Removing water spots Options

[Cal]

My '74 2.0L was painted about 25 years ago in two-stage base/clear coat. The paint job is in excellent driver quality condition and looks great from 5 feet away. Up close it has faint water spots that appear to be etched into the clear coat.....mostly on the flat areas; hood / trunk surfaces. I've detailed the entire car by hand....washed, clay bar, polished, waxed, etc. and the spots are still there. What would be the best advise for possibly removing the spots? I've never needed to or used a buffing machine before.....the past 35 years I've detailed everything by hand. Should I consider buying one or just take the car to detail shop?

[Tom_T]

Cal,

If they're etched in, then more likely that's from bird/bug droppings, & etched-in due to the acid in their poop! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/dry.gif)

You can usually get hard water marks off with a damp old school sheep skin Chamois.

Before you try anything more aggressive on that paint, I'd suggest you take it to one of the PCA Concours CW folks recco'ed paint detailer shops, & have them scope the paint thickness first, & then recco how much you have left & how far you'd need to cut into it to get the etching out. Then you can decide whether you want to tackle it, or have them do it.

PS - Hard water spots are calcium/etc. minerals which will sit on top of the paint, ergo why the old school chamois works on them.

Good Luck! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)
Tom
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[michael7810]

I've got 31 year old single stage paint and gets water spots that you can't feel. They seem like the paint is bleached when water dries in the hot sun. I've tried several compounds by hand and nothing takes them out. A professional detail shop was able to get most of them out. The remaining spots are hard to see so I live with it. Good luck

[Jeff Hail]

Start with a very clean and dry car. Cool weather and not in direct sun.

Use a 50/50 solution of water and plain white vinegar on a new yellow terry towel/ microfiber. Wipe it on and let it dry to a haze.

Then use Meguirs #47 one panel at a time. #47 is the boat crowds hail mary for removing hard water spots. Follow the instructions.

This should break any mineral deposits free from the paint surface. Both will also remove any wax or sealants.

Wash the car again except use a very mild soap about 1/10th of what you normally would use. You want to float anything off the surface you just treated. Dry out of direct sun.

Wax the car with a good quality wax. I still prefer carnuba/ bees wax formulas. After you wax the car go over it again with something like Meguiars Detailer Last Touch D15501 or similar such as Griots #11098 (this used to be pink now its dirty white but still smells like a bubble gum in a strip club).

[Cal]

At the recommendation of a friend I tried Meguirs ScratchX 2.0 after work tonight on one panel and with a lot of elbow grease I've been able to remove most of the spots / blemishes and minor swirling. I followed it up with Meguirs #7 glaze, a coat of carnauba wax and finished with Griots detailing spray and it looks much better....90% of the spots are now gone and the panel has an even shine throughout. Now I just have the rest of the car to do (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sad.gif)

[iankarr]

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/agree.gif) about the vinegar solution. I parked under an overpass that was dripping acid limestone on my car. Even the most aggressive compound didn't seem to help. Tried the vinegar and it magically lifted off. I knew I should've paid more attention in HS chemistry class. Before you wear out your elbows on the rest of the car, try the vinegar solution...

[Toast]

Lemon. Seriously.
Take a lemon and cut it in half. Then rub the lemon over a certain area and then rinse it off. See if that works in the spot. It worked for mine. I did the whole entire car. I think I used like 8 lemons.

[Cracker]

Damn. Its allot easier owning a race car...I too can vouch for the vinegar solution.

Good luck!

PS: Maybe you should have just asked your "friend" to begin with... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/blink.gif)

Tony