Anyone know how to remove really bad baked on dirt and dried rainwater?

[Katherina]

I haven't been using this vehicle (2001 dodge/chrysler intrepid es) and have had to keep it parked in my driveway, exposed to the sun and weather for the past three years. I am sure i deserve and should've expected the following issues yet definitely didn't. I was making a point to wash it at least before winter, (illinois) and mid-summer. I'm sure I'll sound really ridiculous and uh...not too bright, but it seemed to be sufficient and then all the sudden last year in october i noticed there was a sort of visibly dull and dusty feeling layer of what i assume was sun-baked dirt and or hard water from the rain. Washed it several times to no avail. Spring of this year advanced to a white speckling on random areas of the roof that i had thought was exposed primer. Tried different suggestions i'd read online to clean it which include CLR, vinegar, lemon juice, wd40 and dishsoap. I also tried spot testing polishing compounds, wet sanding and also metal and glass cleaner meant to remove oxidation. Out of desperation i soaked a spot in CLR for a couple minutes which barely softened the crud but made it possible to carefully scrape off flakes of the residue with a razor blade. It was like scraping off dried super-glue. However, beneath lo' and behold the paint and the top coat was intact. Does anyone know what, if anything, i can do myself to remove the shell of dirt and hard water? It does run btw, just incase anyone is wondering considering how long it's been stored[ATTACH]undefined[/ATTACH].

The first attatched picture is of the roof, the only clear spot showing is where i scraped. It's a lot shinier than the photograph captured, cloudy day. Second photograph is of the hood. Top left hand corner shows true clear-coat peeling. Not much i can do about that, i'm just focused on removing the dirty dull area below it.

[CanyonCarver]

According to the Nu-Finish commercial I just saw, that will buff right out!

[Marc08EX]

That doesn't look like baked on dirt or dried rainwater... Looks like clear coat failure. Only fix is repaint.

[PaulMys]

That doesn't look like baked on dirt or dried rainwater... Looks like clear coat failure. Only fix is repaint.

Marc is right. The "flakes of crud" you were scraping off were the failed clear coat.

And your comment that you "might sound ridiculous and not very bright" is nonsense. That is EXACTLY what this forum is for. To answer your questions.
Rest assured, no one that reads this post will think that about you.

[Marc08EX]

And your comment that you "might sound ridiculous and not very bright" is nonsense. That is EXACTLY what this forum is for. To answer your questions.
Rest assured, no one that reads this post will think that about you.

I agree. Nobody here will judge you. We are all here to help everyone/each other out.

[frankprozzoly]

Maybe a glaze would make it appear a little better

[dcjredline]

I judged...no I didnt. But you got your answer already. It is for sure clearcoat failure.

[ShaneB]

Agreed. CC failure

It should also be mentioned, the more you work on it, the worse it will get. Sanding, compounding or polishing will only remove more clear coat and accelerate the failure rate

[Wolfslair]

Did I read your initial post correctly? You gave it two washes per year? Did that include any kind of paint protection such as a sealer, wax, or coating.

[asap2stacks]

Ouch, this is why I tell all my customers to keep up with there vehicles even if it's just a spray detailer... Somethings better then nothing because nothing leads to this... Sorry to see this happen to you.