My ABP has strange small little circular splotches - I've mentioned this in a previous thread, and only a few owners had noted something similar - one said it was fixed by the dealer's wax job.

Well, my Delaware Acura Dealer says that the paint problem on the hood and front quarters is due to ACID RAIN. It even just so happened that on my stop-in visit to the dealer that a regional parts and service rep was there too with a nice photo picture portfolio of problems with the paint. Turns out that my problem is the last one listed, under the heading of Problems Not Covered Under Warranty - due to acts of god or birds basically.

Of course, I'm stil skeptical. Especially since I wash/polish/dry frequently, garage-kept, not rained in more than a week or two here = Hazy Hot and So Humid, and my 4 dogs keep most of the wildlife at bay. And why isn't it on the rest of the car, especially the trunk and roof - no explanation there, skirted the question.

Service guy brings out a rag and some cleaner per the regional rep's request and wipes down the windows and tries to clean the hood to no avail. They said the windows were spotted with acid rain too, and they are able to wash it off because it's a stronger surface than the clearcoat.

After that he asked me if it was my 1st Acura told him it is the family's 3rd, and just sold the Legend with 190K+. To which he stated that in the spirit of customer retention, they'll schedule it in for a buffing of the clear coat or something - sounds like code for a fancy wash and wax. Anyway, they said they will try to Buff it on Friday - whatever, we'll see.

Best of all, thanks to the board ops for this - my stream acts as my own little record of this conversation, in case this gets stickier.

Anyone with Black or Green or Blue experence this paint problem.

I didn't think the acid rain was too bad. Hell, I still grow and eat my own veggies!

 

ACID RAIN. This is a very redicilous excuse on not to perform warranty work. If it rains, it rains everywhere in the world. It means all the blue, green, and black Acura cars will have your problems. Apparently it is not true.

Demand the paint get restored. You didn't buy a $30K+ car and deserve this treatment.

 

I've got a Black/Black 2002 TLS that NEVER is outside. Several weeks ago due to home repair work the car was outside for 3 nights. When I washed the car I had spots on the hood and trunk only. I tried to polish,wax,and even had someone try to detail the car to no avail. If you look at the spots which look like water spots very closely with reading glasses or a mag. lens you can plainly see that they are etched into the paint. The paint is ruined. This is the third black Acura I've owned and believe me the other cars were outside more than this car and NEVER had this kind of problem. I don't want the hood and trunk repainted but what other options do I have? I doubt they will replace the parts with factory painted. Maybe I should burn the car and get a new one. Just Kidding! I'm really bummed out about this.

 

Same thing happened to my car - it is acid rain - your anecdotes do not really mean much because etching from acid rain varies by year to year, month to month. It is a real problem in the mid-US and here in Va. Go to Meguiar's and take the test that rates your risk from exp/osure -/ you will see that Delaware and Pa rate high.

You guys seem to suggest that Acura has a more fragile clearcoat than others -/ I have not seen any reference to that in my auto journalist capacity.

On the other hand, I too am disap/p/ointed that the one time my car sat the dealers over a weekend, it got zapped. I used my Porter Cable buffer and every cutting and polishing substance I have and while it imp/roved things, it won'/t go away.

I would stay on the dealer and get them to buff it, but dark colors are worse than even my silver in this regard, especially when the sun comes out after it rains. As the water evaporates, the acid becomes more concentrated and can etch most any surface.

 

I also remember the Regional Rep guy had this little 6" rectangular magnifier/viewer that he put over a spot and looked thru the lens to make the diagnosis of acid rain.

I have a brand new Montero bought the same week and it's paint is fine, and it is much less garage kept. My other acuras never had this problem in same area. I don't doubt that the acid in the rain is not very clean around Delaware, but there must be an underlying structural/paint/clearcoat problem that is causing this car to be more predisposed to this. I looked at some TLS's at the dealership and a black one was fine, but most of them had the protective seal stuff on them (this one didn't).

Anyway, I'm definitely gonna get rid of this ride alot sooner than I had planned, hopefully before it chips/bubbles/rusts or just generally looks poor. I give it no more than 3 years before I sell/trade, mostly because of the aesthetic insufficiency in the paint job.

Sucks. Keep away from the Blue Acid, I mean Blue ABP...

 

You all may want to try this to see if it works. I used to detail cars for a living.

Mix 50/50 white vinegar and water. I'd recommend distilled water if possible. Make sure the paint surface is cool, do this in the garage if possible.

Spot clean the acid rain marks with a clean white cottom t-shirt or cotton towel. Don't wipe really hard. Wipe in a striaght motion, not in a circle. On body panels, rub top to bottom, not side to side; on the hood, front to back. Wipe off any excess. Check the surface to see if the spot is gone. You can try this a few times. If successful, wash the car and follow up with a good polish, I recommend Zaino.

If that doesn't work. you're going to need to use a Paint Cleaner, or a fine cut polish, like 3M Finesse It.

Le me know how it works out for you all.

Neil

 

I used the vinegar technique the other day to get rid of tree sap, it worked great. Put a little on tip of a rag and it dissolved the sap in a hurry. Had a clean damp sponge in the other hand to follow up with. I then used a detailing spray on those surfaces, can't tell anything was ever there.

The paint on our cars seems to be more...brittle.. than others, in addition to the acid rain problem being mentioned, it also seems that if a nearby squirrel breaks wind the paint chips. Had my explorer for almost 4 years now with almost exactly 10 times the mileage, same areas, same roads, more highway use, same driver and it has held up very well.

Makes it awful tempting to spend $1300 and have it painted right with a nice heavy clearcoat...but should we have to do this with a new car of this price...

 

Thanks for the tip NSXNEXT, I'll try it this weekend if the dealer fails to read your post and fix it up with some buffing action tomorrow.

 

Forget about the buffing. If you have the "acid rain" spots in your paint you are fu##ed. I've tried everything and they are there for ever. Get used to it or sell the car. That's the way it is. I considered getting my hood and trunk repainted but everyone tells me that the repaint will look worse than the spots. I TRIED EVERYTHING!!!!