Clearcoat Failure - Related to Color?

Route246

Route246

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I've been working on our 10+ year old, original owner (us), white Honda Pilot. It has sat outdoors its entire life in the California sun. It has been neglected, seldom washed, waxed once or twice when it was new with no coating at time of purchase. In essence, clearcoat failure waiting to happen.

I've been using Sonax 3/6 to polish after claybar and then Collinite 476s paste to top. The results have been amazing given the history of this vehicle. I just finished the roof yesterday and was pleased and a little surprised that the clearcoat was intact and the entire vehicle, including the roof polished and shined, swirl free, almost like a new finish. I say almost new because there are various dings, scratches and dents on the vehicle but overall it looks like it was garaged its entire life now.

My neighbors have newer vehicles with clearcoat failure on their roof, trunk and/or hoods as expected. Their vehicles are all dark blue or black.

Am I just lucky or did the white paint prolong the process of clearcoat failure and save my paint? All of our vehicles are white or silver by choice, mainly because they stay cooler in the summer.

I read that clearcoat failure is caused by UV but is temperature also a key contributor? Our white Pilot received 10+ years of UV and the clearcoat is still intact after the Sonax 3/6 polishing. Is it solely because of the white paint which allowed the clearcoat to survive this long with this much neglect?
 
It's the same reason why your car will stay cooler in the sun. It's all based on how much UV light the paint will reflect vs absorb. A black car and a white car left alone with just brushomatic washes, the black car will have clear coat failure first because it absorbs the UV light instead of deflecting it like the white car. That being said, as long as the car is well cared for it doesn't necessarily matter what colour it is. My old car was a 2007 Toyota Matrix and I had that when I was still a student, so I didn't even get into detailing yet. That car received nothing beyond the automatic car washes and it didn't have clearcoat failure because of the fact that car is white. If it was a darker colour, a car that abused is bound to have something. I had a ton of swirls and the paint looked dull but if I had bothered polishing it out before I sold it, it would've looked brand new aside from the random dings and stone chips.
 
Are you sure that you have clear coat and not single stage? Did you see any white oxidation on your pad?
 
Re: Clearcoat Failure - Related to Color?

No...not in the "color spectrum
way of thinking".

Clear-coat failure happens when the
once bonded Base-coat and Clear-coat
matrices, no longer bond(s) to one another.

With that in mind:
It appears, then, that actual Clear-coat
failure happens at the bottom of the
Clear-coat film layer (or, at least what
amount of its service-life may be left).



Bob
 
Rsurfer said:
Are you sure that you have clear coat and not single stage? Did you see any white oxidation on your pad?
Click to expand...

As I was reading the OP's post (haven't scrolled down to see yours Rsurfer), that is exactly what crossed my mind. Some Japanese automakers are still using single stage for Black & White vehicles. It's quite possible OP that your Pilot is single stage, which will clean up nicely after a compound/polish/sealant.
 
WillSports3 said:
It's the same reason why your car will stay cooler in the sun. It's all based on how much UV light the paint will reflect vs absorb. A black car and a white car left alone with just brushomatic washes, the black car will have clear coat failure first because it absorbs the UV light instead of deflecting it like the white car. That being said, as long as the car is well cared for it doesn't necessarily matter what colour it is. My old car was a 2007 Toyota Matrix and I had that when I was still a student, so I didn't even get into detailing yet. That car received nothing beyond the automatic car washes and it didn't have clearcoat failure because of the fact that car is white. If it was a darker colour, a car that abused is bound to have something. I had a ton of swirls and the paint looked dull but if I had bothered polishing it out before I sold it, it would've looked brand new aside from the random dings and stone chips.
Click to expand...

This all makes sense, however is temperature not a factor? It seems to me if clearcoat is getting elevated to a very high temperature it might cause the molecular structure to be under more stress to remain.
 
Route246 said:
This all makes sense, however is temperature not a factor? It seems to me if clearcoat is getting elevated to a very high temperature it might cause the molecular structure to be under more stress to remain.
Click to expand...

UV rays will cause the damage. Of course, with strong UV rays nearly 100% of the time, one could correlate that with heat, constant angle of the sun, etc..
Even at 70 or 80 here in AZ, the sun is a lot stronger, and I can feel it when out walking, vs a 70 or 80 degree day walking outside in New Hampshire.

Color will not have affect, rather you may see the signs earlier on a darker colored vehicle. For example, a red vehicle, may have parts that were unprotected and those areas start turning lighter red, or pink compared to the protected areas.

I live in AZ where temps can reach 120. There are many contributing factors to the massive amounts of clear-coat failure I see.
1.) Sun - Strong UV rays, and yes heat to some degree... But remember, the paint sits a top of steel... Steel will absorb the heat, so color of the vehicle is not a factor at this point. Constant beating of the sun and it's UV's will make colors fade on just about anything.

2.) Water - High calcium and mineral deposits in the water will cause water spots, and etching... Like cancer, nice place for the clear to start to breakdown.

3.) Sand, dust and wind. Those are all contributing factors. Sand-blasting can remove paint from surfaces. The paint + cc on your car is about 4mils thick.

4.) Bird bombs and etching and splintering of the clear coat.

Good protection and maintenance reduces the affects of all the above. At this point on my vehicles they all have nano-ceramic coatings, especially the daily driver who has to sit outside year round.
 
At the end of the day when it comes to clearcoat failure, temperature does matter but UV light is the bigger factor. The reason I say that is because in winter time, there is no temperature but UV light is still shining on your car. In fact the snow around it is reflecting UV light more but again, there is no heat involved.
 
LSNAutoDetailing said:
As I was reading the OP's post (haven't scrolled down to see yours Rsurfer), that is exactly what crossed my mind. Some Japanese automakers are still using single stage for Black & White vehicles. It's quite possible OP that your Pilot is single stage, which will clean up nicely after a compound/polish/sealant.
Click to expand...

Black pad stayed black if that is any indication.
 
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