I've had problems with acid rain spotting on my paint.
I've tried everything to remove them including polish with a orbital buffer etc.
After contacting Acura Customer Service they said they would do whatever it takes to keep me happy. This is my third Acura.
The body shop at the dealership saw the spots and said they would like to try wet sanding the clear coat to remove them. I am worried that this would remove some or most of the layer of clear coat. I understand it is not too thick to begin with. Also using a fine wet sandpaper will remove the shine. Will it ever be as shiny and free of swirl marks as it is now. Except for the spots on the hood and trunk the paint looks great. It's NBP. I use Pinnacle paste wax and Griots machine polish. I'm considering Zaino but Sal said he doubt's that it will remove the spots. He said to try white vinegar to remove but that did not work either.

 

First, let's make sure our terminology is correct. Are your spots true water spots - that is, hard mineral deposits above thge surface, rathger white looking. If so, try the viengar route.

If, like me, you have water/acid etched clearcoat, that is a different animal (happened to me when the car was left outside by the dealer over a weekend, got rained on, then the sun burned the spots). Based on what the body shop said, this is most likely your problem.

I have tried every polishing skill I have learned over 30 years to correct the spots, and have inmproved it to the acceptable, I have used three different polishes (Meguar's, Kar Kraft, and Girot's) and multiple strengths (HD, Med duty, light duty).

I have done a lot of wet sanding to smooth touchups. Properly done, the end result has been you would not know the area had been sanded. This is true on a spot I did on the TL clearcoat. One starts with 2000 grit, then 1500, then various degress of polish (gritty, medium, fine) until the surface is smmoth enough for wax/polish.

I had not thought about wet sanding the acid etchings. I may actually try a small spot tomorrow. I will report back.

If you decide to go that route, make sure they gurantee the results.

You will thin the clearcoat some, the trick is not to break through it. Long term effects are unknown. But rememeber that clearcoats have UV protectors in them, and thinning may expose you to worse stuff down the road.

I'll try it, but I have sort of resolved to live with the etching, and continue to Zaino to diminish their apperance over time.

 

The spots are acid rain etching in the clear coat. If you look at them with a jeweler's loupe you can see that it is below the surface of the clear coat. I've done the vinegar, polish etc. and nothing will get rid of them. It's too bad cause my car was only out one time in the rain since I bought it in April. Let me know how the wet sanding works. I am still debating on doing it. I might just have to live with the spots. They are only visible if you look real close. Also they seem to me more noticable when the car has a good layer of dust on it. If I use speed shine on the paint the spots seem to go away for a few days.