from 0 to 60 MPH in 6.3 seconds the rain might come off giving the appearance of a Rain-X like coating.
A few areas prone to severe drought (mainly in the South and Southwest) are starting to require water reclamation systems for new coin-ops--however I suspect that most older operations are not required to retrofit, as the cost of a reclamation system ($50K to $100K or more) would put most of these operations (which are usually "mom-and-pop" types) out of business.
That would be rather counter-productive from a water-conservation point of view, since the average person going to a coin-op uses much less water than a person washing a car in his/her driveway.
As far as California goes, it is my understanding that it is actually possible (though very difficult) to get an injection well permit in some areas of the State--so I highly doubt that all coin-op car washes in California use recycled water. In addition, in many states these types of decisions are left up to municipal, county, or regional authorities--especially in larger states like California, which has a variety of environmental and geographic conditions.
To sum up--if you want to grab a couple of buckets and shampoo and head to the coin-op to wash your car--the odds are good that the water you will be using is the same water you have at home.
thanks all of you for your helpful info! I will Z my car tomorrow, can't wait! hell, why wait til the morning, isn't it better to wash/Z car in shade, lol,
quick question, I got the applicator in my order, everyone keep emphasizing use "VERY SPARINGLY", how much exactly do you use? like a little drop for an entire door panel?
For the Zaino portion, I would never try to Z6 my car if it's dirty. I don't like the idea of swirling dirt around on my car.
As far as winter maintenance is concerned, I go to those "touchless" wash places when it's above freezing. I use "the absorber" to dry it after it comes out from the "windtunnel" end of these washes.
Though not ideal, it beats having all the salt build up on my finish and the undercarriage. I've got about 8 coats of Z2 on my 300M and the shine comes back immediately. I'll have to wait until spring to put another coat of Z5 or Z2 on my ride, but it doesn't need it now. I don't expect to do a "proper detail" until March/April, though.
DO NOT WASH IF THE TEMP GETS BELOW FREEZING. Learned that lesson long ago. No matter how well you dry your car, the internals of the doors get moisture in them and will freeze. You are then stuck, in the cold, trying to get into your car with the doors frozen shut. Aside from that, your fingers will turn blue while you're trying to dry it.
So much for my "advice" via computer related questions and detailing "dos and don'ts".
I never thought I'd give advice with those two topics in the same posting!!!!!!!
Is the process patented by Lexus?
I'm uninformed WRT patents, exclusivity, replacement costs, etc. Sorry. But I have yet to see this feature on other cars, don't know why.
Water-Repellent Front Windows
BRIGHTEN UP A GLOOMY DAY. The Lexus LS 430 comes equipped with water-repellent glass on the front side windows. And while it may be gray and drizzly outside, from inside an LS 430 everything appears a little bit clearer.
Thanks in advance -- you may have saved me from buying a Pentium 4 with 4 USB hubs!
It must be like driving in an underpass on a rainy day except when your driving ALL the time in a Lexus LS430 in the rain you get that effect.
anyways, I used about 1/8 of bottle of Z1 on my GS430, and since Z5 is not clear bottle, so can't tell how much I've used!
when I washed my own hands after putting on Z1, Z5, I noticed that the water just runs off my own hands! took few repeats w/ soap to get it off
Guess I'll be reading some more posts here while waiting for it to dry!
Dawn wash and fully dry...1 and a half hours in a worst case...It takes me 45 minutes to an hour.
Application of Z1 and Z5 should take no more than an hour in total...takes 40 minutes (20 min per coat) in total for me.
Also, I noticed tiny marks when I was putting on the Z5, that seems like something you can buff out, but it won't come off, so I was wondering if that's the little imperfection in paint taht I should have use clay on!
OTOH, if your swirls are from previous waxing/buffing products over time, then you may require more than one coat of Z-5 to take care of the problem. My 73 Corvette needed about 5 coats to take care of scratches left there by the repair shop's "cleaning jobs" done so that I'd pick up a "clean" car.
Jeff
I believe you applied the Z1,Z5 with too much pressure from the applicator which could have caused the swirls/scratches. It is just a simple wipe it on, let it dry, wipe it off procedure. Very little pressure required.
Were you rubbing it in going over and over the same area a few times using a lot of pressure? It is totally different than applying a rubbing or polish compound.
Also, Z1 is applied in circular motion, Z5 should be applied in up/down motions on vertical surfaces and back and forth motions on horizontal surfaces.
I still can't figure out your 4-5 hours unless you are including 2-3 hours of (waiting for it to) dry time.
also, I think you're right, I probably put too much on with too much pressure. When I put Z1/Z5 on, I didn't see anything, so I went over the same spots a few times til i see haze..,
So, I will try another coat of Z5, btw, how thin should I apply Z, should I see the haze barely? or all over the car? and can I wet both Z5/Z3 with Z6 when applying? (read somewhere about it, but I thought it's only for Z2/Z3, hard to apply thin coat w/ dry applicator)
thanks for the help, but under the sun, it looks greaaaaaaat!
On a side note, here in Los Angeles Pep Boys has on sale the large duster for $15 and the smaller size for $6.
And yes you can use water or Z6 to thin out Z2, Z3 or Z5 to improve spreadability and make it possible to apply thin coats. Don't use water or Z6 when applying Z1.
1. DO NOT press down when you use it - hold it so that only the strands are lightly touching the paint. If you press, you can make some nice not-so-temporary swirls or scratches in your paint. Dust is VERY abrasive! If it doesn't come off witha light wipe, leave it! If your car has been outside, gotten dusty, then dew on the car overnight, then sun to dry it and bake it on, this is not coming off with a duster. Time for a wash.
2. DO NOT use it when the car is HOT. The heat will cause the wax to melt and streak, giving you the "temporary" scratches. These will come off with the next wash.
I really like the little one for inside the car! It picks up all the little dust and lint.
I am not sure what exactly I am looking for on the paint! What are these imperfections, or overspray..etc look like?? or how do you what to clay?
suggestions?
should i restart the whole process from dawn, clay, Z7 wash, Z1, Zx, ...etc now?
I am a little worried about using too much product because I always seem to do that with auto products, bad habit. Any other tips would be great. Thanks very much..
And my SC430 has rain treatment on the side windows NOT the windshield, the water runs off the sides, I am thinking of using rainx on the windshield, or does Zaino work, if so what product?
As to Rain-X, if you like it, use it. Z-6 does not compare. It will help clean stubborn spots from the glass, but it doesn't bead the water for much longer than it takes for the wipers to do one sweep. It is better on the sides since they are not wiped. On my car I have automatic wipers so I no longer use RainX, although I liked it when I used it.
As for the DUSTER, thanks Joe166 and automophile for the feedback.
Your dealers little helpers washed and put some "hand glaze" on your car during initial prep. And since your car rolled off the line, it was probably exposed to the elements for about two weeks. During that period, some brake dust may have embedded into your clear coat. Bad stuff, made of metal, rusts out, and leaves tiny pock marks in the clear coat. Than your dealer's helpers caused swirls by buffing that damn hand glaze (50% wax, 50%oil) with less than 100% cotton towels. You did wash off the glaze when you used Dawn, but some of the dust/buffing created swirls remained. The cure: Now that you have already put Z5 on, continue the treatment. Thus, bury your mistake. The more coats, the less noticable will be those swirl marks.
girlwithtools:
I've used both Zaino leather products, and found them simple to used and trouble free. I'm not sure the spray cleaner is any good on vinyl but does just fine on leather. And the "Leather In A Bottle" is fantastic. The directions on the bottle are all you need. These are no problem products!
On applying "just a little" Z1 or Z2. Again, I'm no expert. Chris Parrish told us that one way to achieve this was to first prepare the applicator by spraying Z6 on it and rubbing it in. Then squeeze the Z1 on the applicator pad in the shape of an "X". Rub it in so as it now covers most of the pad. And that should be all you need for a moderate sized panel. A door, for example. The real trick is to not apply pressure when moving the pad across the panel. I use over-lapping strokes with a light touch.
killakella:
Again, thanks for the towel info. When I told my wife, she said "How Much?". And her response was: "What! Give me their number, please!" And she bought 3 complete sets.
I have been using the two Zaino leather care products on my new Lexus with "ecru" (white) interior for about a month now. This is great sutff. The cleaner takes off all kinds of marks and scratches, and ball point pen ink, etc.
One tip I picked up somewhere is to apply the Z10 leather care (the conditioner, not the cleaner) with your bare hands. Just put some on your hands and rub in on the seats as if you were applying a lotion (which you are). Don't forget arm rests and anything else that's real leather. Using your hands is faster than using a rag, it feels good, and you don't loose the amount that would soak into the rag.
Put some on every day or two until the leather seems to stop soaking it up. Then you can apply it once every few months, depending on conditions. (EG: if you car is a convertible, use more often to counter the effects of drying by the sun.)
I got my "black" SSEi new - and from day one all it ever received was at least 1 hand wash per week - sometimes more. Royal Velvet towels, sheepskin wash mitts (2 when washing)2 water buckets etc etc. I thought my car was pristine. It sure looked that way.
Then I finally decided to clay it last week - when I was bored. I could not believe the difference in the finish. You can feel it kickoff the little specs you cannot see on the paint, as you swirl it around. It was almost a religious experience to touch it after the clay and subsequent washing.
Then I noticed something as I was putting on a new coat of Zaino - the pad literally slid across the paint. there was zero grabbing or friction on the pad. I used even less product on this application than I have ever used. I strongly recommend getting and using the clay. While it may seem like a lot of time - since you are using something a little larger then a quarter under 2 finger tips - but it goes pretty quick as you feel the difference while doing it. It only took me a little under 2 hours to clay entirely. It was absolutely worth it.
I had used autoclay before so I knew its benefits but in this case it was almost required.
I've had the car about a month (long enough for some of the dealer wax to wear off I figure). Finally got the zaino in and the time to use it.
I did the dawn wash to remove the old wax, contrary to instructions dawn did NOT remove the old wax. I know because no sooner had I finished washing the car it rained. Lots of beading action going on.
So I whipped out the clay bar and let the car have it. Being a new car it did not require as much work as my old car. It was pretty smooth to begin with. After the clay bar the car did not bead water so well. It took the clay bar to remove the wax (thus allowing zaino to do its thing).
Then I hit it with the Z-1. Being a white car judgement was difficult. After that I went straight to Z-2, Z-5 was not needed at this point.
My strategy was to keep putting on coats till I could not tell the difference (with Z-6 in between)
After the first coat it looked good, about the same as when I took delivery.
After the second coat it looked better than when I took delivery.
The third coat didn't seem to change the looks any. So I stopped there. Two coats for a pearl white car seems to do the trick.
The car feels smooth as silk and I have never seen a car bead water like that (I'll try to get photos the next time it rains).
Slapped a fresh coat of Finish 2001 on my old car. We will see how they both hold up over time.
I am thinking about using a clay bar and just remembered that I have a brand new one in a box that I got as a present. It isn't from Zaino but from Mothers. I have placed my order for my Zaino products but thought I would just use this one instead, I am sure that there will be no problems with it. Plus it will give me a save me a little more cash to buy more Z2!
I ordered a kit that comes with the applicator, do you need to wash it between using Z1 and Z2?
If you are going to use the Mothers clay and use their lubricant, save the Dawn wash until after that phase. The Mothers lubricant is their spray wax. You could, of course use the Z car wash liquid (diluted) as a lubricant. I don't, because I didn't like the feel of it. Lots of people really like it. Try it. The important thing (and how important is a question in my mind) is that you make an effort at some point to wash all other waxes or emollients from the car surface in order to give the Z a chance to do what it promises to do and that you therefore start putting your Z1 on a wax free surface. I really believe that Clay is clay, but lots of people use the Zaino clay. I have no comparison since I have only used Mothers and Meguiars, but I have been totally satisfied with the results so I don't think there is any problem. As was stated so eloquently on this site a couple of weeks ago it doesn't make sense to "try" Zaino and not follow the directions. That isn't much of a trial. I don't see anything inconsistent with the directions in using another product to clay the car as long as you then make sure there are no traces of the lubricant left on the surface. Z does make high quality products so I am sure their clay is excellent, but I don't plan that far ahead and a trip to Pep Boys or Auto Zone is much easier than ordering from Sal before I decide to do it. Have fun.
Respectfully,
Larry
thanks,
I did a Dawn wash (45 in.), clay (1 r.), Z7 wash (45 in.), Z1 (30 in.), and Z5 (30 min.). I did it all in the shade, but have now moved the car into the sun, and it will hopefully dry in 1 hour. There's still time left in the day for a Z2 and another Z5.
This is my first time. I don't think I made the newbie mistake of spreading the Z5 on too thick--but I hope I didn't spread it too thin!
I could take this hour to do the wheels or even the leather seats, but I do have to do some "real" work, after all...
Steve
Sorry to ruin your multi-coats-in-a-day plan.