How do I know whether I should use Zaino Z-2 or Z-3? Im not sure what kind of paint I have. The owner before me got it painted so its not like I can even find out wht the stock paint is because obviously its not stock paint. Also, my girlfriend and her mom would like to get their cars polished. Are all cars single stage paint from the factory? I figured I could do it for them instead of them paying someone to do it. My girlfriend has a Mazda 3 and her mom has a newer Impala. Thanx
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1993 GT Hatch: 306 with Twisted Wedge heads,TFS stage one cam,TFS upper/lower intake, 190lph fuel pump, 30lb injectors, 70mm TB/EGR plate, Granatelli MAF= now using Pro-M, Lakewood upper/lower control arms, powertrax diff, subframe connectors, Eibach springs, aluminum ds, t56 trans, Eibach swaybars, Flowtech LT's, Magnaflow CB, 17x10.5 deep dish cobras in rear, 17x9 cobras in front.
Marine Detachment, Keesler AFB, Biloxi MS
OOORAAHH!!!
no not all cars are single stage from the factory, most cars now days are base/clear. a way to tell what you have on the car is to hit it with some wetsand paper use a fine grit like 2000 grit. That way the wetsand marks will be easier to cut out with rubbing compound. get the paper wet and sand it on the car, if its white and milky looking in the water its got clear on the car. now say the water turns like red on the car (if the car has red paint) and you see red its single stage. Only difference is single stage is just paint reduced and activated with a catalyst so when its thrown on its one stage it drys and it looks shiny. Base/clear is a basecoat that flashes off then a clear is the 2nd stage (hence two stage) of the paint process and it brings the clear to life.
If your gf and mom wants to get there car polished. Do it yourself on a cloudy day get some decent wax or polish and do it yourself by hand. you can also do it with a buffer but this takes more skill to prevent swirl marks etc. If you take it somewhere to get it polished they will probably just wash the car real good and wax it and say it was polished, make you think they did alot and charge you $200 or more. Its alot more envolved when you really detail a car like wetsanding the clear and buffing it back to the shine, then polishing it is the 2nd step. When they polish the car after compounding the wetsand marks out the polishing process eliminates the swirl marks. good luck.
If you just need a light polish and wax, you don't need anything exotic.
If your vehicles haven't been detailed in a while, do yourself a favor and get a clay bar kit like Mothers -- it'll safely remove the surface contaminants from about 3 cars -- just follow the directions and you'll be fine. It's very easy and only takes about a half hour or so.
I really like the Mothers Reflections line of waxes, and they're a lot cheaper than the exotic brands and very easy to use -- and safe for all types of paint. You can use it by hand or with a random-orbital, dual-action such as a Porter-Cable with some good quality pads -- this setup is virtually fool-proof against swirls (unlike a high-speed rotary buffer).
Bottom line, there are lots of other choices out there for waxes that are easy to use, can be used on any vehicle, and won't break your pocket book.
well i know about the clay bars. I did it on my friends black cobra. But their cars have little scratches all over. like swirl marks and stuff so I want to buff it to get them out.
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1993 GT Hatch: 306 with Twisted Wedge heads,TFS stage one cam,TFS upper/lower intake, 190lph fuel pump, 30lb injectors, 70mm TB/EGR plate, Granatelli MAF= now using Pro-M, Lakewood upper/lower control arms, powertrax diff, subframe connectors, Eibach springs, aluminum ds, t56 trans, Eibach swaybars, Flowtech LT's, Magnaflow CB, 17x10.5 deep dish cobras in rear, 17x9 cobras in front.
Marine Detachment, Keesler AFB, Biloxi MS
OOORAAHH!!!
Lots of scratches and spiderwebbing indicate you may want to use a machine method to address those problems, though you might be able to take care of it with a 3-Step process like Mothers Ultimate Wax System -- Pre-Wax Cleaner, Sealer & Glaze, and pure Carnauba Wax.
If going by machine, I recommend a Porter-Cable (sometimes a light duty machine just doesn't have the oomph) and a yellow or orange cutting pad. With that you can use a product like Mothers Power Polish to fairly easily polish out the scratches and spiderwebbing. It's real easy with a balanced, vibration-free like a Porter-Cable.
You can follow with PowerWax on the Porter-Cable with a black finishing pad; or even use the Reflections Car Wax by machine or by hand.
Only problem with the Porter-Cable is the initial investment in the machine, backing plate(s) and an assortment of pads (Lake Country are excellent, and usually private-labeled at most of the online E-tailers I've seen). You could easily spend $120-200, but it is a good investment.
See if you've got a buddy with the equipment and buy him a couple of 12 packs to come over and "help out."
How do I know what to use? 
now using Pro-M, Lakewood upper/lower control arms, powertrax diff, subframe connectors, Eibach springs, aluminum ds, t56 trans, Eibach swaybars, Flowtech LT's, Magnaflow CB, 17x10.5 deep dish cobras in rear, 17x9 cobras in front.
