rss997

Besides hiring a live in detail guy, what are the best products and tricks to keep the black car looking like glass?

I do have soft water for the hose in the garage which will help.

1. What products work best?
2. Sponge, Shami, towel?
3. soap to use.
4. Rejex? i have it but never have used it...

Thanks!

JAT

Nice looking new car!

Well, from what I have learned waxing my own cars and helping my father with his corvettes at contour shows, this is what I would do - On a new car, the best waxes might be Klasse All in One topped with a natural wax like P21S. IMHO this combination of waxes is the best looking on dark colored cars. Natural wax, which is what P21S is, seems to help hide scratches that show more prominently on dark colored cars.

Since you're residing in sunny CA - it might be best to use one of the synthetic waxes like Menzerna FMJ, or Rejex for protecting the paint. (Natural wax melts in hot sunny climates.) FMJ seems to be the better of the two at hiding minor scratches IMHO. If using FMJ or Rejex, both do not have cleaners in them so it would be best to pick up a polish that will clean the paint before placing the wax onto the car. Truly the secrete to a good looking wax job is removing all crud before waxing. I like using Menzernas or 3M polish products. (Klasse All in One is a synthetic wax but also has cleaners in it that work well.)

Micro fiber towels work much better than towels and sponges.

My favorite soap is made by Menzerna. All auto soaps work well - just don't use dish washing soap. Dish washing soap is too harsh and will remove your wax.

Hope that helps!

Gary R.

I prefer the Zaino Bros. line of polishes myself, take a peek at http://www.zainostore.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc

Eric - Plug Guy

I would highly recommend Rejex, but first give the car a couple of months with nothing on it.

Then fully clean the car and apply the Rejex, then repeat a weekend later. Be sure when you wash it to rinse the cloth EVERY time you get ready to dip in the bucket - this avoids scratches. Same with application of Rejex or wax too. Just go slowly, be careful. Once you get the first or second treatments done, cleaning will be much easier.

Best of luck with the new ride!

MJones

Hire the live in detail guy! It's your only hope

Rejex really works as claimed in as far as bugs, they pretty much washed right off after a xcountry drive as opposed to two days with bug and tar remover.

Oh you got a black car, how **** are you about not looking dusty
Swirls are going to show up....
Everybody has there opinion as to this wax or that....
Detailers have gallon bottles of no name brand secret stuff..

Have fun



Where are those beach pics?

rss997

Brian,check you pm's.... been burried at work last 2 days...No beach pics yet!

I enjoy washing my car and will be careful not to swirl it up...

Black is going to be fun compared to my silver one!!!

huskydog

My 01 was black and I have to cast a vote for Rejex. As said earlier two treatments and the car will always look good and be relatively easy to maintain. Suprisingly enough the new Mr Clean spray and go wash kits on the market work really well as a quick clean up to remove dust and light dirt, that way no rinsing of the rag is required. However if you are a rag guy, then I suggest you buy the ultimate wash bucket from Griots Garage, it has a grate 3/4 of the way down so all of the sediment drops to the bottom with getting picked up by the rag as you rinse it out.

OH997

I bought an electric leaf blower. I squeegee the car first and then use the leaf blower to get 99% of the rest of the water off. Then I use a 100% cotton towel to finish. Seems to keep the swirls down.

Cayenne Austin

I'll throw my vote in for Zaino- great stuff. A huge PITA to apply the first time (if you do it "right"), but way easy to apply subsequent coats. Once a year (spring, usually) I redo the initial routine- Dawn, Clay Bar, IHG, and the Zaino routine. A coat every 2 months or so seems to really work.

Have tries ReJex as well, but it does nto work as well (for me) in the Texas heat- it has some real sensitivity to application temp.

Once you get swirls (and you will <g>), 3M SMR works wonders.

Carcam

I have the same car and was not excited about another black car because of the upkeep...but it sure looks incredible when clean and polished. If you want a low maintenance car you should be driving a silver (like everyone else) or white car. But nothing looks better than a beautiful, shiny black Porsche. So, since you're already IN, you need to stay IN. Black shows everything and all defects are caused by friction. To keep it looking perfect you need to minimize friction at every step in maintaining your cars finish. Wash from top down with a well frequently rinsed all cotton mit. Dry with the best microfiber towels (Grits orange towels are my favorite); air/blower takes too long like the hand dryers in the public restrooms. Wax frequently with the best low fricition, easiest to wipe off, best swirl hiding, deepest wet looking...P21s wax. I've used (have) everything (Zaino, Klasse, Meguairs, etc.). P21s is carnauba and beeswax. More concourse cars use this than anything else BUT it doesn't last long. I'm waxing once a month. If that's too much for you, you may want to try something else or get the silver car that doesn't need this kinda care. It is very easy to use and I can wash and wax my 997s in exactly 1 hour. You apply the wax in small sections and wipe it off immediately as oppsed to letting it dry. It goes quick and you don't have to worry about trim and rubber because it doesn't stain. I think it's worth the extra effort and it's such a small car that looks so nice it's not a big deal. Good luck.

jcnesq

I have been experimenting and lately I have been using Pinnacle Sovereign, which is supposed to look great on black and red, and I think it does. It's pretty easy to apply (unlike the previous wax I tried which dried up too much and was hard to wipe off) and, with several coats it starts making the color look very deep. Like many carnauba waxes, it doesn't last a long time.

I have not used zymol for a long time, but I do remember using it on my black RS America and that it looked really super, after working in lots of coats. Again, zymol doesn't last long. (I swore at the time I would never have another black car, but here I am again.)

I have a bottle of Rejex but I am not ready to put it on the 997S - still think I like the depth of multiple coats of carnauba. I am going to try Rejex on my wife's Titanium Cayenne S when I get around to it.

1999Porsche911

I thought we were supoosed to trade our cars in when they get dirty.

MetalSolid

Waxing only covers and is much work, preventative medicine is better, that means:

Never let anyone that makes less money than you wash your car. (that means DIY)
Never let the dealer wash your car.
Never use the same wash mitt twice - used mitts do wheels and sills.
http://autopia.org/kb/index.php?page..._v2&id=35&c=16

rss997

What is p21s wax? Thanks for the advice, first wash this weekend!

R

Zed.

I love that, what a great quote!

I had a black 964 and found that Zaino No. 5 did a great job in masking the inevitable swirls. There's nothing like a clean dustfree black 911. Congrats, enjoy.