Gheist

I've got 4 coats of Zaino on my new 8, and I'm wondering- I like the Zaino lots, and I'm satisfied with the polish right now, but is there any benefit to waxing with a high quality wax *over* the Zaino for a more 3D shine?

Here's how my car looks right now.

DOMINION

That looks killer to me . Looks like it works so why change? I use Meguiars Quik wax after I wash and Meguiars Natural shine vinyl and rubber proectant for all of the in side of my car.

loco4rx8

I have used S100 and Souveran over Zaino. I think it looks really nice. It just gives it a deeper/darker look. And the carnauba can serve as a sacrificial layer of protection and make the Zaino last even longer.

The only reason to do it is if you prefer the look of carnauba, which many people do. Just remember if you top Zaino, you will need to make sure you get rid of the carnauba before you add any more layers of Zaino. Zaino will not bond to carnauba.

red_rx8_red_int

So what's the best way to strip the wax but not the Zaino?

loco4rx8

Washing with Dawn would do it. Claying the car may take off the wax. Or you could just wait a few months and the wax will have worn off.

6speed8

I have heard of other people waxing over Zaino, they say it adds Depth. I think if you just add another layer or two of zaino you will get that depth without the one BIG disadvantage of wax - yellowing. Wax yellows and Zaino does not.

c305ho

i have a black rx-8 with 10 layers of zino on the body and 12 layers on the hood
dont wax just zino again it just keeps getting shinyer..

Ellar

Takes up two parking spots now, but it's shiny as hell!

loco4rx8

Some waxes "yellow" much less than others. Waxes that use a more refined carnauba (such as P21S/S100) create much less of a yellowing effect, i.e. it isn't at all noticeable. Generally the effect is increased if you layer wax. One layer of S100 wax isn't going to turn your car yellow. But it will make the color look deeper and slightly darker. It also really brings out the metallic flake. It's all a matter of preference.

6speed8

All waxes yellow compared to Zaino, also Waxes simply do not last as long as Zaino. Zaino does not change the color of the car (why would you want to). Zaino brings out the metallic.

Alot of people wax over Zaino, and some even sandwich it between Zaino, I use Zaino straight - 12 coats so far.

loco4rx8

Yes 6speed8. What I'm trying to say is with some waxes, you need to have superhuman eyes to even notice any "yellowing." Mothers and some Meguiar's waxes have some very evident yellowing. S100 has none that I can see. But it gives the paint a richer, deeper look than just plain Zaino. And when I topped Zaino with S100, the metallic flake was much more obvious.

I love Zaino for its durability and wonderful ability to protect. That's why I use it. But I prefer the look of certain waxes over top of the Zaino. It cuts down on the super-reflectivity which I happen to find just a little distracting. It's all a matter of taste.

6speed8

Well said - "It's a matter of Taste" -

slavearm

Dawn will kill the zaino also.

Slavearm

loco4rx8

Dawn won't touch Zaino.

NavyDood

Yes it will. It will dull it.

loco4rx8

Ok well, a year or so ago, I emailed Sal to ask him this very question and he said Dawn has no effect on Zaino.

In fact, it's debatable whether Dawn will take off all of a recently applied carnauba wax. In most cases, though, since people don't put down wax and then immediately try to take it off, it's not an issue. If the wax has been on the car more than a month or two, the Dawn should remove enough of it for Zaino to bond.

But, I should add, it's probably not a great idea to use Dawn as a wash more than once or twice a year.... for any reason. Some people believe it can dry out rubber and trim parts with excessive use.

NavyDood

I guess as time has gone on with more ppl using Zaino and doing all sorts of weird stuff, more and more testing of Dawn has revealed that it will dull Zaino. Most likely not with just one washing though. It would take continuous washings with Dawn.

loco4rx8

Yeah, I agree Navydood. I don't think you can harm it with a single washing. I wouldn't be surprised if it caused a problem if you used Dawn as your regular car wash, though.

Rob Tomlin

Right. I know this is the "in" thing right now, especially at Autopia.org, but I just don't get it myself. How can you have "too much" reflectivity? Perhaps it is a trade-off: if you have more reflectivity you have less depth?

Frankly I think the disadvantages of using carnaube over Zaino certainly outweighs the benefits. Carnaube will slightly "dull" the finish compared to Zaino, it will attract dust more than Zaino (Zaino doesn't attract dust at all, some Carnauba's are worse than others) and, as others have stated, you have to remove the carnauba before adding another coat of Zaino.

And as well as Zaino lasts, if you wash your car with Dawn to get rid of the carnauba, you are still going to be removing a lot of the Zaino as well. In short, you are working against yourself.

If you have the time, and you just love detailing your car all the time, go ahead and try a carnauba topper on Zaino. Otherwise, just stay with what you already know works....ZAINO!

Gheist

Well said, Rob. I suppose the issue is moot for another week or two, since my sister backed her F*****g Trailblazer into the front bumper of my not yet 1 month old 8. It's at the body shop, and I told them to charge away until it's identical to when it was a virgin! 6 coats of Zaino to waste...

Rob Tomlin

^ Ouch!

Hope it works out and looks as good as new when they are done.

loco4rx8

Like I said, matter of taste. I used to think the reflectivity was awesome. And it IS amazing. It really makes a Zaino car stand out in the crowd. But I do think it can get to be too much.

One day I was walking to the car, admiring its shine, when I noticed that I really had to look hard to even see the color of the car. It was reflecting everything around it so much that the lines of the car were blurred and all I could see was reflection!

Personally, I love my color of the car so much that I decided I wanted to do something to bring it out more. So, that's when I tried topping with S100. It really brought out the metallic flake, and cut down on the reflection without dulling the shine. Hard to explain, but I just found it more pleasing to look at.

As I've said, Zaino is incredible stuff. I love the protection it gives my car. So, now I have the durability and protection of Zaino AND the look I desire.

By the way, I won't dawn wash the car ever again. Come spring when I'm ready to Zaino again, I'm quite sure the carnauba will be long gone.

Rob Tomlin

I was reading some posts on Autopia.org yesterday about this very issue.

Someone spoke to Sal Zaino about what he thought regarding people topping Zaino with Carnauba wax. He said that his concern was that some of the carnauba wax's have various oils in them that can actually penetrate the Zaino and break it down, resulting the in the Zaino providing much less protection than usual.

Makes sense to me....

loco4rx8

Thanks for that Rob. I hadn't seen that post over at Autopia. Yeah, it does make sense. I will find out this winter. I doubt I'll be putting wax on it after it turns permanently cold, so we'll see how the Z holds up until Spring.