Has anyone here heard of car magnets (the kind you put on your car for football games and such with the team logo on them) causing the paint underneath to fog or get cloudy? A friend of mine had this happen to his Excursion. There is a very distinct shape of the magnet he had on the side of his car. The same thing happened on the other side, but took awhile to show up. I haven't tried anything on it yet. Any suggestions?

 

Probably scratches from the magnet virating while driving. Try a mild polish, like Meguiars #9 to start.

 

That was one of my thoughts too. But the outline is almost exactly the same shape as the magnet, and I doubt the entire magnet was vibrating. Also, the other one didn't show up for several weeks. Too weird. If it ever stops raining here I'm going to try a few things. First, clay, then cleaner wax then move to swirl remover.

 

The magnets, if left in place over an extended amount of time, can realign the paint molocules on certain kinds of automotive paint and primers, causing the condition you describe; fortunately, the clearcoat is not affected.

In the Northern Hemisphere, the molocules align with the plus pole to the left; of course, it's just the opposite in the Southern Hemisphere, leaving the Aussies with spots that are extra-shiny, not cloudy.

 

so if you live in Australia, screw the wax and shine you truck with a magnet treatment.

 

In that case, I'm going to go find a significant source of Magnetite and just place it strategically in my garage.

Should take care of everything...


Sersiously though, I would suspect that it's either micro-scratches or, indeed, it does have something to do with the magnetic effects caused by the sign.

I don't think it's too far fetched to say that the 'metallic flake' in the paint couldn't be affected (especially considering that it's summer and the paint can and does get gooey' on mega-hot days).

Keep us posted.

RP