Quick question, should water drying on the paint of car cause scratching to paint?? Reason I ask is I own a 05 flareside and even after I dry it after washing it, water is still in the area of the tiedowns. I now have what looks like a six inch scratch running down 2 of the tiedowns which is water that has dried and dripped down during the day... Should this be happening and if so what should I do to get rid of them??

 

Probably just hard water streaks...

The water that is left behind in the nooks and crannies can, on occasion, run out leaving it's mineral load behind on your paint... not too much you can do about it (although, a leaf blower before you start your drying procedure can vastly decrease this occurance)...

To remove the hard water spots, you have a few options... abrasive polish, a vinegar solution and then rewax all affected areas

 

Those Tie Downs on the new flaresides have a big cavity behind them that holds a lot of water. When I removed one even two days after washing my truck water ran out from behind it. Probably a couple tablespoons trapped back there.

I ended up removing them and drilling a couple of holes in there. Now, when I wash the truck I can blow compressed air in there. I haven't had problems with water streaks since I did it.

Check this thread for my fix: https://www.f150online.com/forums/sh...&highlight=fix