OBleedingMe

I own a black 2005 Mustang GT. Lately, I have begun to notice something very strange with my paintjob. Before I describe the potential problem I am seeing/feeling, let me explain how I care for my paint.

- I wash it regularly. About every 500 miles or so. It is washed at a self-service car wash (no nasty brushes for my baby!) with Meguiar's Gold Class Car Wash. I use a Turtle Wax Ultra Soft Mitt to apply the suds.

- I rinse the suds off thoroughly and completely dry it with 100% cotton towels. I then return home, park it in the garage, and go over the car for any new drips that may have seeped out on the way back.

- I throw the towels and wash mitt in the washing machine and use laundry detergent. I use a new wash mitt usually by its third or fourth use because they tend to fall apart after awhile.

- For waxing, I first used Meguiar's Gold Class, but I found this wax quite a pain in the butt to buff out, so I switched to their three step system. Paint Cleaner, Polish, and Carnuba (sp??) Wax. I did the three-step system once, followed the directions to the letter, and have been using the Carnuba Wax on a stand-alone basis ever since. I usually wax every third washing. Between washings, if the car gets dirty, I will occasionally use Meguiar's Quick Detailer.

As you can see, I take meticulous care of my paintjob, so I was dismayed to find that on several areas of the car, particularly the lower ridge that runs the length of the doors/front fenders, the paint is beginning to feel rough. It's also showing up under my spoiler and my right taillight, of all places. There are a few small spots on my doors and my bumper that feel this way as well. The best way I can describe the texture of these areas is almost sandpapery - like someone ran something very coarse over the paint and it peeled off the clear coat. If a light is shone on these spots at the right angle, the rough spots appear faded or grayish in color, almost like there's a film over the area. I tried applying extra wax and buffing it, but that yielded nothing.

I have no idea what could be causing these rough spots. I did have paint work on the hood for scratches, but the hood is perfect and it wouldn't make sense for them to do anything to the door ridges and under the spoiler. And the right taillight baffles me. It's obviously not painted... yet it has the same texture as the rough spots on the painted portions of the car.

Has anyone else experienced these symptoms? Does anyone out there know what the heck this is? Oxidation or something? If I have to drag this car to the dealership (and I wouldn't be surprised if I had to, I've had a string of bad luck with this car from the day I owned it), I'd like to have some ammo so they don't try to get out of fixing it if it is indeed a warranty issue.

ponyboy66

Road debris, brake dust etc. Very common.
You will need to take a clay bar to it.

tom_vilsack

I swear by this stuff:

http://www.nufinish.com/products.html

I polish car in garage (out of sun) let area dry-1-2 min (about 1 square ft) buff off by hand,repeat whole car...

This stuff leaves 0 swirls and makes a car shine like no tommorrow..and last for months...

CelticNut

Hey Charlie, I don't have my Mustang yet, but I have some experience in caring for both new and restored cars. My first question is why are you waxing it so often? It is my understanding that many waxes remove a fine layer of paint in the process of buffing it off.

My A4 has a clearcoat and received an application of paint sealant upon delivery. They emphatically stated NOT to wax the car once the paint sealant was applied. I was told that the less the finish is touched, the better. They said that the sealant was the best way to avoid microscopic scratches left by the application and removal of waxes, polishes and compounds. Perhaps a sealant would be a better way to go?

MTAS

Buy a clay bar kit, that will most likely remove any embedded debris on the surface of the clearcoat. Good luck!

WERKED 66

i use one wax system for my whole car zanios the best wax out there . if you get the showcar kit it comes with 2 clay bars

outdoorstom

05SatinGT

Clay bar + Zainos. The best system to keep Black paint smooth and shiny!

snkbtn99

Umm .... you really should look at the quality of the stuff that you are using .... Anything with Turtle Wax in it's name I would avoid .....

You should go to Griots Garage

Very high quality supplies + Zaino = outstanding results ....

If there is actually a probelm with your paint ...take it back to the dealership ...

Burke0011

Hey bro - black GT here also. Yeah, sounds familiar - as most have said, its road debris - visually you notcie it more when looking close cause the car is black.

I could only get off about 30% when WASHING the car ... so a few eeks back, did clay bar before wash and got a LOT of it off there.... anytime you rdive through a puddle or standing water, its gonna take that water, whatever dirt is in it or any other stuff from the road and throw it up on your car. Fact of life.

Don't panic - no paint problems bro! Just claybar that stinker....

lodom

I agree with the above posts about road debris, and I'm hoping that is what it is. I'd try a Clay Magic bar, or other brand, on these areas and see if it removes the stuff in the paint. I didn't care for the Mother's clay bar.

I've never used Meguiar's Gold Class, but the NXT is very very easy to apply and remove. Use a cotton bath towel for removel. It is very similar to the praised Zaino products. I have 3 friends and coworkers who've used the Clay Magic bar and the NXT wax on their cars, and they've all thanked me.

I do prefer Zaino, but the NXT stuff is close in quality.

Also, waxing the car this much isn't necessary, as other's have suggested, especially if it is garaged and washed only with a car wash solution. I use the turtrle wax car wash stuff, and it doesn't cause any problems.

Keep us posted on the results.

Buck_Nekid

I'd vote that it needs to be claybar'ed, too. The claybar removes surface impurities that stick in the clearcoat. Impurities like raildust (tiny rusty metal particles) from transport from the factory, for example. You can wax those areas all you want, but you'll never get the result because your waxing over the raildust.

After the claybar removes that stuff, the surface will be MUCH smoother and you can wax to your hearts content. Just be sure to use CLEAN applicators and buffing cloths (100% cotton terry towels are the best) to avoid swirls & spider-webbing (This is the ONLY way hand waxing can damage today's factory paints). Wax, properly applied and buffed, will not do anything to your paint or clearcoat other than make it shine.

There's no such thing as waxing too often. Excess wax comes off when buffing. Too little wax and you're gonna be claybar'ing again in two months to get the dirt out of your clearcoat layer.

black gt 2005

you say"buff" is this by hand or by machine ? if by machine maybe burned clear off the paint .

redstang

Use a clay bar on your car. It is great stuff

38special

Boy do I not miss my 03 black gt vert!

Meguires 3 step is a great application . Clay bars I would only use twice a year, Spring and Fall.

lodom

I agree, but many single step waxes contain cleaners that can wear away the clearcoat, and are designed for the car owner who might use them 1-3 times a year. If you use a system that separates the wax from the cleaner, you could wax as often as you like.

Zip34

There are quite a few waxing "systems" out there. Many are very good, but it is not always the product that causes the problems. Sometimes it is as simple as what you apply the wax with.

I have a 2003 black Thunderbird with ABSOLUTELY NO SWIRLS, FADING, OR ROUGH SPOTS, and I use Griot's towel's and washing products. I LOVE their "Best of Show" wax, BUT it is a huge pain to remove the Best of Show wax. However, it looks like you need some cleaning clay at this point. So this link may help get you everything you need:

http://www.griotsgarage.com/catalog.jsp?L1..._1001&SKU=11342

I only apply the Best of Show wax about twice a year. I do like the polish they provide, but I like AUTO GLYM'S liquid polish the best. You have to apply AUTO GLYM's polish a little more frequently (about every 3 washes), but it has kept my paint newer and cleaner then any other product I have ever tried, INCLUDING THE ZAINOS. The problem with AUTO GLYM is that it is hard to get. You can't order online. I have it shipped out of Tennessee and I buy it in bulk just in case they decide not to carry the probuct any longer. I'll get the phone number for you if you want it.

94tbird

get the zainos show car kit. you cant go wrong. take a look at a few pics after only 2 coats

Here


also look at this car after zainos wax. this is what im shooting for

OBleedingMe

Clay bar! Duh! I had completely forgotten about that little wonderbar! I saw those rough spots and just started banging my head into a wall, lol.

Thanks for all the help, guys. I'll be sure to claybar her the next washing and then use the Meguiar's three-step system to give the paint that extra shine.

Oh, and the reason I've been waxing it so much is I usually like to put two coats on her for the season, but I've had to bring this car to the body shop TWICE. Once for an accident, and once for scratches because stuff on my garage shelf fell onto the hood/fender on my car. Both times the body shop stripped the wax off the car and I had to start waxing all over again.

azlitigator

Clay bar is def the way to go, and using Zaino or Griots Garage products well worth the effort. If you buy qualilty products you won't have to replace them as much, like the wash mitts you are buying so often. Get a free catalog from Griots Garage. Even if you decide not to order anything from them, the tips inside are great. Zaino on black paint is