What is this? What is it from??? (PICS)

A

autobahnshine

New member
The hood of a customer's Hummer H2 is in terrible condition, to say the least. The paint is COVERED in these little specks, similar to "Birds Feet."



What causes these etchings? What, if anything, can I do now to help it??

THANKS!









 
I guess you need to consult with the owner when he started noticing those spots ie after rain where he's been/parked to narrow down the suspects.



From the pics it looks like dried water spots. I would test a few spots with an AIO and a folded cotton terry cloth first by applying lots of pressure. Usually most will come off leaving etched white rings. Try something next on the same spot that is more abrasive like ZPC by hand again to see it it will make it better. ZPC can be broken down by hand leaving a 'polished' surface that you can examine.



The reason I would test by hand is you can apply a lot more pressure that way. If the abrasives work and you remove the white etched rings you need to examine the surface to see if the etching is really deep. Since you know the etchings can be removed you need to decide together with the owner if he wants that much clear removed to level the paint.



The test by hand will tell you the amount of work required. I would expect a lot of passes

with a polishing pad will be necessary. From the test I will also decide if I need to use a more aggressive compound to reduce the polishing time.
 
I used M105/Purple Foamed Wool/1700+ RMPs... and they were still there.. Of course, this was followed up with 106FF/Blue/1000 to refine. Maybe more passes? We'll see. Thanks!
 
Oooohhh. Not good. My guess would be heavy water or chemical etching. The last time I saw something like that was when a friend let their lawn sprinkler spray their black VW. It was sprayed daily, and baked for days in the hot summer sun. They had no idea what damage had occured, and to my suprise it occured rather quickly. Looks like a wetsand and compound depending how deep the etching is.
 
Yup, it's some sort of chemical etching. If the car wasn't washed regularly, the chemical will create a permanent stain in the paint. My friends car had a very similar problem, but with bird droppings and some chemical etchings. An Orange pad and SIP didn't come close to taking it out. If compound with an aggressive pad or wetsanding doesn't work, then a repaint is the only solution.
 
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