How does one keep the bare metal surfaces from getting dull and rusty? Specifically, I am trying to protect the aluminum and steel surfaces in the engine and suspension areas. Mine are already starting to show signs of oxidation after two months.

I thought of using Maguire's spray wax, but I'm not sure if it'll do any good in the long run, especially on the engine parts where things get hot and could melt the wax.

 

Zaino isn't affected by heat like wax is. I use Z-2 on my porcelain stove. It used to be a pain to clean up spills, but after cleaning it up and polishing with Zaino, boiling water and grease spattering clean up quickly.

The problem with polishing bare metal is getting it clean enough for the polish to stick the first time. The metal is porous, so you'll want to really make sure the surface is clean before you put the polish on.

 

Z2 on your stove?!!! You are dedicated indeed.

I thought of using Zaino too, but most of the surfaces I want to protect are hard to get to and almost impossible to polish off, but quite visible, like the heads and the aluminum and steel tubing, brackets, you know, all the nitty gritty stuff.

Would it do any good to spray the Z2 onto the surface and just let it dry without buffing? More importantly would it keep the rust away? i.e. form a barrier against the O2 in the air?

 

Spray it on? You mean mix it up and put it in an air sprayer? I don't know if you could get it thin enough (you could use Z-6 to thin it, if you are going to try). Also, if you sprayed it on, I don't know if that would be enough to get it to really stick. When you wipe it on, it is pushed onto the surface and forms a layer.

I have played around with the "wipe on, don't wipe off" tactic before. I don't think it was any better than the "wipe on, wipe off" method. Sure, the excess carrier might provide a bit of extra protection, but if you wipe it off, you are leaving a slick surface behind, so less contamination sticks to the surface.

Just get in there with a spray bottle of soapy water, clean it off as best you can, dry it (electric leaf blower) and wipe on Z-2 wherever you can reach. If you can't wipe it all off, don't worry - unlike wax, if you don't wipe it off it doesn't turn into the crust of doom.

 

Thanks Showcarz for the advice. Yeah I was thinking of thinning down Z2 w/ distilled water and then spraying it with a hand sprayer, but you're right, by the time it's thin enought to spray, there may be more water than Zaino in the mix and not enough for it to stick to the surface.

I don't care so much that the surfaces be shiny as I do about keeping the corrosion and oxidation away. But I understand your point - if the surface is slick it's less likely to gather dirt. On the other hand I think it's really the oxidation, not dirt that makes the car look old. Now my Z is only about two months old and everyhting has that new car sparkle, but I'm planning on keeping her for a long time, so I want to strech out that fresh engine (and suspension) look for as long as I can.

When my next batch of Zaino arrives, I think I'll try an experiment putting Zaino, carnauba was, and maybe petroleum jelly on some strips of soft steel and dip them in a can of water and let'em sit there for a couple of days and see which one does a better job of keeping the rust away. If I get around to doin it, I'll be sure to post the pics.