NXT vs Zaino

[Beach Bum]

Re: NXT vs Zaino

Absolutely no disrespect intended at all, but your question is incredibly ambiguous and open ended, basically to the point of being impossible to answer.

Meguiar's carries many lines of products, each designed to cater to a specific end user, where as Zaino tends to essentially only serve the hardcore enthusiast.

It's up to you

Thanks -I will stick with NXT.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: NXT vs Zaino

Mr. Stoops, what can you tell me about the differences?

Absolutely no disrespect intended at all, but your question is incredibly ambiguous and open ended, basically to the point of being impossible to answer.

It would not be fair for Mr Stoops who works for Meguiars to comment on another brand.

OK, where to start?

Yes, it's a bit of a tough spot for me, or any other Meguiar's employee actually, to respond to this. Please keep in mind that when you see my name attached to something on this forum it is as a representative of Meguiar's - it is not my personal opinion. I will state emphatically when I am posting something that is solely my opinion, just for the record. With that out of the way, and since Beach Bum sent me a PM about this thread, I'll go ahead and chime in.

It really is difficult to state just what the differences are between any two waxes/sealants unless there is something very distinct about them - like one is a carnauba wax and one is a fully synthetic sealant. In the case of NXT compared to Zaino (and usually when someone very generally talks about Zaino they're referring to Z-2 PRO Show Car Polish) it's a bit difficult since both are fully synthetic sealants. Obviously we aren't going to tell you exactly what's in NXT just as Sal Zaino isn't going to tell you exactly what's in his product. What we can tell you is that NXT is more of a "polish/wax" than a straight wax or sealant, meaning it contains some polishing oils to help richen the color and darken already dark paints. This helps to avoid the stereotyping that many pure sealants have of imparting a plastic wrap look to paint. That, in fact, is one of the negative comments often directed at Zaino, and I personally feel that's a bit unfair. If you perceive sealants to actually create this "wrapped in plastic" look, then on certain colors it may well be a very good thing. Silver and white, among other light colors, just can't show that deep, wet look that black, red and other dark colors can. It's just a nature of the color. So why not give them a bright, crisp shine instead to better show off the inherent brightness of the color? Sealants can do that wonderfully, and we've got a couple of regulars to our Thursday Night Open Garage sessions with silver cars, coated in NXT 2.0, that always look downright stunning - an Acura TSX and a Dodge Viper. But since NXT 2.0 is a "polish/wax", on darker colors it can actually darken the finish a bit and give it a richer, deeper look at the same time.

But as with so many other waxes and sealants, any visual differences become very personal in nature. Just as we all have our different tastes in music, cars, colors, sports, etc we have very (sometimes VERY) personal taste in how our car's finish appears.

There are other considerations, of course. Cost, availability, ease of use, etc all come into play. You can pick up NXT for $15 or so at any WalMart in the country. Zaino is a bit more difficult to source and about double the price. You don't need to mix anything with NXT, but you do with Zaino (but seriously, putting a couple drops of one liquid into a small vial of another really isn't all that hard now, is it?). Both go on super easy, and wipe off with equal ease (assuming you follow directions for both; directions that are strikingly similar - thin coat of maybe just a couple ounces of product, let dry fully). It should be noted that Zaino fans are fantastically loyal and vocal - a wonderful thing for any manufacturer to have on their side!! Lucky for us, many of you are just as equally loyal to Meguiar's (thanks for that!).

Anyone who's seriously into detailing will tell you, however, that the vast majority of the shine and overall appearance you get from any finish comes from the prep work, not the final coat of wax or sealant. And this is something that Meguiar's has a huge history in, including working in the auto factories, with the paint manufacturers, and with body shops and pro detailers world wide. It matters little what LSP you put on the car if you haven't taken the time to correct all the defects in the first place.

That said, we know that you have a lot of choices in products for you car, and that there are many very good products on the market. Ultimately, the choice is yours - it's your car, your time, your money, your visual preferences. If your Jeep buddies are big fans of Zaino, cool. It's good stuff, there's no doubt about that. Does it offer anything real in terms of features, advantages or benefits that can justify the extra cost and need to order online? That's for the end user to decide.

[Beach Bum]

Re: NXT vs Zaino

HOLLY SMOKE - Mr. Stoops - all I can say IMO, is that you are the best. Your Boss needs to thank you for the quality of work that you provide to their paying customer base.

All I was looking for was an honest and sincere response and that is what I feel I have received now. I appreciate the detail and open communication. If I had the phone number to the person you report too, I would call them and tell them what a great rep. you are for the company.

You took the time, answered me and again sold me on everthing that I already believed in but questioned my loyalty when others said they used something better.

Again, thank you from a loyal buyer of your product and taking your time to answer what you could in the manner I have come to appreciate.

Service and quality sells product and you have done that.