5 Most Common Causes of Car Paint Damage

Car paint can be difficult to protect at times. Knowing the common sources of damage can help you do so much more efficiently. Learn these causes here.

In the auto community, we all love our cars. Whether your vehicle is your passion project or just your commute means, you want it to look good, and that all starts with the paint job. To ensure your paint job remains immaculate, you should avoid certain things.

While not all common causes for car paint damage in this list are avoidable, knowing what they are will make it easier to prevent future damage. After all, preparation is key for car protection.

Coffee and Soda Drinks

Even though we’re more likely to spill drinks on our car’s interior instead of exterior, a spill on your car’s roof is possible if you set your drinks there often. If your drink of choice is either coffee or soda, you could inadvertently damage your paint job if you spill. This is due to the acidity of these drinks. While some spills are inevitable, recognizing when it happens and cleaning your car immediately will help keep the paint intact.

Gasoline

While gasoline isn’t likely to get all over the outside of your car, it can cause a lot of damage near your fuel cap. Whether the gas leaks out of the nozzle or drips from the cap hanging off the side of your car, it can do a lot of damage over time. This is why you must be extra careful when fueling your car. Any amount of leakage can lead to paint issues.

Bird Droppings and Tree Sap

When it comes to bird droppings and tree sap, they both hurt your paint job in different ways. The acid in bird droppings eats away at your paint, while the stickiness of tree sap can discolor it over time.

We’ve included these together, though, since both usually get on your car if you park under a tree. Whether at home or in a parking lot, avoiding tree cover will help ensure both problems become less likely.

Brake Fluid

For those who like to do their own car repairs, one thing to be extra careful with around your paint job is brake fluid. While the point of this liquid is to optimize brake function, it also works well as a paint thinner. While people don’t use brake fluid for this, it could accidentally work as such if you spill some on your car’s exterior.

Weather Elements

The final common cause of car paint damage is one that you can’t do a whole lot about, and this is weather damage. Whether it’s intense sunlight or the wind blowing dust across your paint, your car will sustain small amounts of damage from the weather over time.

In fact, the effects of time and weather on an unprotected paint job can be quite extreme. That’s why you need to add a layer of protection to your paint job to ensure your vehicle will continue to look good for years to come.

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