Black spots on paint. How to remove?

[cheeba]

Hi guys,

I have a few black spots on my car that got on there when I took my car into have some body work done, and the guy there said he took some rubbing compound and got it off. He gave me some in a bottle in case I found some more spots when I got home, and lo and behold, there are more spots. The only thing though, is that I am not sure how to use the compound.

Do I just pour some on and rub with a cloth? Wet or dry cloth? Any type of cloth or does it need to be a specific type. Lastly, what kind of damage can I cause to my paint by attempting this? Sorry for the stupid question but I'd like to learn how to use this mysterious chemical

[davemac2]

Rubbing compund is just a mild abrasive. Just take a soft cotton cloth or micro fibre cloth and put a quarter size blob of compund on it and rub it on the spots until the spots disappear, then let it dry for 5 min and polish it off with another clean, soft cloth. It won't harm your paint or finish really. It removes a tiny amount of clearcoat. It is safe to get on your hands. Just don't eat it.

dave mc

[Manny1337]

since this is on the topic of body work i was wondering whats the best to remove scratches. i tried the nu finish scratch remover but it was a waste of 11$. what ACTUALLY works =P

[JohnGD]

You can ask Meguiars regarding paint care on:
http://www.meguiars.com/customercare/

Their FAQ suggests:

"Many environmental contaminants adhere to your paint so strongly, that even a high-quality car wash cannot remove them. Some may be visible to your eye. Others you'll detect when you pass your hand across the finish after washing and notice it doesn't feel as smooth as glass.

All of these contaminants can reduce your shine and ultimately do permanent damage to your paint. A safe, non-abrasive clay bar and high lubricity quick detailer like those found in Meguiar's Smooth Surface™ Clay Kit. Removing above surface contaminants and restoring a smooth surface to your paint finish is easily accomplished with Meguiar's® Smooth Surface Clay Kit. (Never use sharp, abrasive rubbing and polishing compounds that will scratch your car's finish.)
"

[davemac2]

I agree that a clay bar is great for removing contaminants such as tree sap, mild oxidation, etc. For scratch removal, it really depends on how deep the scratch is. If you can catch your finger nail on it, it's almost to deep to remove and not ending up going thru the clearcoat which would be disasterous and require a complete paint job on the particular panel at a minimum. If you know you have a fairly thick clearcoat and know there is enough left beneath the scratch, then you can sometimes wet sand the scratches out using a good quality waterproof paper and soapy water followed by polishing with a rubbing compound and polish, but it requires a very light touch and some skill. You can end up sanding in 'waves' to the finish if you don't use a flat block and are doing a lot of sanding initially. A thick, good quality wax can also help a lot to hide lighter scratches, so it may be a combination of some wet sanding to reduce the scratch depth followed by regular wax maintenance.

dave mc

[wuda pig]

sorry for the jack but i also wondering of how to take out motor oil stains on the car? dont ask me how i got those stains

[davemac2]

Originally Posted by wuda pig

sorry for the jack but i also wondering of how to take out motor oil stains on the car? dont ask me how i got those stains

I don't understand how oil could stain the finish unless there was some sort of solvent in it, the oil was very hot (ie. heat damage to the finish) or the finish is not a 2 part poly finish with a clearcoat? ie. is it lacquer? You can try a clay bar with soapy water, or some light rubbing compound. If that does not work, you can try some light wet sanding with 1000 3M paper (ie use soapy water, sand in one dir only, wipe clean, then sand in opposite dir with finer paper if required).

BTW How did you get those stains?

dave mc

[cheeba]

Actually, the spots I initially posted about appear to be oil spots as well. I took my car to the mechanic and now I have black sludgy spots on my car. I am assuming it is oil.

Can someone suggest a "clay bar" that I can use? Something somewhat fool proof would be great.

Thanks.

[davemac2]

Originally Posted by cheeba

Actually, the spots I initially posted about appear to be oil spots as well. I took my car to the mechanic and now I have black sludgy spots on my car. I am assuming it is oil.

Can someone suggest a "clay bar" that I can use? Something somewhat fool proof would be great.

Thanks.

I don't know quite what you mean by 'sludgy' except maybe that they appear soft whereby you can scrape some of it off with your fingernail? Sounds like tar to me. You can buy a tar remover (ie. a degreaser or mild solvent such as Naptha), or just spray some WD40 on it and wipe it off quickly.

dave mc