"Guru Reports recently tested 46 different waxes and only one got an 'A' for appearance. Not Meguiars, not Pinnacle, not Zymol and not Zainos (all got B to B+ scores). The wax that was top in appearance was P21S, a German wax developed by the same guy who developed Pinnacle Souveran (which runs $69.99 for 8 oz). P21S normally goes for $24.95 through high end automotive shops and on line car care outlets.

The dirty little secret is that the same exact wax is sold at Harley-Davidson dealers under the name S100 "

i thought zaino had the pest appearance, or if not top 2 at least, but it lasts for such a long time.......
ur thoughts?

 

these look awefully good......what do you think.....i keep telling my self the human eye cant tell teh shine/reflection difference between S100 and zaino.......

 

I've got some of the S100 wax and the gloss enhancing polish myself. My thoughts are that it is one of the best pure, nonabrasive carnauba waxes you can buy. It's so easy to use, gives a wet shine, has great slickness, and available locally. However, being carnauba, it's durability and protection is limited. I think S100 would make a great top coat just before a show or something, but for use on a daily driver it just doesn't give much protection. The look is great, but looks are only half of the equation. IMO, I think S100 would best be used on top of a sealant if you're looking for more shine. This way, the sealant is protecting the finish, while the S100 gives a different appearance. Basically, I like the wax, for a carnauba, and I'd recommend you try it for its reasonable $15 asking price. But, no way would I rely on just that wax for protection. It has no UV, and by nature carnauba just doesn't protect like a synthetic i.e. it can easily be eaten through by acids, hard water, etc... For an instant boost in shine though, it's a worthy product.

I use S100 sometimes on relatives' cars that I detail, because it's an instant shine without much effort. And, these relatives wouldn't know the difference anyhow between one product and the next. As far as carnauba waxes go, it would be one of the better you can buy...

 

It is my understanding that Zaino won the complete over all test, Carl may chime in here, he has the actual printed test that he paid for.

 

Where can you find the report, i'd like to read it

 

www.gurureports.com

It's $14.95 for the report.


As an addition to what Kevin said, Zaino finished #1 overall, which means it had the best combination of shine and durability/protection over all of the other products. For the record, they also tested Lemon Pledge (for fun) which gives a great shine, but has about 1 hour's worth of durability, and virtually no protection. My point being, there's more to a quality product than shine.

 

Yes P21S had the best Initial shine, an "A" which after 8 weeks was a C+, Zaino started with a B+ and after 8 weeks it was still a B+ . P21S has a lot of oils and it really shines well (I would be using it if not for Zaino) Zaino was the overall winner by a large margin and P21S was second.

 

can S100/P21S be put on top of some coats of z5 and z2????

 

I would not top Z-2 or Z-5 with an carnauba/oil product, that defeats why you would use Zaino in the first place, you would be covering up Zaino with an oily coating that isw not as clear, and also attracting more dust and dirt to your cars surface.

 

I have some 21s out in the shop, it kinda has the consistency of a stick of butter, and it also feels like butter when you rub it in your fingers, very strange for a car wax, but that is where the gloss comes from. But, with a couple of coats of Zaino, which bonds to the paint, 21s from my testing never really bonds to the paint, it lays on top much in the same way if you would rub some cooking oil on your paint.

Sal Zaino, being a custom car painter developed Zaino to be a clear coating that would bond to the paint for durability plus have a clear gloss but not an oily shine. He wanted a product that duplicated what a brand new paint job looks like just after it has rolled out of the paint booth.

 

I agree with Kevin and Carl. S100 is certainly very greasy feeling and it does go on as if you're applying a stick of margarine to the car. I'm guessing it's full of oils as Carl mentioned, and it's the oils that give the depth and shine. I don't really know if it contains silicones as well. Anyhow, the oils over Zaino can sometimes cause streaking and being that it is carnauba based it will take away a little of the clarity that is unique to Zaino. A long while back, I used S100 over Zaino to see how it would affect the shine. Turns out, I lost a tad of clarity and the shine didn't really improve much, marginal at best. What I have found with S100 is that it either works best by itself with the S100 GEP, or in conjunction with other sealants like Klasse where clarity isn't as important. I just didn't find much benefit with S100 over Zaino. Plus, it meant I had to remove the wax and oils to reapply more Zaino later. Now, I mostly use it by itself for a quick shine on other cars. It's certainly pretty easy to work with, almost like polishing furniture, with it's wipe on and wipe off nature. If you want to experiment with S100, try it on a panel or two, like just the trunk or something, and see if you like the look or can even tell any difference in appearance. This way, it's easier to clean up if you decide not to do the whole car.

 

After contacting the P21S company, here is their response on the S100 versus P21S...


Take it FWIW, but IMO, they are the same....just relabled and remarketed. Considering the S100 produces a shine that rivals the $70 highly coveted Souveran wax, it's definitely a good deal at $15. Pick some up and do some experiments, you may be impressed!

 

P21S/S100 and Zaino are both good protectants for what they are made to do. These two products are not really comparable. The P21S is a carnuaba which gives a completely different final appearance when compared to a sealant like Zaino. There is a preference difference here. Let's set aside long term durability (> 1 month) which is only needed for those who do not have garages, unable to detail completely their vehicles very often or those who do not care to detail (wax) very often. Other life's activity( i.e. family) sometimes prevents one from spending a great deal of time detailing. I am a car / detailing hobbist, so I always find time even if it's in the middle of the night. After 30+ years of car care I rarely can remember ever allow any of my vehicles going beyond a month without re-waxing or re-sealing. The point being is that a 6 month protectant is not required for detailing fanatics. With that aside lets discuss appearance. Both products have their strong points. Zaino is extremely reflective but emphasizes the clearcoat rather than the base colorcoat. P21S is very glossy, wet, and adds depth by its emphasis on the base colorcoat (please no internet pix to agree or dispute my claims.. these subtle differences can not be witness from a 2-dimensional pix). This is where the preference comes in. Like the old say, different strokes for different folks. The bottomline is how you want your vehicle to look and how long you need protection. I have used both are was quite pleased with both. Unfortunately, the Zaino did not meet my needs for depth and richness. I emphasis "my" needs. I presently use a sealant that gives a more carnuaba-like appearance (Blackfire) and allows topping with a carnuaba (P21S). I still use Zaino on my silver daily driver.. can not beat that durability.

 

I disagree. Long term protection isn't only for those that don't want to wax often. The "quality" of protection and durabilty of a product go hand in hand. If a product lasts 6 months, it's MUCH more likely to resist the common elements and other environmental factors out there, than one that lasts 1 month, or shorter. Does this mean I'm not a detailing fanatic because I choose to protect my car with the strongest/toughest product I've ever found? Ummm...no. What kind of quality protection do you get with a 1 month product? Is it really protecting the surface as well as it could be with other products? If you choose to wax often with a soft wax, like P21S for example, you still aren't getting much protection, but maybe a little more shine. However, waxing often with a very durable product only serves to protect the finish that much more. So, my point being, is that you can't just discredit a long-term product and say, well, they're just for people who don't want to wax often. That is certianly NOT the case. How often you wax is really a moot point. Heck you could wax every HOUR with 3M IHG and still have less durability and protection than a one coat of a sealant. So, just because you wax every day if the case may be, doesn't mean you don't need long term protection. It depends on what you're waxing with. Does anyone here really require 6 months of protection? Probably not because we'll all likely apply more coats long before then. But, it's nice to know that the more often you wax with a sealant the better you're protected. This isn't the case for 99% of the products out there. Your finish is only as well protected as the strongest product you use. Us chooing to use a very strong product for protection makes us no less of a fanatic than those that want to wax every hour with IHG if they so desire. It simply means we WANT more protection than any other product can offer. Has nothing to do with not being a fanatic...

 

blkZ28Conv, you made some very good points for your needs, and everyones needs are different, but most of the people including myself for their daily drivers do not want to polish/wax their cars every 4-6 weeks, remember I said most people, my Jeeps, M5 and my Vette get done 2-3 times a year, and they get 2-3 applications at a time so the protection lasts 3-4 months, and of course we know that carnauba products because they containing oils just do not last very long in the real world, if you drive through hard rain for a few days you can watch your shine disappear, and of course getting your car to shine is the easy part, keeping it shining is the hard part. I can not get Blackfire to last more than a few washings because of the oil.