[picus]

Clay will remove the wax; so only do it when you plan on re-applying. I do it once a year in the spring, before I re-apply my sealant.

[normtrum]

Originally Posted by picus

Clay will remove the wax; so only do it when you plan on re-applying. I do it once a year in the spring, before I re-apply my sealant.

Got it. Thx again for the op.

[sapperelite]

Originally Posted by picus

I am going to add/edit this list according to my preferences.

Any automotive clay of your choice. Meguiar's, Mothers, Pinnacle, Wolfgang, they all pretty much do the same thing.

I agree, any fine grade clay will do.

Rags – Microfiber, microfiber, microfiber. www.poorboysworld.com has all the ones you'll need. Also, get a sheepskin mitt, at least two. Brand doesn't usually matter. You also need a towel to dry your car. Waffle weave works well, as does a towel called the Absorber.

Again, agree. I personally use microfiber waffle weaves to dry. I use 16x16 microfiber for everything else. I dislike the absorber *personally* because it requires dragging. I get all my mf's from www.detailedimage.com

Polish – Picus recommended some good ones. I use Poor Boy's World Polish and EX Sealant. Zaino is what the rest of the forum seems to prefer.

A little addendum here. Polishing = compounding. Zaino Z2/Z5 are no polishes (though they are labeled as such), they are sealants. You will not need a real polish on a brand new car (hopefully). Polishes are to remove scratches.

That leads me to sealants/waxes. I'd just go with a sealant. Honestly, 90% of the cars I do now I don't bother with a wax. Sealants look as good, lasts much longer, and are as easy to use. I use Zaino Z5pro on my car.

Also, I agree on Poorboys wheel sealant.

Here is the list of stuff *I* use when prepping a new car.

one bucket with grit gaurd
one bottle meguiars deep crystal
3-5 sheepskin mitts
2x microfiber waffle weave towels
one bar of fine grade clay
either menzerna final polish II (if there are some light scratches), or some jeffs werkstatt prime (chemical cleaner)
Zaino Z5pro or Werkstatt Acrylic Jett Trigger

Inside:
A Vacuum
Scotchgard
Zaino Z9/Z10
Aerospace 303

If you have any other questions let us know.

Picus,

I bought all of the stuff from your suggestions. Should I assume that I will follow your new car prep instructions at the beginning of this thread? Thanks

[GreyGhost]

Excellent job Kevin... and that color is ASS!

[picus]

Originally Posted by sapperelite

Picus,

I bought all of the stuff from your suggestions. Should I assume that I will follow your new car prep instructions at the beginning of this thread? Thanks

If it's a new car, then yes.

[JWadle]

Originally Posted by picus

I am going to add/edit this list according to my preferences.

Any automotive clay of your choice. Meguiar's, Mothers, Pinnacle, Wolfgang, they all pretty much do the same thing.

I agree, any fine grade clay will do.

Rags – Microfiber, microfiber, microfiber. www.poorboysworld.com has all the ones you'll need. Also, get a sheepskin mitt, at least two. Brand doesn't usually matter. You also need a towel to dry your car. Waffle weave works well, as does a towel called the Absorber.

Again, agree. I personally use microfiber waffle weaves to dry. I use 16x16 microfiber for everything else. I dislike the absorber *personally* because it requires dragging. I get all my mf's from www.detailedimage.com

Polish – Picus recommended some good ones. I use Poor Boy's World Polish and EX Sealant. Zaino is what the rest of the forum seems to prefer.

A little addendum here. Polishing = compounding. Zaino Z2/Z5 are no polishes (though they are labeled as such), they are sealants. You will not need a real polish on a brand new car (hopefully). Polishes are to remove scratches.

That leads me to sealants/waxes. I'd just go with a sealant. Honestly, 90% of the cars I do now I don't bother with a wax. Sealants look as good, lasts much longer, and are as easy to use. I use Zaino Z5pro on my car.

Also, I agree on Poorboys wheel sealant.

Here is the list of stuff *I* use when prepping a new car.

one bucket with grit gaurd
one bottle meguiars deep crystal
3-5 sheepskin mitts
2x microfiber waffle weave towels
one bar of fine grade clay
either menzerna final polish II (if there are some light scratches), or some jeffs werkstatt prime (chemical cleaner)
Zaino Z5pro or Werkstatt Acrylic Jett Trigger

Inside:
A Vacuum
Scotchgard
Zaino Z9/Z10
Aerospace 303

If you have any other questions let us know.

Thanks for this great info.

I will be prepping a brand new 335xi (Sparkling Graphite) next week and am wondering why you would recommend Z5 Pro instead of Z2. My understanding is that Z5 can remove swirl marks on paint that has been buffed, while Z2 is a simple sealant. Why would you use Z5 on brand new paint?

[picus]

Z5 and Z2 are both just sealants. Neither is a polish, and neither will remove swirl marks. Z5 will *hide* swirl marks, because it has fillers in it.

I use Z5 on dark colored cars because, in my opinion, it looks better. It has a deeper, more carnauba-esque look. I do not generally use it because it fills, that's just something it happens to do. I use it for the look and durability.

[JWadle]

Originally Posted by picus

Z5 and Z2 are both just sealants. Neither is a polish, and neither will remove swirl marks. Z5 will *hide* swirl marks, because it has fillers in it.

I use Z5 on dark colored cars because, in my opinion, it looks better. It has a deeper, more carnauba-esque look. I do not generally use it because it fills, that's just something it happens to do. I use it for the look and durability.

Makes sense. Thanks.

[sapperelite]

Picus,

My car is finally heree and I have all the kit you suggested, except for the Zaino Z-9/Z-10. I didn't realize it would be so difficult to get here in SPain. I did find a place and will use that when it arrives. One last question before I go forth and attempt to make my car beautiful. I read the sticky on how to wash, clay etc your car. One thing it doesn't go through is the process for using the Jeffs Werkstadt Prime and Jett. Could you let me know if there are any specific steps I need to take in order to get my car looking like yours? I'll try to post some pics of the car when I am done. Thanks,

[J3L3J5]

a few things about new car prepping, i work in a detail shop where i deal with a fair amount of new car preps for the local mercedes dealership and i also do independent detailing. first, when washing using a good all purpose cleaner around the base of the doors and where any adhesives are left over will many times get most of the residue off and whatever is not taken off then should be able to be removed with clay. second, some owners are unfortunate enough to recieve their cars and the paint has a slightly marred and unsmooth texture called "orange peel," (becuase of the visual resemblence the clar coat has to an orange peel) i dont think this topic has been touched on in this forum yet. i dont remember exactly what it is caused by but basically the clear coat doesnt settle right or soemthing. orange peel affects the reflection coming from the paint and distorts images a little and ultimately affects the final overall appearance of the car. in order to rid your car of this you need to compound and then polish your car (preferably with a rotary buffer) in order to reduce the orange peel like texture. only polishing your car will not produce very good results because it will not remove enough clearcoat as compounding. if one is not confident enough with a buffer in hand, take it to your local detail shop. in the end it will leave your car looking much much smoother and better.

[sapperelite]

Picus,
I forgot to say thanks for all your help. Between you and George from Detailed Image, I got everything I needed, except the Zaino bacause no one would ship it to me in Spain. I finished the prep as you outlined and I think the car looks great. I went to a BMW dealer in Northern VA to look at a 335 for my wife and saw some that had been detailed by the shop and they looked good until you got up on them. Small swirls all over the paint. Compared to them, mine looks great and I would recommend that anyone serious about their car looking great instead of just good, follow the advice above. Thanks again to Picus, George and all of the others who posted their advice,

[4-series]

i have had my car for a few months now. jet black. no swirls. i guess the dealer did a good job. but i want to protect it. should i start with the clay bar or just direct apply sealant and then wax it? I do not see why i should use the clay bar to scrubb off the dealer prep..

(i think i read the wax was the optional part since the sealant is good enough and lasts longer)

Edit: one more thing. I bought the Zymol Natural Liquid Cleaner and Meguiars Quik Wax and was wondering if i can use these in any of the steps above or should i discard them. thanks

[picus]

If you're going to seal it you'll probably want to clay it. Sealants don't like to bond to waxes, which is probably what your dealer used. If you want to skip the clay you can lightly mist some alcohol/water (50:50, regular isopropyl alcohol) on the car then wipe it off (wash first), then seal it. Wax is optional if you use a sealant.

I've not used either of those products, so I can't really say.

[4-series]

thanks

[rtjones]

Great thread, picus, and lots of helpful information. Thank you for this.

Re: using the Zaino Z9 and Z10, it seems the Z9 is a cleaner, where the Z10 is a conditioner. It makes sense to use both during initial detail, but thereafter, unless you spill something on one of the seats, do you always use preface the Z10 with the Z9? Or is the Z10 alone sufficient?

Thanks.

[rtjones]

Originally Posted by picus

Clay will remove the wax; so only do it when you plan on re-applying. I do it once a year in the spring, before I re-apply my sealant.

Picus, you suggest the full detail only once yearly? That would be great, if so. I had planned on twice yearly, but now understand 9 months is fine, and you seem to suggest 12 months?

EDIT: Also, how necessary is it really to clean the leather of a new car? In other words, is the Z10 alone sufficient, or do you really find the Z9 (cleaner) is necessary? Thanks.

[rtjones]

I spoke to my salesman today, asking about allocation. I'm number 15 on the "waiting list". Before we hung up, I told him I want to be certain my car is not "detailed" before I pick it up. His first response was "We can't do that. It is our policy to detail the car". Long story short, he basically said in 30 years of business, I am the first person to request this. What?? In 30 years?? It seems to be a pretty common request, reading these forums. But then again, we're a niche group of folks!

[picus]

Originally Posted by rtjones

Great thread, picus, and lots of helpful information. Thank you for this.

Re: using the Zaino Z9 and Z10, it seems the Z9 is a cleaner, where the Z10 is a conditioner. It makes sense to use both during initial detail, but thereafter, unless you spill something on one of the seats, do you always use preface the Z10 with the Z9? Or is the Z10 alone sufficient?

Thanks.

If you spill you want to clean, not condition. You can use the cleaner as much as you like, but you should really only condition once every 2-3 months. I'd preface the conditioner with the cleaner.

Originally Posted by rtjones

Picus, you suggest the full detail only once yearly? That would be great, if so. I had planned on twice yearly, but now understand 9 months is fine, and you seem to suggest 12 months?

EDIT: Also, how necessary is it really to clean the leather of a new car? In other words, is the Z10 alone sufficient, or do you really find the Z9 (cleaner) is necessary? Thanks.

Here is how I maintain my car throughout the year:

April-ish: wash, clay, very light polish, sealant
April-October, wash.
late october/nov: re-seal
April: repeat.

You can just condition the leather on the new car.

Originally Posted by rtjones

I spoke to my salesman today, asking about allocation. I'm number 15 on the "waiting list". Before we hung up, I told him I want to be certain my car is not "detailed" before I pick it up. His first response was "We can't do that. It is our policy to detail the car". Long story short, he basically said in 30 years of business, I am the first person to request this. What?? In 30 years?? It seems to be a pretty common request, reading these forums. But then again, we're a niche group of folks!

Hah, well... there's a first time for everything.

[FastEddie]

Picus,

I will be taking delivery of my e92 335i in late August. If everything goes as planned I will definitely be using your new car prep services since you are local.

Thanks

[4-series]

Picus, I got the clay bar + lubricant per your advice. I have a question regarding wax/sealant and some other newbie concerns.

1) I have never used a clay bar before. I have a jet black. Is there anyway i might mess up my paint job? Anything i should watch for? Also, can i just clay portions of the car as needed?

2) After clay'ing the car, i plan on applying one layer of Klasse AIO and then one layer of Klasse SG. Was wondering how long should i wait in between applying the AIO and the SG?

3) How often should this process be repeated? 6 mo? 12 mo?

4) In between claying, can i apply another layer of AIO on top of the old SG and then seal with a new SG? or so i have to clay first to clean the previous applications and start from scratch...

thanks a lot!

[Maxtor]

I picked up my 335i sedan in early May and had the Picus new car prep done (car is Monaco Blue over Lemon). Looked fantastic. I now hand wash only.

Car doesn't bead up much any more after hand wash.

I am now thinking of picking up a Zaino package of products Z-2, Z5, Z9, Z10 etc. (since everyone on the forum seems to think it is the best).

Will these products be ok on top of your new car prep?

Do I need to Dawn wash and clay first?

Will I need a PC buffer or can I do it by hand?

Many thanks.

[rtjones]

Picus, you suggest not drying the car after washing, and even suggest keeping it damp with the hose. Do you suggest this simply as a time-saving step, because you're then moving on to claying the car, and the car will become damp with the lubricant spray?

Hmm, but the last half of the car (or even more) will surely be dry by the time you get to claying it, especially on a new car. And then one runs the risk of water spots if the water isn't soft.

Can you elaborate a bit on your reason for this? Thank you.