Removing stubborn residue from paint

[blaronn]

There`s a ton of tiny, white splatters all over the front of my car (grille, headlights, hood, windshield, etc.). No idea what it is, maybe paint? (I`ll try to post a photo) Anyway, I washed it thoroughly with Dawn (Zaino prep), then clay-barred it, and none of it came off. The clay didn`t effect it at all, although the stuff did come off easily with a fingernail. I could "fingernail" the whole front, but there are probably a thousand spots & it would take a LONG time, also I`ve heard of the fingernail method causing scratches. So, what to try next? Any tools/products that might work? Plastic brillo-type pads? Scouring sponges? Chemicals? Or are fingernails the best tool? Any advice is appreciated!

[MorBid]

Try using a solvent made for cleaning paint (Prep-Sol or Final Klean) both by Dupont.



Actually thoose "look like" droplets of paint. Do you have any paint thinner around?

[blaronn]

What types of stores would the Dupont products be found at? Hardware? Paint?



Yep I`ve got paint thinner. Does that not hurt the clear coat? If no, would it be too much to just soak a sponge and go over it en masse, as opposed to one spot at a time? Would it hurt the clear headlight plastic or painted bumper plastic?

[MorBid]

You can get the dupont products at a Auto Body (Auto Paint) supplier.



Prep-Sol is a wax and grease remover used to remove contaminants from a panel while doing body work. Needs to be cleaned with something else before applying products



Final Klean is that something else and is also used to remove polish splatter/residue.



Paint Thinner in of itself will not remove/harm clear coat once it`s fully cured. It`s main purpose (as the name suggests) is to "thin out" paint before it`s applied.



Pour some in the cap and get a Q-Tip and rub it on a affected spot less noticeable. If it removes the foreign material from the surface, then find a spray bottle and spray it on a small section at a time and wipe off. Or pour a little on a rag (I would use a MF you don`t want anymore) and wipe a section of the panel at a time.



Wash down the areas after your done apply and remove a pre-wax cleaner to get rid of any residue then reapply your wax or sealant.



All of these products dissipate quickly so don`t apply them and walk away. Also never use them in direct sunlight or other heat sources.



I would try the (Laquer) paint thinner first since you have it. Prep-Sol and Final Klean are expsensive

[blaronn]

Excellent, thanks MorBid! Also, apologies for posting here instead of the University".

[MorBid]

NP, Good luck and let us know how you make out. It sure looks like paint or some type of overspray/splatter to me.

[chml17l]

After you get the paint spots off, don`t forget the polishing step before you apply the Zaino. Without the proper prep, the Z will just magnify any paint imperfections you may already have.

[imported_pdsterns]

ScratchX. It will take them all off.

[blaronn]

Thanks for all the tips. It was a lot of work but I eventually removed all the splatters. Paint thinner didn`t seem to work (I`m thinking it was paint, but it had been there a few days so maybe it was too dry for paint thinner?) I ended up using a combination of soapy water, clay bar, and fingernails. It seemed to get slightly softer with soaking, so I kept it wet and clay barred each spot for a while, and if it didn`t come off (which it usually didn`t), a quick but gentle pass with a fingernail took it right off. I didn`t see any scratching after the first few spots so I kept on going.



Chml17l, I used Zaino Z2 with ZFX, followed by Z6 so if I`m understanding their instructions correctly, no pre-polish was necessary. Sound right? I only applied one coat last night, but a couple more will follow soon.

[MorBid]

Good news. I`m also glad to see you had enough common sense not to try and use paint remover :)



Do you know where the paint specs came from?

[blaronn]

No idea how it got there, but by the pattern it definitely looks like it happened while driving.. But that doesn`t make sense because it was all over the windshield too and neither me or my wife ever noticed it happen. Maybe aliens.

[PhilP]

This is quite timely. About two weeks ago I had a similar white paint situation with my new car. The paint had covered part of the undercarriage on the passenger side and and "dusted" the rear wheel well and the back end of the car. I don`t know how I got it other than from when lanes were being striped near my home, but this looked like I`d run over a quart of so of paint somehow.



In any case, I used soap and water first and then (very gently) used Z6 as a lubricant with the reverse side of a kitchen sponge and an occasional fingernail which took it off with no damage to the car`s clearcoat.