Newbie here have white haze on front bumper

[charles3526]

Good morning all I have a 13 malibu little under 90,000 miles. Car is a daily driver in highway never really have it a good detail job being that I had no time just washed and waxed it for the5 years I had it but I have noticed around last year or maybe longer there was this white haze comming up on my front bumper. Now I`m trying to get rid of it but i have no luck. I used clay I also tried.comepund but after I waxed it it still shows up. It feels smooth but it`s gotta be under the clear coat? Is that possible I need to machine it? Any info would be great and helpful. Here are some pics.

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[showbbq]

Morning. So you`ll probably want to strip all that wax off so you can assess the condition of the paint. Maybe use an IPA/water wipe after a proper wash then chemical and mechanical decon.

 

[DaveT435]

Morning. So you`ll probably want to strip all that wax off so you can assess the condition of the paint. Maybe use an IPA/water wipe after a proper wash then chemical and mechanical decon.

I would do this. Also maybe get a picture of a little more of the bumper so we can see the difference. You don`t have a protective film over the bumper do you??

 

[Accumulator]

charles3526- Welcome to Autopia!

I can never tell much from internet pics, but maybe it`s some (pretty severe) oxidation. The condition of the grille`s crossbars makes me think that`s kinda likely.

And/or...uh-oh, are you sitting down? It looks like there might be a *LOT* of tiny pin-prick type road rash from stones/etc. If that`s the case, or if the oxidation has penetrated down into the clear, you *might* be looking a having the bumpercover removed/refinished/reinstalled. Not a major project, but it would cost a little.

 

[Stokdgs]

Welcome, Charles3526 !
From your pictures, with that high mileage 18k/year for 5 years, it looks to me like the paint was first sandblasted by dirt, etc., and then it also looks like on some places, the clearcoat is failing..

I have seen vehicles with this kind of sandblast look in the Pacific Northwest, from driving on the concrete freeways in all that rain, with a lot of water hitting the front of your car at speed, for 1-2 years, depending on how many miles driven..

Were the areas you pictured, cleaned before the pictures ?

If they were, and that is what you have, you may need to be investigating any warranty that applies, and seeing a well vetted Body and Paint Shop,, etc..
Good luck with this !
Dan F

 

[charles3526]

Hello thanx guys for ur responses I do believe it is more pitting then oxidation cause every year or so I need to replace front windshield due to pitting. So would u think that damage would be covered under auto insurance? That was probley a dumb question but it`s worth a shot. Any way I can try and attenpt to doit my self. Like products from auto zone or advanced auto parts. Any help would be great
Thanx

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[DaveT435]

Hello thanx guys for ur responses I do believe it is more pitting then oxidation cause every year or so I need to replace front windshield due to pitting. So would u think that damage would be covered under auto insurance? That was probley a dumb question but it`s worth a shot. Any way I can try and attenpt to doit my self. Like products from auto zone or advanced auto parts. Any help would be great
Thanx

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Where do you live?? Maybe there is someone close that could help you out of knows of a reasonable body shop in your area. To repair it you would have to sand it down and respray it. If you`re good with a rattle can you may be able to get it to look ok. A body shop finish would definitely look much better.

 

[Oneheadlite]

+ 1 for suspecting tiny pitting. Any chance the bumper cover was resprayed before you got the car? (don`t trust the carfax - check for uniformity of paint texture compared to nearby panels). That`s one of the screaming indicators of paintwork we look for when doing pre-purchase inspections at the shop.

Not sure what the factory paint is like from GM, but the aftermarket clear always seems to be more susceptible to accelerated pitting.

Question for the group - any chance switching LSPs to something that wouldn`t dry to white might help? IE: Sealant vs wax? Also, thoroughly clearing the compound/polish from the "pores" prior to applying said LSP?

 

[Accumulator]

Charles3526- I doubt the insurance will be of any help although they *might* do the windshield if it, say...had significant damage (some might see a hint in that ).

I`ve run paintguns, but there`s zero way I`d try to DIY a fix like that even if I were absolutely certain I could do the remove/reinstall correctly. If you do try it, I hope you have pretty extensive experience with such stuff and are dialed-in on today`s flex additives/etc.

Oneheadlite- Being nutty about the originality of some vehicles I have to deal with that. I don`t have much trouble with the compound/polish residue as long as I clean it off with a Paint Prep Product before it completely flashes off (yes, big hassle) and yes indeed using something like OCW makes the whole thing a lot easier.

BUT...the `93 Audi is front-to-back/top-to-bottom Paint Issues and I use FK1000P on it without much trouble. Well, maybe it`s a Labor of Love an I just don`t mind the PIA since I do it so seldom, but it *can* be done (not that many would bother going through it). Not using excessive product is huge, and doing a variation on wipe-on-wipe-off works pretty well, but even then some chips/pits sure can retain product causing the exact problems you`re concerned about.

 

[charles3526]

Thanx guys u didn`t mention that I`m the only owner of this car got in brand new in 13 I know Simone mentioned maybe it was repainted but I`m original owner. And I`m gonna take it to body ```` this weekend for a price

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[Accumulator]

Ah, good, see what they say...just be sure to mention that it must be painted *off the vehicle* as that`s utterly crucial. And they need special "sawhorses" made for that, not just *regular* ones or those made to support other panels. Bumpercovers are trickier than one might think!

Oh, and even when you buy new, you just never know. On my Jag, I`ve found three point-of-import spotted-in touchups and *six* areas that were reshot at various times *during initial construction*!

Plus, bumpercovers are almost always shipped to the factory already painted, *not* painted "like the rest of the car". Perhaps because of the flex additive.

Hope the shop makes all the right noises and then follows through with some great work at a good price

 

[SWETM]

Was the pitting there when you bought the car? Cause when your windshield too is pitted I lean on environment problems. With stones on the roads you drive on and or drive very close to the car in front of you. We have a lot of gravel roads where I live. This means when you drive on heavy traffic of those roads the distance is way longer than a tarmac road. And even gravel roads connects to tarmac roads. The stones the get cought in the tire threads releases when speed gets higher and hits the car behind them if they are to close. This is seened on veriuos cars in those environments. Stone chips or pitting the same just different sizes of the stones. When they are on cars you see them on the front bumper and front of the hood and the windshield and to the front of the roof and side mirrors. Think someone mentioned the environment in the desert parts of US where sand was causing almost like sand blastering on the same parts when driven through windy weather.
If it would be one part or 2 that stod out I would look at repainted evidence. And if the repainted part is the cause of easier to Stone ship or it where repainted cause of the whole front was stone chipped. The windshield if original often tells the thruth on the environment the car has been driven in.

As other has mentioned the flexible paint is a different animal to DIY. So well renowed bodyshop would be the safe bet.

 

[Older]

Sage advice above. A good body man will steer you in the right direction. Those bumper covers aren`t cheap and you really have to know what you`re doing to paint them.

 

[Accumulator]

Environment problems..yep, got those The Crown Vic spent its first life on limestone access roads in TX, apparently often in the middle of a convoy. From the underneath, to the leading surfaces, to the *roof* there`s a lot of evidence that those roads were #4 limestone and the vehicles traveled close together Yeah, I`m working on it...or at least it`s all on The List.

 

[rlmccarty2000]

Doubtful insurance would cover it and even if it did they would jack up your policy to the point it would not be worth it. The windshield is a different story depending on the safety aspect. You could always hit it with a hammer and claim rock damage, but that would be fraud, lol.

I recently had my front bumper cover repaired and painted and they did an excellent job. Cost me $600 but it was done right. I got a cash discount of $100. Don’t go cheap on the repaint, the good shops will offer a lifetime warranty on paint jobs. I doubt anyone could tell my bumper has been repainted, it looks better than factory. The same guy did my wife’s car after a major accident and I forget on which side of the car was hit.

 

[Accumulator]

.. You could always hit it with a hammer and claim rock damage, but that would be fraud, lol.

Heh heh, that`s exactly what I bent over backwards to avoid posting

I recently had my front bumper cover repaired and painted and they did an excellent job. Cost me $600 but it was done right. I got a cash discount of $100...

Depending on the car, that`s a very reasonable price IMO. With all the [stuff] mounted in some bumpercovers the remove/reinstall can be a seriously major project requiring expert knowledge.

Don’t go cheap on the repaint...

That. And beware of shops that won`t give specific answers to certain questions, including which brand/line of paint and why they chose that one.