Trying to think outside the box (Touchless carwash + Zaino CS)

4

40thgto

New member
Steps:



1.) Prep cars surface to a perfect swirl free finish.



2.) Apply Zaino Z2 Pro/Fx. Several coats if desired.



3.) When car gets dirty, go to the best touchless carwash in area. Try to find one with air dryers. Once car leaves bay, inspect for any remaining dust/dirt. Remove with QD/microfiber if required.



4.) Apply Zaino CS and let dry. Hit with Z8 if want even more pop. Do this every other wash or when Zaino protection is showing wear (water stops beading).



OK. Why WOULDN'T this be an excellent method of keeping a near swirl free/freshly detailed car year round? Seems new swirls/scratches would be kept to a minimum, and the protection is applied in no time with the Zaino CS.



Someone blow some holes in the method above, as I may just be tempted to trash the bucket and hose.
 
onerareviper said:
Steps:



1.) Prep cars surface to a perfect swirl free finish.



2.) Apply Zaino Z2 Pro/Fx. Several coats if desired.



3.) When car gets dirty, go to the best touchless carwash in area. Try to find one with air dryers. Once car leaves bay, inspect for any remaining dust/dirt. Remove with QD/microfiber if required.



4.) Apply Zaino CS and let dry. Hit with Z8 if want even more pop. Do this every other wash or when Zaino protection is showing wear (water stops beading).



OK. Why WOULDN'T this be an excellent method of keeping a near swirl free/freshly detailed car year round? Seems new swirls/scratches would be kept to a minimum, and the protection is applied in no time with the Zaino CS.



Someone blow some holes in the method above, as I may just be tempted to trash the bucket and hose.
Click to expand...



I don't see any problem with this - actually I bet a number of people use touchless car washes when they just can't do a traditional one. Even so, there have been long periods of time when I've used only touchless washes or DIY spray downs then followup with some detailing.



My only suggestion would be to follow-up the touchless or DIY with S&W on the whole car or do a waterless (4-in-1, or QEW, etc) to assure you've got a nice clean surface to lay your CS on.



This past weekend I did just that.... DIY spraydown, 4-in-1 waterless, Z6, CS, Z8. Wonderful, wonderful results.



:up
 
I wouldn't put any waxes on or Z products unless the car was washed with a mitt first, otherwise there will still be a thin layer of dirt over the surface......if you don't think so, just use your wipers once after a drive threw car wash and you'll see how much dirt is really still on there.
 
JoshVette said:
I wouldn't put any waxes on or Z products unless the car was washed with a mitt first, otherwise there will still be a thin layer of dirt over the surface......if you don't think so, just use your wipers once after a drive threw car wash and you'll see how much dirt is really still on there.
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Yep, definitely agree with that. That is why I recommend either a complete S&W of the car of use of a waterless solution (QEW, DP 4-in-1, etc).
 
docker said:
Yep, definitely agree with that. That is why I recommend either a complete S&W of the car of use of a waterless solution (QEW, DP 4-in-1, etc).
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Hmmm.... So these touchless carwashes leave that much dirt behind? The whole purpose of this method was to try and reduce time washing/drying, but if I have to S&W the hole car it kind of defeats the purpose.
 
onerareviper said:
Hmmm.... So these touchless carwashes leave that much dirt behind? The whole purpose of this method was to try and reduce time washing/drying, but if I have to S&W the hole car it kind of defeats the purpose.
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It's not so much dirt but a film that gets left behind, at least that's been my experience in the past. In some cases the film might be hard to initially see, but in some spots you might also see some dirt residue where the car didn't get perfectly clean. Like some of the others I would do a S&W wipe down or an ONR wash before putting anything on the finish.
 
Sound like a real thought up plan and also sounds great. In the winter months some of those touchless washes do not get all the dirt off. A detail spray followed will ensure that you have everything clean and the finish will gleam. My only problem with those car washes are the waxes that they have and I would not want on top of my zaino finish. But then again, if you have a couple coats of z5 or z2 along with CS, I don't think any waxes will stick to it anyway. If they do stick, a quick wipedown of z6 will do the trick. Then do Z8 every other wash to maintain and you will not have to apply polishes for a very very long time. Z8 brings the gloss back to 100% and the protection back to 100% instant.



I like your system and I will try it myself.
 
onerareviper said:
Hmmm.... So these touchless carwashes leave that much dirt behind? The whole purpose of this method was to try and reduce time washing/drying, but if I have to S&W the hole car it kind of defeats the purpose.
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Yep, leaves behind too much dirt to QD or seal over. My daily driver is a dark blue and when I use the touchless I can see where it's missed a fair chunk. By far the majority of the dirt is gone, but still there is left behind a thin layer of dirt.



But, hey, still it's a decent solution to use the touchless or DIY sprayer then followup with a S&W or waterless. Simple and pretty quick.
 
If the touchless does a good job and there's no dirt left behind, you could do either a Z6 or 50/50 IPA wipedown to make sure there's no residue on the paint.
 
docker said:
Yep, leaves behind too much dirt to QD or seal over. My daily driver is a dark blue and when I use the touchless I can see where it's missed a fair chunk. By far the majority of the dirt is gone, but still there is left behind a thin layer of dirt.
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Yeah, it's that "road film" that has to be removed by mechanical action (a pressure washer is also using mechanical action via the kinetic energy of the impacting water) or some serious chemical action that would strip your wax.
 
Hmmm.... Lots of good suggestions.... Basically, I'm determined to find a better/quicker way than the time consuming proper car wash/dry. It seems only logical that this step causes more swirls/scratches anyway.... There has to be a better way. After everyones suggestions, here is the slightly changed method in more detail:



** Do the following once a year:



1.) Prep cars surface to a perfect swirl free finish.



2.) Apply Zaino Z2 Pro/Fx. Several coats if desired. (Could do this twice a year, since applying a coat of Zaino is pretty easy/quick.



** Do the following as needed:



1.) If car is not that dirty, just clean with S&W + many microfibers. Hit with QD (Z8) if needed.



or



1.) When car gets dirty (beyond using S&W only), go to the best touchless carwash in area. Try to find one with air dryers. Once car leaves bay, inspect for any remaining dust/dirt/film. Remove with S&W + microfiber were required. Even if see no dirt give a quick wipedown with S&W before applying Zaino CS. Make sure microfiber is showing clean when remove from painted surface.



2.) Apply Zaino CS and let dry. Hit with Z8 if want even more pop.





Seems this method would really keep your car looking freshly detailed year round with little possibility of self induced swirls/scratches. Keeping the underside clean would also be a bonus (if the touchless carwash selected does this). The only drawback is the money spent on touchless carwashes. Although you would save money in other areas (car wash soaps + mitts + decreased water bill).
 
yeah touchless never gets that road grime off for me, and we have a pretty nice one by me...sometimes if I get QEW or ONR and spray it 1:1 on the car as a pre soak before I run it through it will come out better, but it reaches that point where you have to wash it by hand..and believe me your swirl free finish will be swirl hell if you wipe that road grime off after one of those washes.
 
dmxsoulja3 said:
yeah touchless never gets that road grime off for me, and we have a pretty nice one by me...sometimes if I get QEW or ONR and spray it 1:1 on the car as a pre soak before I run it through it will come out better, but it reaches that point where you have to wash it by hand..and believe me your swirl free finish will be swirl hell if you wipe that road grime off after one of those washes.
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Even if I use the Poorboys S&W + tons of microfibers after the touchless carwash? I've never used S&W, but I thought if done properly it can remove minor dirt/grime without scratching the finish. Is this not correct?
 
I would try it in a spot that is easy to polish, I always practice things I'm unsure about on my spoiler its usually an easy small spot to get stuff out of if it does swirl, or better yet a friends car who could care less :)
 
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