Has anyone used Zymol products on their 8? If so, what were your impressions?

Thanks!

 

Lots has been done on Zymol and Zaino, try the search button or browse the show and shine section.

 

Thanks! I'll give that a try!

 

Actually, I just used Zymöl on mine Saturday. Maybe it's silly but I'd been looking forward to doing it ever since I'd received a kit of Zymöl at Christmas. I ordered the car in November and finally got it the end of last month.

The kit came with some carwash ("Clear"), leather conditioner ("Treat"), the Zymöl polish itself ("Japon"), and a paint-cleaner ("HD-cleanse").

I'd washed it last weekend and decided it needed the full cleaning since the paint did feel a bit tacky and not smooth at all.

The wash worked ok. Not much to report other than it didn't take too much to make a whole bucket of suds. Supposed to be gentle on whatever wax you already have.

The HD-cleanse seems equivalent to the "claybar" technique that's mentioned frequently here. (I'd never heard of it before this forum but now I am glad I did). I guess you could call this stuff "liquid clay". You work it into the paint with a good amount of pressure until it becomes tacky, let it dry and then buff it off. This is after a good wash, of course. I was wondering if I'd need to wash it yet again afterwards but the instructions don't say anything about that. It does seem to come off completely with the buffing. I used some thick cotton "diaper" cloths to buff it off. The effect was very nice. Much smoother paint. Quite a lot of elbow grease was expended. This process probably took a couple of hours. According to the instructions it's only needed twice a year. Since it already is in a liquid form with its own lubricants you don't need to worry about working with a separate spray bottle or about dropping the clay bar (which is the end of the clay bar if you do). Take care to not get it on the black plastic bits (hard to get off).

The Zymöl "wax" itself is a joy. It's insanely rich and the natural oils and plant extracts give it an intoxicating fragrance. With the paint prepared, it went on like ...well I want to say butter but it really was richer than that, maybe some kind of ointment. You can't rush it; you sort of have to go with the speed it wants to flow on. Between the smell and the feeling of it going on it is really quite a sensual treat. You can pretend you're oiling Cleopatra's buns, or whatever turns you on

Instructions warn do NOT let the stuff dry before polishing. Given the very high concentration of carnauba wax that's probably good advice. I'd read that this stuff is a real pain to work with but I didn't have any trouble. I think the key here is to use microfiber towels to do the final polishing. I started out with my cotton diaper cloths but that definitely took much longer to get a shine. The mf. cloths worked great -- not much more work than any other wax I've used. Work in small sections to keep it from drying. Do not use too much. The waxing itself probably took an hour or so. They suggest keeping the stuff in the fridge and taking it out a few hours before using it to let it warm up.

The effect looks and feels great. The feel is very smooth. Maybe not as lickety-slick as some. It does have a certain rich "organic" feel instead of a silicone slipperyness. The garage still smells like a piña colada the next day

Maybe I'll snap some pics tomorrow; though I'm sure it's impossible to tell one shiny car from another in a photo. I enjoyed working with the product and I like the fact that it is made from natural ingredients. I'm happy with the results.

 

A pic of a zymöl-ed 8

 

and a full shot.

 

I too use Zymol as I have been a user since I was stationed in Germany. I actually was able to get a good waxing on on the the 7th of March.

I tend to use only natural waxes and not sealers and protectants. I learned that lesson with my BMW when I was having paint problems and BMW would not cover it under warranty as they said the car was not being properly being taken care of.

I actually get a bit **** and tape off all my black trim to keep from getting wax on it. It took a few hours but the results are spectacular!

Here are some pics taken in my garage.

 

Just out of curiosity...those that have use Zymol. On the back of the bottle it "suggest" after waxing to lightly mist the car and buff it lightly with the mist . This will "set" the wax. If you have'nt tried it then do so. It does make a noticeable difference.

 

I find using Zymol once a week is just as good as using Zaino. I'm in the process of having the MS body kit and spoiler installed, so I'll take some pictures after everything is done.

Also, Hac, I use a slightly wet towel and buff the car once I take off the wax; its just as good.

 

I used my wife's Consumer Reports account to look for a car wax test. They rated Zymol as the top rated overall, high in shine, good about not leaving small swirls or scratches. Very intersting article, pointed out that dark colors have different needs than light colors. Zymol was not the longest lasting but I have a Nordic Green (dark color) so I bought it and tried it just yesterday. I am very pleased. Also tried the light misting with water and buffing. I agree it adds a bit to the gloss.

Incidently, for quick shine-ups, they rated Turtle Wax Express Shine spray as the top rated spray type. It also has the advantage of not leaving stains on trim work.

They did not compare it to Zaino, but I found another private test on the web that compared the two and found Zymol gave an equal shine.

 

Since you mention a bottle, I'll point out that there is a Zymöl cleaner-wax that comes in a bottle and is available in a lot of retail stores. Very different stuff than the "glazes" and "polishes" they sell which have much higher concentrations of carnauba wax and absolutely no abrasives or "cleaning" agents. As far as I can remember there were no instructions for "misting" with mine...

http://www.zymol.com/phihome.htm