Parked the Mini near some sprinklers and now have hard water marks that I cannot get rid of. Tried vinegar, claybar, various waxes, even WD 40. Any suggestions? The car is Chili Red with Black roof.

 

You have probably marred up the paint more as the more irratated and aggressive you got with your strokes. A polish and a rotary/random orbital tool will remove these.

 

Have you used the search engine in Detailing 101 yet? Maybe try strong solution of Dawn. If it is mineral residue from hard water vinegar may work but it has to stay in contact a while to disolve the stain. I don't know how long exposure to vinegar will affect the clear coat so try it on an out of the way test spot first. Don't be surprised if Octaneguy jumps in here with the perfect solution.

 

ALOT of elbow grease and time waxing it down is all i could figure. i had some hard water spots that were only on there for less then 24hr and they were a pain to get off but it only too a microfiber and some speed detailing spray.

 

Prima Swirl with a random orbital polisher would be all you need.

 

 

Sorry to hear that. I would think that Octane Guy has the answer for this. Maybe you can post a question directly to him in the Detailing 101 forum if you cannot find anything in your search.

good luck!

 

Hot Sauce by Boat Bling. THE best water spot remover I've ever used. It even gets the water spots off the exhaust tips under the swim step. So it should get rid of car water spots. Im pretty sure its a mixture of vinegar and spray wax.

 

Hot sauce?

How about tobasco? I have that available in my fridge.

 

Sorry I missed this thread. Before you throw your entire house at the problem , let's first look at what we are trying to solve.

Hard Water spots are mineral deposits on your paint.

So vinegar should be the first thing you try. This will dissolve any of the minerals on the paint.

So let's look at a BMW that has severe hard water spots from the sprinklers just like in your situation.


After washing the paint, I took a rag soaked in Vinegar and worked it into the fender. Within about 10 or 15 minutes I had this improvement.



In case you're wondering what kind of vinegar I used, here you go!


Now after these spots are removed, you will likely see water spot impressions or imprints. We call this etchings because the minerals have literally etched themselves into the paint creating little craters. Knowing this, you will realize that WD-40, Clay, nor any chemical or water spot remover is going to offer any further improvement because the paint has been physically etched.

Polishing can significantly improve this, but won't totally eliminate it but it will be good enough. Worst case, is to have someone carefully sand the water marks out and polish...but this is only recommended for severe cases where the only alternative is a repaint and you won't accept anything less than a perfect fix.

In the future, the best way to fix water spots, is to not get them on in the first place! I know, it's easier said that done.

Richard

 

Haha its a funny name but the best product I've used for water spots and it smells AMAZING

 

Octane Guy saves the day once again! I knew he'd have an answer for this!