[mkaufman]

Stoopid sprinklers at work where I had to park the other day are (1) on while people are at work, (2) water cars parked in marked stalls! So I come out at lunch and there are all sorts of completely evaporated irrigation water spots across my back end from the C-pillar back :-(. Actual raised surfaces worth of left-behind minerals.

I washed it tonight. Good car wash, soft cotton chenille wash mitt, P21S drying towel. The outlines of each spot are still there. WTF?! Besides climbing all over the building manager, what is the safest/gentlest way to remove these faint outlines? Waxing over them isn't going to help.

I have seen Meguiar's #9 recommended as well as 3M Imperial Hand Glaze for just this situation. Anyone care to chime in with other favorites? Or recommend one of these two over the other? I DO NOT WANT TO DAMAGE THIS BEAUTIFUL PAINT JOB. Fortunately, these spots are on two recent coats of One Grand Blitz wax, so this should end well, right ?

 

[HIBBoyScott]

Klasse All In One. Comes in a red bottle. Kinda pricey compared to many other polishes/protectants/waxes on the market, but well worth it. My cousin and her now ex husband bought a used car some years back. The thing was covered with water spots only God knows how old. These spots were all over the car. I was able to take them out, by hand, with the Klasse. Using an orbital probably would have made my job a zillion times easier, as it did take elbow grease. But Klasse is totally non abrasive and won't harm the paint. Great stuff.

 

[brad]

I have had dynamite luck with the 3 step Mother's system. Price is right, too.

 

[cardinal_creek]

Originally posted by brad:
I have had dynamite luck with the 3 step Mother's system. Price is right, too.

Brad, glad it works for you but Consumer Reports said that Mothers and Meguiars 3-step weren't worth the effort. Sometimes we get misled by the marketing and packaging.

Tops in their ratings was Zymol, Prestone, Nu Finish, Armor All, 3M. They were rated on the following categories:

Gloss, Durability, Cleaning, Ease of Use and Scratching/Hazing.

BTW, PS21 and Blitz were not reviewed.


------------------
cardinal
'01 Silver/Black
LS, LD, HH, SR, 17"

 

[brad]

Interesting, I was able to get almost all scratches off of my car each time. Oh, well.

 

[mkaufman]

brad, use what works for you. No worries.

I picked up some 3M Imperial Hand Glaze on the way home, and tried it on the top of my trunk where the worst mineral etching from the hard water spot was. It took several applications and some significant elbow grease, but that stuff really works! I would MUCH rather have to rub and rub than just have it work with a few light passes - this way I know it's only stripping a few molecules off the finish each time . So I know some wax and all of the clear coat is still there.

I'll wash it as usual Saturday and then lay another coat of One Grand Blitz over the top and this sad affair can be put behind me!

I do recommend the 3M product for hard water spots, bird poop and acid rain damage on the basis of this first exposure to it...