Marks in clear coat

[maxivuk]

I was wondering if anyone has similar issue with the clear coat and what are the experiences. This is the car I was working on today. I don't know how this happened, the owner is not sure. I tried compound with wool pad/high speed buffer didn't work. I was thinking about wet sanding the marks. The car is Audi TT 2001.

[Mike Phillips]

I've seen something like this before.

Looks like something was laying on the paint, something wet with who knows what type of chemical and it stained the clearcoat?

What kind of compound did you use?


Since this is your first post to our forum...

Welcome to AutogeekOnline! :welcome:


:)

[Mike Phillips]

In this picture, is the panit surface smooth in-between the segmented appearing splotches?

http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/watermark.php?file=79354


Kind of looks like how when a lake or pond dries up and what started out as a smooth layer of dirt dried and craked apart.


:)

[allenk4]

Strange how the trunk lid is less affected and the section above it adjacent to the convertible top is more affected than the fender?

[Mike Phillips]

Hard to say from the pictures...

But from the looks of the convertible top it looks to be neglected and on an older car?

These kind of imprint stains look like something was laying on the paint, something that became wet with "something" the paint didn't like.


:)

[Guessless]

The car looks like a Boxter.( oops sorry just saw it again, it's an Audi)

If that's the only area of the car that looks like that, then it was perhaps some sort of spraying, maybe plants or bushes? Or sanding,grinding, or spraying from a construction site or a manufacturing workshop etc.? it seems to be a fine powder dust of some sort with perhaps chemical/plastic resins in it and it was carried by the breeze and landed on that side.

I had a similar experience of sorts when my newly painted car was sitting all naked in my mechanics garage and they were grinding the rearside of the headlight buckets to install just 10-15 feet away from the car, long story short the sparks were carried by the strong breeze of that day, flew over the back and top of the car, and landed on the front fender melting into the clear coat. ( The rear and top didn't get any of these)
When I arrived and saw that happening,I got so upset I left the garage, It had taken the body shop and painter about 20 months to finish the car,but that's another story. But the following day when I went back the little dots were all gone, so I guess those guys saw how furious I was and polished them out, the fine hot dust powders cooled of somewhat in the air before landing and were very fine sized so luckily they didn't move far deeper into the CC.

My questions on this car:

1-whatever kinda dust it is sitting on the clear coat has most likely bonded to it to some degree,and to the soft top too. Could some kind of liquid solution( a mixture with a strong APC like content) be misted or sprayed and resprayed a few times letting it dwell on the spots to loosen it to some degree? ( I know you said compounding didn't move it though)
2-would a light petroleum type cleaner damage & dull the clear coat to the extent that compounding/polishing wouldn't recover the luster of CC?

Lastly you could perhaps start with the soft top to see what type of material this stuff is made of and if you can clean the top then you'd have a better idea of how to tackle the paint?

Good luck:xyxthumbs:
And :welcome: to AGF

[Kingston]

Reminds me of the collision wrap marks when doing work for a body shop. They cover up parts of the car with a sticky clear plastic so the interior and vulnerable exterior parts dont get wet while sitting outside waiting for adjusters and service. In the sun they stick badly. Does the owner know if its been wrecked? Check the carfax first.

Guess it doesnt matter in the end. You might as well sand with 2500 and see if it comes out.

[maxivuk]

Thank all of you for the answers and comments.
I used mildly abrasive machine cleaner, formulated to remove 1200-1500 wet sand scratches + wool pad + makita 9227. I am not mentioning exact products name and manufacturer, I don't know if it is against the rules here?
Anyways, after compounding the surface was perfectly smooth.
It might be what Kingston says that the damage was done somewhere in body shop. The owner of the car was playing damb that he doesn't have a clue where that came from. The marks are only on rear side panels with similar patterns. In pic. no.3 there is a mark that is clearly from some kind of tape...
Anyways I need to clean those if possible. I am not very experienced in wet sanding. Do you guys think that these kind of marks can be removed by wet sanding?

[Mike Phillips]

I am not very experienced in wet sanding.

Do you guys think that these kind of marks can be removed by wet sanding?




IF they are not too deep. Get some Trizact #3000 and #5000 discs and sand by machine.

Machine sanding marks are ALWAYS easier and faster to remove than hand sanding marks. Safer for the paint too....


From the description of the owner playing dumb to you... I'd be wary about trying to fix this car.

Do what I call Cherry Picking, take the easy jobs let someone else struggle with problem people.


:)