Water spots on darker cars?
 

My last vehicle was a 2010 CR-V opal sage metallic, and I never noticed any water spots after washing it or rinsing it off, which I did with frightening frequency. Last week I bought the Vortex Blue Pearl Fit, and I had to actually polish it before waxing due to some serious water spots on parts of the car. I assumed this was due to how long it was sitting in the back gravel lot at the dealership all year. But after waxing then rinsing again later (Tennessee has a lot of birds and pollen, I swear I'm not OCD... maybe) I noticed water spots all over the car.

I'm using the same hose, same products, same conditions as that light green CR-V, and I'm wondering if this is just the nature of things with darker cars.

Any ideas? :vtec:

Welcome to the world of acid rain damage. I had the same thing on my dark blue Vibe. This is why the dealer is supposed to leave the white environmental covers on the cars until it is sold. There also is a reason those covers are white; dark colors absorb more UV radiation. From now on, it is all white cars for me.

Well, at least the ones it came with polished out. I guess when I rinse it off I need to dry it off, as well.

My Fit is the Crystal Black (1st black car ever owned) and it is the WORST at keeping clean and polished. Water spots and everything else shows up as soon as I dry it. It looks phenomenal after I detail it but pretty much looks like crap again within a day or two.

if you are doing it yourself, i would recommend trying a claybar first. I just bought my black 13 fit last week and the first thing i did when i got it home was clay and wax. It had quite a lot of waterspots on it. Clay'ing helped remove most of them. If that doesnt work and you don't have a REAL buffer, take it to a specialist detail shop...I can't seem to find anywhere that sells over 1000grit sandpaper in my area. If all else fails, you can always get the car re-cleared lol.

Or just leave it dirty.

A dirty car is a DRIVEN car.

The water spots I am talking about now aren't the original water spots it had when I brought it home, those took some serious elbow grease and polish to get off, its just the water spots after washing that I'm noticing now. I just hoped that I could just make sure to dry the car after I wash it. But one question answered, dark cars are worse.

My wife will be getting a new car within the next month or so and color is the most important thing for her. She wants either white, silver, light blue, light green or something of the sort only because dark colored cars always look filthy........especially my Fit.

Our water is very hard, so the windows have to be dried after washing or spots show up, thankfully we opted for white fit sport, not for spots just the temp difference.
If it is hard water you can rinse with vinegar diluted with distilled water.

Yeah, here in TN isn't not 'soft water' at all. And even the windshield of the light green CR-V didn't show water spots, not really sure why. They put some protective coating on it, but I can't imagine that being the reason... I will say its really hot here now, maybe the heat is affecting the insides of the hose I was using and residue is seeping into the water making it leave grime behind.

Try out these products - Zaino Store

try using a "cleaner" wax on it with a micro fiber and it should clean the surface of the car. also i would advise to keep it away from any sprinklers. the water you are using may be from a well which is why it is drying the way it does. try taking it to a car wash.

Nah, I wish it was a well. Its more than likely the hose sitting out in the heat and residue from inside the water getting on the hose. Either way, I'll keep my fingers crossed that simply drying it after a rinse will do the trick.

Get a good coat of wax on, and then use detail spray after every wash.

When washing, use a microfiber sponge or glove to wash, and have a second bucket to rinse the glove/sponge in before dipping it back into the soap This will keep the soap clean and stop some water spots.

Also, don't dry a dark vehicle with a shammy or you'll get micro scratches. I recommend terry or microfiber cloths.

Thank you, Schoat!

I've all but given up trying to keep my CBP clean, the second post is the excuse I give myself for my lack of effort :rotfl: :highfive:

Well, Wanderer, it DID make me laugh. ;)

I believe I have found the source of the water spots. Its the hose or the sprayer, so I'll be running some CLR through them. There was a huge rain storm yesterday in Nashville and afterwards there was not one water spot on my car. :)

And why won't my signature photo show up? I have it 200x100 pixels and 16kb, so what's the deal?

I have well water (with what they call hard water) and two black cars 1995 Miata and 2012 Camry. I usually hand wash but with the water and the spots left I now get up early in the morning and go to the car wash with the hand held brushes and spray then go home and wax. Even waxing after washing at home you could see the spots would end up rubbing extensively to remove.