I just bought a Super Black, and I need advice on what things to buy for it to keep it very clean and shiney.

Any special soaps which do a great job?
Dust remover?
Glossy Clothes?
Best Wax?
Since black is very sensative to scratches, any special cloth to wash car with?
How to dry it? Because I always end up with water marks now even with the Shamie thingy.

Thanks guys!

 

Well, I have owned a black car of one type or another every day of my life since 1988, this is what I would tell my customers.

Any special soaps which do a great job?

Use a soap made for cars, I would advise to use the same name brand car wash of the final finish wax or polish you choose. If you use Mothers wax use Mothers wash, if you use Zaino polish wash the car with Z-7 Car Wash.

Dust remover?

Black car owners must own a California Car Duster, I would not own a black car without one.

Glossy Clothes?

I use only white colored all cotton Fieldcrest Charisma towels (very pricy towel)

Best Wax?

Very subjective question, I gave up on wax when I found Zaino several years ago (Zaino is a synthetic but not a wax)

Since black is very sensative to scratches, any special cloth to wash car with?

Black is not more sensative really than other colors because all paints have a clear coat on top of the color coat, and all clear is somewhat soft and scratches easily. The reason it shows up worse on black is the scratch is magnified visually by the dark colored background of the pigment coat. I only use a 100% cotton car wash mit. The only time a black surface is more sensative to scratching is when it is hot and the surface of the car is hot making the clear coat softer and more prone to scratching. Black cars on a 90 degree day can be as much as 90 to 100 degrees hotter for surface temps than say a white car.

How to dry it?

I use The Absorber, and then use the Z-6 detailer spray all over the paint after the car is dry, no smears or water marks if you use a detail spray after a wash.

 

Zaino Z-9 is a leather cleaner and can also be used to clean anywhere inside the car like plastic door panels and dashes. Z-10 Leather conditioner can also be used on leathers and plastics. Z-10 does not create a false high gloss and this is important as the inside of the Z is somewhat matte in finish and the last thing you want to do is apply something like Armor All or a tire gloss to create a high gloss. Also, Z-10 smells exactly like a leather bomber jacket and has a UV shield.

The Absorber is at Wal-Mart, 9.99. Do not throw away the plastic tube it comes in, you always store the Absorber damp (wringed out) in the tube. Also, the Absorber comes packaged with some sort of fluid to keep it moist, you will need to wash this fluid out before first use.

 

For black.. the key is mimimizing swirl marks.. because they will show like mad.

I recommend the two bucket method for washing. Always always always make sure your mitt (all cotton) is as clean and sudsy as possible when washing.. otherwise you're just sanding the car = scratches.

So dunk.. with lots of suds.. work on a panel.. and before grabbing more suds.. always rinse the mitt in the clean water bucket to get any loose dirt out.

Always save the dirtiest part of the car for last, because that dirt gets caught into your mitt.

For drying.. get the microfiber towels.. like the 'big blue towel'. You drag the towel across the surface, it absorbs, doesn't scratch, and the tiny water left dries very quickly.

The last step is key for black.. gotta gotta gotta use the quick detail spray to clean up after yourself. Get a few microfiber towels, and that will make your black look perfect.

Check out the detail sessions 'sticky' at the top of this forum. Excellent reading.

 

"But I'm a bit confused over the proper use of Z-9 and Z-10. Should Z-9 be used to clean those surfaces, and then Z-10 to protect them?"

Yes, 9 is the spray cleaner and 10 is the cream conditioner/protector


Also, do you recommend Z-12 for the exterior on all windows and the interior on the windshield (all windows are tinted, with the exception of the windshield)? And what is recommended for use on the interior (tinted) surfaces of the five windows?

Z-12 is an abrasive glass polish made to remove severe water etching and spotting. I only use Z-12 for these reasons, it is not an every day glass cleaner like a Windex, etc.

If you have aftermarket window tint which is a polyester (plastic) film applied to the inside of the glass, the Z-12 can not be used on this surface as the Z-12 will scratch it.

Window tinting from the factory is intergrated into the glass, as auto glass is always actually two panes of glass held together with a clear adhesive in the middle (what is known as safety glass) Z-12 is fine on factory glass unless it has a coating.

 

I have tinted somewhere around 300 cars myself, you can use Invisible Glass on tint.

 

ProperAutoCare www.properautocare.com is decent for supplies, online ordering, and is fast.

You can find some microfiber towels in your local walmart, pepboys, etc kind of places, but I believe online was cheaper.

 

has anyone tried these "imperial velour" microfiber towels??

http://www.topoftheline.com/toplinmirtow.html