Black car, about a month old. Love him to pieces. Except... I noticed that after leaving him outside next to a grass irrigation system that went off (this is in the Bay Area, CA, so no rain), and then coming home after maybe 6-8 hours after the water had dried, I ran a wet cloth over the hood and found these blotches. I tried washing, nothing helped. Is this some sort of coating that is coming off? Running over it with a fingernail, there's a definite edge.
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Is this a coating being eaten off my paint?
- Thread starter robertbaruch
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electricar
Member
Looks like hard water spots ( mineralization ) - if it is LimeAway ( test it in a area that is not immediately visible like the bottom of the rocker panel to make sure there is no problem with it harming the paint ) will remove the spots and then you can use a little polishing compound to finish it off. This is perennial problem here in Arizona and I hate to park near any landscaping because when you see the sprinklers on your car you know you have a ton off work ahead of you.
Water spots from Sprinklers when the water is hard - seen it many times on my other cars when I lived in Texas - PITA to get off - Please make sure your car has high quality wax on it to protect the paint
Ummm,
Do not use LimeAway! This is an extreme solution regardless of how good the results 'look'.
If you want your finish to last, take it to a detail shop and have it professionally removed with a quality rubbing compound followed by clay bar > polish > wax.
Do not use LimeAway! This is an extreme solution regardless of how good the results 'look'.
If you want your finish to last, take it to a detail shop and have it professionally removed with a quality rubbing compound followed by clay bar > polish > wax.
NikeWings
Active Member
Too harsh!!!!! Don't use chemicals on your paint.
Have your detailer take care of it with a good rub out and rich, natural carnauba wax. Maybe two coats, every six months, if you are prone to sprinkler sprays.
electricar
Member
Some clarification - I have never seen a problem with LimeAway ( on modern car finishes ) when used by putting some on a soft cloth, wiping the deposits away, washing immediately with a car cleaning solution like Meguiars car wash, and then waxing the area. I have seen problems caused by using abrasives like rubbing compound to remove hard water spots because the paint on late model cars is very thin. Using a clay bar will work but these spots look like it would take loads of rubbing to remove them. The deposits are alkaline and an acidic solution will remove them. If you are worried about LimeAway you can also Chemical Guys hard water spot remover. Again: always try the procedure in area that doesn't show to make sure that you will not have a problem.
I used Chemical Guys Hard Water Spot Remover, and it worked great! Apply, wipe, buff, wash off. He's completely spot-free and glossy black again.
Had same issue as you. But also on the paint as well, not just the glass windows.
I used optimum MDR, and it didn’t work very well despite multiple applications, perhaps the solution wasn’t acidic enough. I did notice that it did strip away some of the UV coating on mine because the psychedelic orange was missing on the areas I used MDR on.
Hopefully the Chemicals Guys didn’t do the same to yours.
CAUTION: be careful about using water spot removers on the glass, it may strip away the UV coating. Consider taking to detailer?
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