Dealing with oxidation spots

[zendog]

I've got a 12" x 6" spot on my wife's 2006 Highlander (dark blue metallic) on the hood that is dull and appears to be oxidation. It's not a milky-white appearance, just dull with a non-slick surface. I was able to get the dullness out to about 80% using a DA with Jescar CC with a MF pad. No blue paint on the pad. Calling it good enough, I finished the car with Sonax PF and topped with Ultra Lock Plus. In the end, the area in question was slightly less glossy vs. the rest of the car and the spot felt "slick". I allowed the ULP to "cure" for about 18 hrs overnight. Fast forward to the next day, the spot is dull again and the surface does not feel slick anymore. The rest of the car looks great and feels slick. On a side note, my wife drove it in 95 degree sunshine the next day. Was the heat a factor? I'm thinking maybe the ULP did not cure properly, but the rest of the car is fine. Is the oxidation beyond repair? Could it be something other that oxidized paint?

[opie]

I've got a 12" x 6" spot on my wife's 2006 Highlander (dark blue metallic) on the hood that is dull and appears to be oxidation. It's not a milky-white appearance, just dull with a non-slick surface. I was able to get the dullness out to about 80% using a DA with Jescar CC with a MF pad. No blue paint on the pad. Calling it good enough, I finished the car with Sonax PF and topped with Ultra Lock Plus. In the end, the area in question was slightly less glossy vs. the rest of the car and the spot felt "slick". I allowed the ULP to "cure" for about 18 hrs overnight. Fast forward to the next day, the spot is dull again and the surface does not feel slick anymore. The rest of the car looks great and feels slick. On a side note, my wife drove it in 95 degree sunshine the next day. Was the heat a factor? I'm thinking maybe the ULP did not cure properly, but the rest of the car is fine. Is the oxidation beyond repair? Could it be something other that oxidized paint?

Clear starting to fail would be my guess, based on that info. Maybe 2black1s will see this and chime in...as he used to be in the autobody bussiness

Sent from my SM-G973U using Tapatalk

[dgage]

I’m with Opie on the likely cause unfortunately and there really isn’t anything to be done other than repaint.

[zendog]

Ok, thanks for the feedback. Overall the car looks decent- at least I was able to remove the majority of defects from almost 20 years of drive-through washes. And, my wife is happy so its a win!

[Bobby B.]

Sounds like early stages of clear coat failure. Just keep it protected the best you can until the hood can be repainted. It's pretty common to see on older Toyota's with metallic paint finishes.

[Rsurfer]

Clear starting to fail would be my guess, based on that info. Maybe 2black1s will see this and chime in...as he used to be in the autobody bussiness

Sent from my SM-G973U using Tapatalk

I’m with Opie on the likely cause unfortunately and there really isn’t anything to be done other than repaint.

Sounds like early stages of clear coat failure. Just keep it protected the best you can until the hood can be repainted. It's pretty common to see on older Toyota's with metallic paint finishes.