Ok, fair enough it's very forgiving as to showing imperfections.

I'm sure my SWP has swirl marks. I like SWP because I can't easily see them, lol...

So true. And if you want to go a step beyond that, skip the microfiber drying towel and just use a blower to dry the car. I use my shop vac on the blow setting. I only use a towel on the jams.

Also, don't put any pressure on the mitt/sponge. Let it do all the work. If you drop your mitt/sponge/towel on the ground, don't reuse it, get a new one.

Most importantly - never, ever go to a machine wash place.

I've had problems with this issue as well. I've been using the microfiber towels from Costco when drying, but it looks like those leave swirls in the paint when scrubbing out hard water marks.

Can anyone recommend a swirl remover or polish? The scratches aren't deep at all, and I can only see them when reflecting direct sunlight. Also if anyone would recommend a really nice drying towel that you can buy online, I'd definitely be interested in picking up a new one.

I bet a ton of people are lying about not having swirls.

:needpics:

The average car owner doesn't realize how soft paint is. It's inevitable to have swirls to one degree or another. Those who are fanatical about polishing out swirl marks are continually thinning out the paint and with time they will start seeing the undercoat coming through the paint surface.

The idea is not to scrub out anything. Let the soap do the work. You shouldn't apply any pressure to the sponge/mitt, and the same is true of the drying towels.

Polish all depends on the pad selection as well as the condition of the paint. I like Meguiars 205 on a medium-soft pad for finishing/removing light scratches/swirls.

For drying towel, I really like this one:

http://www.autogeek.net/waffle-weave-drying-towel.html

My suggestion - polish the paint and apply a quality sealant once a year. Use a quality wax every three months. That will help keep the hard water spots from etching the paint.

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Another thing is to not move your mitt/towel in a circular motion. You are only inducing more swirls that way. I go left/right. I voted "no swirls" because if I have any its insanely hard to tell. SWP may help, but my paint looks great and I know all too well about subaru's soft paint after owning an STi for 8 years lol.

I also always use a quality after wash wax so debris/dirt doesn't bury itself onto the paint as easy. I never put pressure down on the car.

After I did my paint correction I've been using a cross cut sponge, 2 bucket method with optimum no rinse, patting dry with DI waffle weave microfiber, and Griots speed shine to freshen up between washes.... you still get very minor swirls. VERY minor, only visible at night when the light is in just the right angle.... easily corrected by anyone with a DA and polish

It is not possible to completely avoid swirls, but there are procedures you can do to minimize them.

1. Detail your car and have it coated with either Opti-coat or C Quartz
(one last longer, and other finishes shinnier)

2. Using two bucket methods with soap if you have a place to wash your car
completely without sunlight ever directly shining on your car.
Even with two bucket method, grid guard, and soap, I would still recommend
changing your wash mitten after a certain portion of your car.

Use Gary Dean's washing method if you do not have access to free running water
or a place in complete avoidance to sun light.
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kY_S-fkgrE"]The Garry Dean Wash Method GDWM Infinite Use Detail Juice Anywhere Wash Bucket Waterless Car Wash Auto Wash Rinseless Car Wash - YouTube[/ame]

Washing your car NOT in complete avoidance of the sun will cause water spots, and they are almost if not, harder to remove
that swirls induced by washing.

3. Use a blower to dry your car, if not, use a microfiber cloth and pad your car dry,
instead of dragging across the surface.

Again, you cant' completely avoid it, but you can minimize their effect.
My car still looks very similar the day it was detailed, and you can only see minor swirls when you use the sun as a spot finder.

Thanks! I'll look into picking up some of that polish.

If I'm doing this by hand, would a microfiber towel work fine or would you recommend any polishing pad in particular? The car is only a few months old, and the swirls are extremely light, I just want to keep it looking perfect for as long as I can. :)

A machine polish would be the most effective. Polishing by hand will take ages.

Unless you have lots, and I mean LOTS of free time, I would suggest you to stay away from handl polishing.

It takes forever, and the finishing surface might not be as even as machine polshed.

Check detailersdomain and autogeek often, they should have the Portacable/Griot's garage DA polisher package on sale during this time of the year (may cost about 200 dollars
package wise)


or you can hire a profesional detailer (roughly 200 bux as well) and do the job for you.