Your car can’t avoid every peril to its exterior. The only way to perfectly protect a car’s paint job from damage would be to store it in the garage, hermetically seal it, and never drive it. This defeats the purpose of owning a car in the first place.
“The best defense is a good offense” rings true here. If you know what substances cause the biggest threat to your car’s paint, you can take proactive steps to mitigate them.
1. Construction over sprays. This includes substances such as paint, road tar, asphalt, concrete, etc. Time is of the essence. Don’t let any of these substances harden on your car. The area must be washed with a good quality car soap ASAP. Avoiding road construction or building construction will prevent most over sprays.
2. Natural over sprays, including insect splatter, bird droppings and tree sap. These substances contain natural compounds that erode paint. For example, turpentine, a paint solvent, is made from pine or fir resin. These also must be washed away with car soap ASAP to prevent damage. You can protect your vehicle from these threats by avoiding parking your car under large trees, particularly in early spring. Birds are most likely to congregate in larger trees and the wild temperature fluctuations in early spring can cause quick constriction and expansion of a tree’s bark, causing it to release its sap.
3. Ultraviolet light (UV) oxidizes paint. The primary symptom is a white, chalky film on the vehicle. The paint on vehicles 10 years or younger have paint with improved UV resistance but it doesn’t mean that UV light won’t damage the paint job on a newer vehicle. It just means that the damage will take more time to become visible. The best way to protect a vehicle from UV is to wash it with car soap and then apply the best wax you can afford to prevent the UV rays from penetrating into the car’s paint. Park it in a garage or under a car port whenever possible to provide even more protection. If you must park in the elements, a breathable cover will protect your car’s paint job, not only from UV light but from other weather related threats.
4. Water, whether it’s “acid rain” or not, is one of your car’s biggest threats. Rain will eat away at your car’s wax coat and can also eat away into the paint itself. It’s a threat not to be underestimated. The United States Geological Survey (USGS) says that water is the “universal solvent because it dissolves more substances than any other liquid.” Water can dissolve acids or bases with ease. It does the same thing to your car’s clear coat and paint, gradually. If your car is caught in the rain, go to your carport or garage and dry it off quickly. Do not let the vehicle air dry or your paint will gradually wear off.