I have a red 2005 Audi s4 that has water spots/etching on the top of the car; hood roof and trunk. I have tried using Griots polishes and all they did were to remove the scratches and swirls. Yesterday morning I gave the car the "magic acid bath." It somewhat worked, but in the cold weather here in Chicago I might not have done too good of a job. Are there any compounds that I can use that might remove these marks w/o harming the clearcoat? Any other help would ne great.
Need help from a pro!
- Thread starter popsinc
- Start date
popsinc said:
In my opinion, like any type of marring or scratches, it really depends on the extent of the damage that the water has made. I have had luck using concentrated levels of vinegar and Simple Green (not together). For more severe spots, I have had luck with more aggressive compounds. For the real "hard core" damage, you may have to resort to wetsanding. In the most extreme of cases, it may be irreversible...it may have broken through the clear. Ideally, some photos of the water spots would help us here.
FYI: I am in Chicagoland as well (Addison). If you want, I could come take a look and give you my thoughts.
popsinc said:
I pulled my post because afer I reread this it sounded like you
used Griots polishes not just #9 and the Griots polisher like in you other post
and having not used those polishes I can't speak about them
also I am not a pro
what polishes did you use?
what polishes do you have?
imported_JoshVette
New member
You need a Porter Cable buffer for that, maybe even a rotary, all depends how deep the etching is.
I just got the D/A by Griots. My buddy turned me on to Griots because he is using the Porter Cable and Griots is just about the same but a few bucks cheaper. He also uses Griots and only Griots. In the past he used Zaino and he switched to Griots just last year.Do you think that I could remove these marks with Megs products such as #80, #9 and #26?? Im not in the position to have numerous bottles of different types of polishes/waxes etc. for storage reasons. I already have a bottle of #9 and #26 that I used on my white Mercedes but now with a bright red car, I might have to do some adjusting.
jimmybuffit
That'll buff right out!
Well, the #9 is a polish, albeit a mild one. It may work with the DA and a polishing pad, but I would guess it would be quite time consuming. #83, Dual Action Cleaner/Polish would be my choice, given the limited tool selectiion.
#26 is a wax, and really has no abrasive qualities, be design.
Good Luck.
Jim
#26 is a wax, and really has no abrasive qualities, be design.
Good Luck.
Jim
imported_JoshVette
New member
If you already have some mild polishes then I'd suggest getting a bottle of 3M rubbing compound, it has a lot more cut, sorry I don't remember the actual name, something like finesse it 2 or whatever.
Audi has a very hard clear so you'll need something with some real cut, then follow up with one of the Meg's polishes, then rewash it and wax it.
Josh
Audi has a very hard clear so you'll need something with some real cut, then follow up with one of the Meg's polishes, then rewash it and wax it.
Josh
jimmybuffit
That'll buff right out!
Actually, the best, and proper solution is to seek the services of a trained professional. The cost would be ~ $150, but you'll have a proper finish and sealant.
You may spend that much in tools,pads, and polishes. Not to mention the time you'll have to put into it.
Jim
You may spend that much in tools,pads, and polishes. Not to mention the time you'll have to put into it.
Jim
I just met with my body guy and he said that there is no dought in his mind that the car has to be wet sanded and buffed. It would take too much time and conpounds to do it myself and there's no guarantee that the spots will come out. Most of all, I trust his word as well as his work. He also said that Audi has a bullitproof-like clearcoat. In other words, I found the answer to my problems. However, will Megs products give me the shine and protection that I will be looking for?
imported_JoshVette
New member
popsinc said:
I'll tell you first hand body shops don't know crap and do crappy work. I highly doubt water etching needs to be wetsanded. I would run away from that shop as fast as you can.
Body shops only know one thing, sand and respray. They suck with buffing and polishing and never finish down swirl free, they'll throw a wool pad on with a compound, get the marks out then wax it and a week or two later when you see it in the sun, you'll be pissed....
Don't do it. :tribe:
Envious Eric
New member
yeah, a lc wool pad with a medium compound should do the trick. maybe with two or three passes
I know its a different car, but I did a toyota tacoma and two passes with IP and a cutting pad on a rotary and the water etching was gone...I figure with an AUDI, a wool pad and HTEC or SIP should take care of things rather quickly...but I wouldnt attempt it with a PC...you will be sitting there forever...
I know its a different car, but I did a toyota tacoma and two passes with IP and a cutting pad on a rotary and the water etching was gone...I figure with an AUDI, a wool pad and HTEC or SIP should take care of things rather quickly...but I wouldnt attempt it with a PC...you will be sitting there forever...
should I attempt it myself or should I find a true detail shop? I am a pretty hands on type of guy. I am sure that I can do a great job in polishing and waxing just as good as the pros, but this whole thing with heavy compounds and rotary buffers I am not too sure. I just bought a Griots D/A polisher that I know that I can do polishing and waxing with, but what about really getting down and dirty??
popsinc said:
sure give it a try
but you are going to need a stronger coumpound/polish
I would start with HTEC it's cheap works well and finishes nice
(if you want to stick to megs try 83)
note I think my paint is a lot softer then yours
but here is a thread from when I first used HTEC:
http://autopia.org/forum/detailing-product-discussion/87240-can-you-find-my-test-spot.html
imported_JoshVette
New member
popsinc said:
Hope you don't take offense to this, but you just said you could do as good a job as the pros but then you're not too sure about the whole compound and rotary thing?? That's quite a contradiction.
Audi has very hard clear, you may be able to get them out with a PC you may not, can't tell since I can't actually see the car and damage. Heavy compounds or light abrasives work basically the same way, one you just have to finish down and the other you may not.
If you use a wool pad you'll have to follow up to remove the holograms. What good is getting rid of etching just to leave buffer trails and holorgrams all over. This where pro detailers (who have experience with rotary machines) and body shops differ. You have to be able to get rid of both etching and holograms.
If you already have the buffers, then try it on your own, if the PC doesn't cut it, then locate a detailer who knows what hes' doing.
Accumulator
Well-known member
I wasn't gonna post on this thread as I already put my $0.02 in on the other one and I'm not a pro (in the sense of doing this stuff for pay). I *have* been polishing Audi clear since forever though...
[Insert what I said on the other thread here....]
I'm not at all surprised that the guy who looked at it says it needs wetsanded. It'll at least take some very aggressive work with a rotary (which didn't solve the etching on my wife's A8). There's simply no way to take off enough clear to level the paint enough to solve such problems without, well, taking off a lot of clear. Note that if you take off more than half a mil (0.0005") you'll precipitate premature clearcoat failure...and I'd want a lot of clear over a red basecoat to protect against fading.
And when something needs wetsanded, trying to do the job with a polisher isn't always a viable alternative. My painter said I should wetsand the M3 (another case of hard clearcoat); I decided to do the job with aggressive rotary work instead...in hindsight he was right. Which reminds me- I oughta point out that not *all* paint/body guys are hacks when it comes to detailing; my good painter is very, very good at polishing.
[Insert what I said on the other thread here....]
I'm not at all surprised that the guy who looked at it says it needs wetsanded. It'll at least take some very aggressive work with a rotary (which didn't solve the etching on my wife's A8). There's simply no way to take off enough clear to level the paint enough to solve such problems without, well, taking off a lot of clear. Note that if you take off more than half a mil (0.0005") you'll precipitate premature clearcoat failure...and I'd want a lot of clear over a red basecoat to protect against fading.
And when something needs wetsanded, trying to do the job with a polisher isn't always a viable alternative. My painter said I should wetsand the M3 (another case of hard clearcoat); I decided to do the job with aggressive rotary work instead...in hindsight he was right. Which reminds me- I oughta point out that not *all* paint/body guys are hacks when it comes to detailing; my good painter is very, very good at polishing.
PROServices
New member
If you have access to a pneumatic da sander... the 3M perfect-it system works well in many cases.... But severe water etching is something that is REALLY best left to the pros. You need to be able to guage the clear coat and be skilled enough to know how aggressive you can afford to be. If you find a pro who does high quality detailing they should be able to look at it and know if it can be fixed without re-shooting it.
In some cases its just a matter of mineral deposits on the paint that arent going to budge without some high speed wool. Either way if straight vinegar and mild compounds on your PC didnt get the results you are looking for its probably beyond a DIY situation. Get it fixed, seal and maintain the paint and enjoy hassle free regular maintainance from here on out....
But etching is one of those things that will continue to get worse with time.. so the longer you fiddle around trying to get the right answer (ask 3 detailers get 7 opinions) the worse your problem is going to get.
In some cases its just a matter of mineral deposits on the paint that arent going to budge without some high speed wool. Either way if straight vinegar and mild compounds on your PC didnt get the results you are looking for its probably beyond a DIY situation. Get it fixed, seal and maintain the paint and enjoy hassle free regular maintainance from here on out....
But etching is one of those things that will continue to get worse with time.. so the longer you fiddle around trying to get the right answer (ask 3 detailers get 7 opinions) the worse your problem is going to get.
David Fermani
Forza Auto Salon
popsinc said:
I'm afraid by your description that the "water etching" is acid rain damage (horizontals of vehicle)? The best and safest way to correct this problem is to wet sand the damaged areas and *then* buff via rotary polisher. It's much safer to run a DA sander over damaged finish to quickly remove (cut down) the etching rather than grinding it off with a buffer & compound. I'd rather make 3-4 passes with sandpaper than 8+ with a compound. The cut will be much more uniform. If your not equipped to do this yourself, I'd suggest looking for a professsional person with lots of experience sanding. Even if they might not be able to finish down their buffing to a perfectly swirl free finish, they would atleast be fixing the bulk of the problem. Then, afterwards, final finishing could be done by yourself. Just my opinion.