I'm new to these forums and wasn't able to find an answers to a questions like mine. I'm also not exactly sure which sub-section of the forum would be the best place to put this so I apologize if this isn't the right place.
My parking spot at my previous apartment was underneath the a bunch of balconies one above the other. About a year ago I came out to my car to find large chunks of rock/cement/stone lying on and around my car with a bunch of very small, circular dents on the front area of my roof, just a few inches above where the top of the windshield meets the roof. A couple months ago I noticed that those small dents are started showing a little bit of rust, basically at the center of each dent about the diameter of a pencil eraser or smaller. It's nothing big and you have to look for it to notice it but now I'm starting to worry that the rust will spread. I'm thinking about taking some touch up paint and covering them up but I know I have to take care of the rust somehow. I also don't know if it's the actual metal rusting or maybe just rust that's accumulated on the surface (if that's even possible). I say this because the dents didn't look scratched up at all when I examined them the day I found those rocks on my car. It didn't look like paint had come off in any large amount, and it certainly didn't look like it had gone through the base coat and the primer which is what I understand has to happen in order for the rust to occur.
I was thinking of using a clay bar to try to remove the rust if that might work since it's such a small amount. I would like to avoid sanding or grinding down the car if possible. I don't really care about how great it looks or how perfect it looks either. I just want to either get the rust off or neutralize it and cover it so it won't come back. I'll try to post a picture of what it looks like since it's hard to describe and I don't think I've really explained it too well. How can I take care of this? Also, I'm trying to do it as cheaply as I can.
My parking spot at my previous apartment was underneath the a bunch of balconies one above the other. About a year ago I came out to my car to find large chunks of rock/cement/stone lying on and around my car with a bunch of very small, circular dents on the front area of my roof, just a few inches above where the top of the windshield meets the roof. A couple months ago I noticed that those small dents are started showing a little bit of rust, basically at the center of each dent about the diameter of a pencil eraser or smaller. It's nothing big and you have to look for it to notice it but now I'm starting to worry that the rust will spread. I'm thinking about taking some touch up paint and covering them up but I know I have to take care of the rust somehow. I also don't know if it's the actual metal rusting or maybe just rust that's accumulated on the surface (if that's even possible). I say this because the dents didn't look scratched up at all when I examined them the day I found those rocks on my car. It didn't look like paint had come off in any large amount, and it certainly didn't look like it had gone through the base coat and the primer which is what I understand has to happen in order for the rust to occur.
I was thinking of using a clay bar to try to remove the rust if that might work since it's such a small amount. I would like to avoid sanding or grinding down the car if possible. I don't really care about how great it looks or how perfect it looks either. I just want to either get the rust off or neutralize it and cover it so it won't come back. I'll try to post a picture of what it looks like since it's hard to describe and I don't think I've really explained it too well. How can I take care of this? Also, I'm trying to do it as cheaply as I can.
