Well the facts of life are that, unless you live in a bubble along with your car, swirls are a part of car ownership. Dust and dirt just contains particles that are harder than the clearcoat on the car, hence swirls.
But if you are simply wiping down your dusty car with a damp towel, all you are really doing is dragging dirt across your paint. Use a quick detailer like Mother's Showtime. These have lubricants in them that will help prevent swirls and scratches, and they will help clean off bugs and bird crap.
Washing is the only really safe way to remove dirt, but even then you have to be careful. First you need the right materials and proper washing techniques. Here is how to properly wash your car:
http://www.autogeek.net/exterior.html
The supplies you'll need will be partially based on personal preference. So here's a short list of good choices:
Buckets:
- 2 buckets: 1 for the wash water, and one for rinsing your wash tool in between dips into the soap
- 1 bucket with a GritGuard (mesh insert that keeps dirt and grit on the bottom)
Wash tool*:
- Sheepskin wash mit
- Microfiber wash mit
- Natural sea sponge
- Boar's hair brush
Drying tool*:
- Waffle-weave microfiber towels, such as Cobra's "The Guzzler" (should have 1 of these in any case)
- Natural or synthetic chamois (never been a fan)
- California Water Blade (basically a big squeegee made with medical-grade silicone. HIGHLY recomended in conjunction with The Guzzler)
- A leaf blower (hey, what's softer than air, eh?)
*Wash your wash tools and drying towels after EVERY wash. This will preven grit from getting trapped in the fibers and causing (you guessed it) swirls. Except the leaf blower of course.
Now that you have the basic washing and drying down, the next step is how to remove swirls. Paint detailing is a basically a 4 step process:
1) Decontamination (wash and clay bar)
2) Swirl removal
3) Polishing
4) Sealing (waxing after sealing is optional, some ppl just prefer the look)
So here's the basic process for swirl removal (thanks to Perfectlap and all the other swirlophobics out there
):
1) Wash your car with a degreasing dish soap like original blue Dawn. It will strip off old wax, grease, and anything else while not damaging the paint.
2) Dry the car.
3) Run your hand across the paint. Is is smooth as glass? If not, you need to use a clay bar to remove surface contaminants. Even if it feels smooth, you must do this step anyway, or you will be sealing contminants into your paint:
http://www.autogeek.net/detailing-clay-bar.html
4) If, at this point, you have old waterspots on your car, there is an easy, cheap way to remove them: white vinegar. Just put some vinegar on a microfiber towel and wipe the spots off. Don't worry: It won't harm your clear coat. Most commercial water spot removal products (like Ducky) are mostly vinegar anway.
5) Wash and dry again with your favorite car wash (I prefer Meguiar's Gold Class).
6) Use a swirl remover, preferably with an orbital polisher. Poorboys 2.5 is a recommended product. Your paint may look dull after this step. This is normal, so don't worry.
http://www.autogeek.net/dual-action-polisher.html
7) Polish by hand with a high-end polish like Klasse All-in-One, or Pinnacle Advanced Finishing Polish. This will restore your shine and gloss.
8) Finish up with a good paint sealant with the orbital polisher. The Poorboys EX or Werkstat Acrylic Jett are getting lots of praise. You can also use the Werkstat Acrylic Jett Trigger (spray form of the standard stuff) and do it by hand. Sealants last 6 months, so this is the best way to protect your paint.
9) (Optional step) Wax with your favorite wax. I like the Meguiar's NXT Tech wax (a synthetic non-carnauba), but it's really up to you. The Pinnacle Souverän wax is supposed to be excellent.
So there you go. Hope that helps. Others may have other tips that I might have missed (I'm still learning :P ), so read up as much as you can. If time is a factor for you (like me), check a few posts back from this one made by Perfectlap. He has some good time estimates on how long it should take.