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What the heck are these?? (Spots on paint)

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  • What the heck are these?? (Spots on paint)

    Hey everyone,

    I'm stumped on this one.

    About 3 weeks ago we went out to detail this Camaro 2010 772 HP BLACK Camaro SS...Swirl City - Auto Geek Online Auto Detailing Forum

    It turned out great. The owner then had it set up to be trailered out to Cali for a show (We live in Arizona).

    After arriving in Cali he gave it a wash and it was then left parted on the street. He was in Carmel, CA. It was during that time period that these spots appeared.

    He emailed me and told me about them...i thought initially they were tree sap spots of some sort, figured we'd clay them out and maybe have to do touch up polishing...well that was not the case.

    We got there earlier today...and these little spots were all over. On the hood and the doors mostly...and some on the quarter panels.

    First we tried clay...which did NOTHING...and i mean NOTHING...didn't even fade some.

    So next we tried spraying it with alcohol which again had zero effect.

    We went on to try bug and tar remover and APC...still no luck.
    We then tried to see if polishing would do ANYTHING, first with 205 and a Tangerine HT pad....no luck...and eventually ended up trying a Sur Buff pad with 105...on the Flex...and STILL nothing. Didn't even fade.

    The odd part is, we can't even FEEL the defects. Like if sap were stuck to the paint, you'd be able to feel it on top of the paint, but it feels smooth. The other odd part is it only shows on the black part of the paint.

    This car was sanded down and re-cleared about 1 1/2 years ago. I wondered at first if they were fish eyes of some sort, but it has been so quite a while since the clear had been sprayed so, I would think it would be odd for them to just now show up, but im not a painter so maybe its possible.

    We started wondering if it was some sort of an insect that crawled on it in spots, because there was no 'splatter' like tree sap would make, especially on the horizontal panels.

    Here are some photos i took...hope they help someone be able to pin point what this is and what to do about them.

    If you look at the piece of tape ALL the way on the left, you can see some of the spots here...and all the pieces of tape are spots where the owner saw these spots or some scratches that needed to be touched up (thats another story, it happened during transport)



    This is on the hood, one of the better shots i was able to take and these are the spots we did the multiple steps listed above (claying, soaking, polishing etc)..and as you can see...no change




    here are a few on the top of the door frame:






    I'm going to ask you guys to IGNORE the hideous swirls that have been put back into the paint here...and focus on the spots lol...swirls i can deal with, these spots are a total mystery to me though




    This was the biggest group of them over on the passenger door




    Sorry its a little blurry in this picture but i was trying to get a close up





    This is the front of the hood on the drivers side. I worry about the idea of wetsanding due to the fact that some of these spots are right on the panel edges.

    Here is a little bit clearer shot



    So...thats what we're working with here. I'm stumped...he's stumped.

    Maybe someone can pinpoint this for me and give us some direction as to where to go with it from now. Worst comes to worse he said he'd just file a claim and have a repaint...but that could mess him up w/his insurance company and plus put the car out of commission for 2 months at least and put us back at square one with some seriously swirled/hologramed paint...but then again its pretty messed up right now thanks to mr. transport *sigh*....

    So, any ideas anyone?
    Wills Amstutz
    Windows And Wheels Auto Detailing LLC
    www.WindowsAndWheels.com

    'Like' Us On Facebook

  • #2
    Re: What the hell are these?? (Spots on paint)

    My parents black lexus has those as well. Rock chips?

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: What the hell are these?? (Spots on paint)

      Looks a bit like stone chips where the wax has dried, try digging the wax out with a toothpick (gently) and see if they are chips

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: What the hell are these?? (Spots on paint)

        Was the car shipped in a closed or open trailer. Tractor trailers are notorious for leaking corrosive materials onto unsuspecting motorist from a leaking trailer etc. Rock chips would most likely only be on leading edges such as hood,fenders and front edge of roof panel. Chips would also be detectable with your fingernail. Need a way to magnify the surface to get a better look. Hard to really tell from the photos.
        Live like you're not afraid to die.Don't be scared, just enjoy your ride. Chris Ledoux RIP

        PAUL SPARKS / Distinctive Auto Detailing
        317-513-4678

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: What the hell are these?? (Spots on paint)

          I would try an citrus-based cleaner. There is one called De-Solv-It that is supposed to work great. Then try vinegar or mineral spirits. If they don't work, I would try lacquer thinner or acetate (I know it will harm the finish but if it gets the spots out u can repolish it). I used to work at a vinyl graphics shop and we sometimes had to use those things to get old sticker residue off of cars. My best guess is that its some kind of nasty bird droppings.

          Good luck!

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: What the hell are these?? (Spots on paint)

            could be dried wax in very small pitts in your paint

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: What the hell are these?? (Spots on paint)

              Looks to me you have a problem with the clear coat . Take some 1500 and wet sand a small area . Then UC and polish . See what happens , Good luck.

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: What the hell are these?? (Spots on paint)

                Buy a 30x magnifier from Radio Shack ,look at the chips, see if there is a "break" in the clear or if its under the clear. When I was working as a "Tech.Rep." that was always one of my goto tools.

                Comment

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