Annoying Water Spot and acid etching

D

Danspeed1

New member
Hey guys.



Last week I got my 2005 Corvette back from the paint shop. I had the bumper redone because it looked horrible. It was sprayed with PPG. The guy who did the work coated it with some Meguiars Wax (not sure which one) and I brought it home. The next day we had a light sprinkle in the morning and it dried up in the afternoon. When I went outside the water was beading up on the hood and bumper. When I came home in the afternoon the car was dry, looked dirty but overall the surface looked good. I live in NY and there is a lot of pollen right now, and acid rain is just unavoidable. When I washed the car that afternoon it was apparent there was imbedded water spots and very light acid etching already all over my new paint. I am getting tired of fighting this fight. Wax looks great, and I was concerned about using a sealer on the fresh finish, but I am tired of the water beading on the car, then drying and leaving water spots and damage all over the paintl; then having to go over it all the time with my rotary. So I guess what I am asking is what is the best "SHEETING" wax/sealer that can be used on fresh paint. What I am looking for is something slick that will cause this water to just slide off rather than bead up and hang out. Something that's also allows easy removal of bugs (car is slammed on the ground) and road grime. Zaino is the only thing I have tried so far that does this. Its not perfect but its pretty good. Is there anything better. Not the bait the thread but I am thinking about trying Ultima Paint Guard Plus. Any other recommendations or thoughts?



Dan
 
Optimum Opti-Seal works well to minimize spotting. It will bead in the rain but the protection seems pretty stout. Holds up very well to bird bombs too.
 
Scottwax said:
Optimum Opti-Seal works well to minimize spotting. It will bead in the rain but the protection seems pretty stout. Holds up very well to bird bombs too.
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Zaino and FK will help as well. What color is the Vette? Do you have a car cover?
 
Once you have the sealant chosen, because the acid rain situation is so chronic up there, I suggest you get Auto International's Valugard ABC Decontamination wash system



You'll probably want to use it seasonally, since you're exposing the *black* paint to the elements regularly. You use it before re-sealing and/or correcting the finish and resealing. Acid can still dwell in the paint for a long time and reactivate when exposed to the environment and water,even after the car has been "normally" washed, so washing with this system can stop it from re-etching or getting worse.



There's no cure to fully prevent the acid rain etching though :(
 
I am considering the Finish Kare Decontamination system... looks promising.



Can someone recommend a hardcore sealant, Fresh paint safe, that will sheet like a mother, and is easy for cleanup-tar&bug removal?



I can't decide, Opti-seal, UPGP or something not mentioned....



DG
 
I have been reading all afternoon (this is how I spend my time off)... I am surprised no one mentioned Opti-Coat. Anybody care to explore that avenue with me?



DG
 
Danspeed1- I'd want to ascertain that the sealant would truly be fresh-paint-safe; I don't see how the paint will outgas if it's sealed :confused:



Some people are very happy with the OptiCoat. I'm not LSPing with it as I need to be able to do spot-correction.
 
Accumulator said:
Some people are very happy with the OptiCoat. I'm not LSPing with it as I need to be able to do spot-correction.
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....mine is still sitting in my cabinet for the same reason although I'm still tempted to try it on the wife's hood. ;)



It's just my opinion (and maybe I'm over thinking things), but I simply don't like the idea of having to "get aggressive" on a panel to completely remove a product when all I want to do is relatively light correction. Typically I would just follow it up with a re-application of my LSP but given OC's resistance to products layered on top of it (including itself), the old product (from my understanding) would need to be completely knocked down first.
 
Kean said:
but given OC's resistance to products layered on top of it (including itself), the old product (from my understanding) would need to be completely knocked down first.
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That's why if I ever get it, I'm just going to use in on emblems and maybe wheels.
 
Yea, I am thinking I am putting too much effort into this. I spent my whole day off yesterday reading posts about opti-coat. In the time I spent reading I could have had the car fully corrected with 10 coats of Zaino on it!!! Well maybe not but still. Nowhere does it specify that it is or is not fresh paint safe. In addition I must agree that I do want to be able to do spot repair from time to time. My friend stopped by the other day. I detailed his GTO two years ago. He ran it through the local car wash before he brought it over. Two years, four coats of Zaino... believe it or not still seems to be holding up. Car's kept out doors. To satisfy my curiosity I will call optimum since everybody raves about their customer service, but I think I am going to stick with the old Zaino (that is fresh paint safe and supposedly does breath). Keep layering it, and top it off with some DWG and Pinnacle Souveran which I have sitting on my shelf and have been dying to try. Zaino tends to hold off marring and scratching for at lest 4-5 months on most the black cars I have. You can attribute the marring and scratches to poor washing techniques but you have to remember the car is kept outside, and in NY you can see the air. (theres that much grime in it.)



DG
 
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