Rust spots

[sjc550]

Have a 2 month old BMW 550i with 2800 miles on it. Washing it on Sunday I discovered thousands of rust spots on the body panels behind all four wheels and all over the rear end. Just washed and waxed it 3 weeks ago and it was spotless. I did have to clay some of these spots off the paint when I waxed it and at that time it seemed like this was a little excessive on a brand new car. Anyway I was able to remove them. Now three weeks later these spots are taking over. I know that claying them will remove them but does anyone have any thoughts on what is causing this? Is this faulty paint or bad brake pads/rotors or something else? The pics kind of make these look like tar. I am sure these are rust spots they are actually orange in color.

[Accumulator]

It's from embedded ferous contamination. Claying usually doesn't get *all* of it out so the rust blooms come back. You need to use an acidic product (as in professional decontamination systems) to truly get it all. And sometimes, if it's been allowed to get too much of a toehold, you never *will* get it completely.

I had this on most of our vehicles until I started decontaminating them when brand new, now it's no longer a problem for me. I don't believe Meguiar's offers a product for this problem, might be something to add to the Pro line...

[sneek]

if your able to remove it with clay i really dont think its rust...but u say that they are orange in colour and your sure its rust ?

sad story i didn't even know BMW had a 5.0L

[Tim Lingor]

Hey sjc550

Welcome to Meguiar's Online!

It sounds like rail dust, as Accumulator mentioned. When you say you clayed some of the spots off previously, did you clay the entire car? If not, I would suggest claying the entire car. I have usually found that once the car is clayed, you should get minimal spots showing up in the future. However I still like to clay 1-2 times per year for other contaminants picked up from day to day driving.

Tim

[sjc550]

Thanks for your responses.

I did not clay the entire car but i did clay the areas where these spots are and it is re-appearing. I heard from my dealer today and they are considering repainting the entire car. Not sure if i'm crazy about that idea.

Why is it just behind the wheels and on the back of the car? Does the salt from the road effect this? Also what about the acid wash idea? Will this work?

Sneek..... it's actually a 4.8L BMW is rounding up with the 550

[sneek]

hmm i dont know about the acid wash sounds scary but ... i dont know much about anything i talk to make noise!

i remember when BMW used to round down like the 318is i think is actually a 1.89L

[Tim Lingor]

Originally posted by sjc550
Thanks for your responses.

I did not clay the entire car but i did clay the areas where these spots are and it is re-appearing. I heard from my dealer today and they are considering repainting the entire car. Not sure if i'm crazy about that idea.

Why is it just behind the wheels and on the back of the car? Does the salt from the road effect this? Also what about the acid wash idea? Will this work?

Sneek..... it's actually a 4.8L BMW is rounding up with the 550

Hey,

If the dealer has looked at the paint and has suggested a repaint, I question what has occured or why they want to take that step???

If it is rail dust as I suspect it is, the winter salt on the roads does cause the spots to appear. The sections behind the wheel wells could be caused from debris being kicked up from the winter roads displacing more salt on those areas. Most of the time, the spots are on the lower panels.

I would re-clay the area to remove the spots. Then I would suggest using a magnifying glass with a light to see what the paint looks like where the spots were. If you see bare metal pits, then you may have very soft paint. Hence their reason for wanting to repaint the panels.

To be honest, try the clay again. Have them place their wanting to repaint it in writing just in case there is an issue with the paint. Otherwise use the clay.

I hope this helps!

Tim

[gb387]

Originally posted by sjc550
Thanks for your responses.

I did not clay the entire car but i did clay the areas where these spots are and it is re-appearing. I heard from my dealer today and they are considering repainting the entire car. Not sure if i'm crazy about that idea.

Repaint the entire car!

Iowa... Des moines?

[sjc550]

I am taking it into the dealer tomorrow for some other issues. We'll see what they have to say after seeing it live. I will clay the whole car when I get it back before i let them paint it!

I am using the blue clay with quick detailer for lube. Is this too aggressive or not aggressive enough? Like it better than the white stuff since it is a bigger chunk.

gb387....Spirit Lake

[sneek]

the blue clay is mild ... im not sure how it compairs to the quik clay, clay. i would think that its less aggresive.. but thats just a guess

[Accumulator]

I sure wouldn't let them repaint a new car, I'd get a different vehicle first. I'd be absolutely immovable on this point.

sneek- I've used the acidic stuff on quite a few vehicles, including my beloved Audi S8 when it was brand new. No problems at all. It's *made* for this specific issue (embedded ferrous contamination and, to a lesser extent, mineral deposits).

I don't want to be recommending non-Meguair's products on MOL but there are two companies selling these decontamination systems and this solution worked a lot better than clay for me. Note that I'm very clay-centric in my detailing and I sorta approach things with the view that if clay will do a job then that's what I use.

The problem with clay is that it doesn't always get the last tiny bit of rust that's lurking below the surface of the paint. That little bit eventually blooms into something not so little that you can see with the naked eye. You really do need to "burn it out" (heh heh, how do you like how *that* sounds ) with the acid, which is milder than it sounds but a lot stronger than vinegar.