2008 Rx400h, Rust, Rail Dust, Solvent Pop, Bad Paint?

[400h08]

I owned a Mercedes ML320 from 1999 to 2008. I found the "rail dust" on my white ML320 after a few weeks of owning it. I took it back to the dealer, and the service advisor just rubbed it off with some buffing compound. It is not from a rail road, but I think the dust is from the brake or disc wearing down when braking, depositing the dust onto the panels.

I used to wash it often when new. But towards the last 2 years, I washed it less frequently and rust started to show on the bottom of the door panels. That is when I traded it in for my 08 400h. Having seen this post, and my experience on my ML320, I'll washed it as much as possible. One question though, I do not wash it myself, I use the non-touch high pressure auto wash, or the cloth type of auto wash, and put on wax every time. Is this acceptable as compared to handwash ?

[RX400h]

Having property in both warm & cold areas, it's easy to understand how paint takes a beating in harsh climate. Even so, our 400h's paint is still in great shape after 3 years of MT winters ... the last one was a doozy too. Could her paint be a 'bad batch' ?? Who knows. that said, when it's 15 degrees out, and you're driving through muddy skuz for months, 99% of folks driving in that goo WON'T wash the car, as you'd have to wash it each & every day ... & who wants to be out in the cold doing that?

When I lived in CT (many, many years ago), I'd wash my Mazda RX4 every week. Of course, during the Winter months, I'd go out to take my car to school the day after washing it, to find that the door was jammed. Pouring hot water on the door unlocked it but it probably also stripped the door of any wax that was on it. Of course, this was one of the reasons I moved to San Diego.

[SW03ES]

I think in that climate you would have to either use a waterless wash in the garage or find a touchless wash or use an automatic carwash. It needs to be done, however like I said its less of an issue if the vehicle sits outside because the corrosive chemicals are inert.

One question though, I do not wash it myself, I use the non-touch high pressure auto wash, or the cloth type of auto wash, and put on wax every time. Is this acceptable as compared to handwash ?

The answer is...its better than not washing it.

However, touchless high pressure washes use harsh chemicals that themselves can stain the paint and dry out black trim, etc. Automatic washes use similar chemicals and those cloth strips are abrasive themselves and rarely cleaned.

My advice, if you want to take the best care of the vehicle but don't want to wash it yourself, I would have a mobile detailer wash it for you regularly. Won't cost a whole lot more than the automatic wash...

[katzjamr]

the good part of a quality car wash i guess is that they recycle the water. the bad part is that there can be sand and other soils in that water that are used to wash your car. it seems to me that many car wash operations miss certain areas of the vehicle and parts can be stripped off. i would rather hand wash and know what products are going on my vehicle, also connecting to a utility sink where i can use warm water makes it easier in the winter, im talking warm water out of the hose. my lexus dealer went from hand washing after service to an automatic carwash that is state of the art, but i still tell em no thanks ill do it myself, that and no tire rotation at the dealer cuts my oil change bill in half. i imagine an auto car wash is better than nothing at all, and washing in a constantly frozen winter would take some dedication.

[RXREY]

LinDarLex, I felt that you were a wee bit facetious and I'm sorry if you thought we were less than courteous. I for one am glad that you started this topic and I learned a lot from reading all of the advice...especially from SWO3ES. He really knows his stuff considering he had a detailng business! His posts were so illuminating. This is why I love this forum. I've gotten a lot of advice about tires for example and I was so glad to have had so many and varied opinions. As I said before, there are many cars out there to choose from, many makers, just get something that will make you happy and not so stressed. I'm not married to Lexus, but it is in fact the best car I have ever had...it's all realtive though...but I have always done best when I've had Toyotas including my first. As a 16 year old my first car was a used 1970 Toyota Corona Mark II that I kept until I sold it in 1991. It was amazing...rear wheel drive,4speed manual transmission...that little thing peeled out! The only times I've had bad car issues were the three times I tried American cars and I will never do that again...sad to say...I'm done with them, as much as I love this fine land...when it come to cars, I'll go Japanese from now on. Happy trails...warmly yours, Rey in L.A.

[JimsGX]

I think in that climate you would have to either use a waterless wash in the garage or find a touchless wash or use an automatic carwash. It needs to be done, however like I said its less of an issue if the vehicle sits outside because the corrosive chemicals are inert.

One question though, I do not wash it myself, I use the non-touch high pressure auto wash, or the cloth type of auto wash, and put on wax every time. Is this acceptable as compared to handwash ?

The answer is...its better than not washing it.

However, touchless high pressure washes use harsh chemicals that themselves can stain the paint and dry out black trim, etc. Automatic washes use similar chemicals and those cloth strips are abrasive themselves and rarely cleaned.

My advice, if you want to take the best care of the vehicle but don't want to wash it yourself, I would have a mobile detailer wash it for you regularly. Won't cost a whole lot more than the automatic wash...

I hand wash my cars in the summer, but in the winter, I need to take them through the car wash at least once a week to take advantage of the undercarriage wash. There's salt and sand on the roads here in MA... I'd never take my car through a brush car wash when its below freezing or right after the wash opens in the morning because I've always thought their could be ice forming on the wet brushes that have been sitting overnight and/or the brushes wouldn't be as flexible first thing in the morning when its cold.

A common brand name of touchless car wash around here is a brand name of Vector. The results from one touchless wash to another using the same equipment is different. The closest one to me barely keeps their water above freezing, while one about 10 miles away heats theirs considerably more. When its 10 to 20 degrees out, the results from one to the other is very significant.

[mindmachine]

I owned a Mercedes ML320 from 1999 to 2008. I found the "rail dust" on my white ML320 after a few weeks of owning it. I took it back to the dealer, and the service advisor just rubbed it off with some buffing compound. It is not from a rail road, but I think the dust is from the brake or disc wearing down when braking, depositing the dust onto the panels.

I used to wash it often when new. But towards the last 2 years, I washed it less frequently and rust started to show on the bottom of the door panels. That is when I traded it in for my 08 400h. Having seen this post, and my experience on my ML320, I'll washed it as much as possible. One question though, I do not wash it myself, I use the non-touch high pressure auto wash, or the cloth type of auto wash, and put on wax every time. Is this acceptable as compared to handwash ?

Actually you may be only partially right. Last year before I took delivery of my just delivered special order Lexus 400h I visited the dealer while they were prepping it. They were actually washing it by hand with a special solvent and I ask them why. The service technician doing the work explained that he was removing rail dust, he further explained that since the cars are shipped from the west coast by rail to Chicago they get covered with rail dust and if it isn't properly removed it will show up just like the way the person who started this thread is experiencing. He further explained that not all dealers follow this proceedure. I think he actually told me they use a diluted mild acid, not sulpheric or hydrachloric, I can't remember, anyhow he told me they then rinse with another solvent, wash with a car soap and then wax. Now this is on a brand new car shipped in from Japan and rail shipped from the port on the west coast to Chicago for trucking to Ohio.

Also if the person lives in Michigan close to a Foundry, cast iron or steel then the same thing can happen, we used to have a cast iron foundry in town , and while its not rail dust per say, it is iron particulates in the foundry exhause that then settles ou on a cars paint and does the same thing. Many people in town had their cars damaged from it. It is the combination of these conditions with acid rain in the midwest that is real hard on cars. Corrosion X is a good way to protect your car paint from this problem. I use the Corrosion x wax to do my cars now and haven't had any problems. I do my car every 6 months.

Dennis

[RX400h]

Excellent information, Dennis!

I use (exclusively) a product called ReJex that was originally formulated for protecting military aircraft. It is not a wax and lasts far longer than any wax I have used over the years.

Dave

[mindmachine]

Excellent information, Dennis!

I use (exclusively) a product called ReJex that was originally formulated for protecting military aircraft. It is not a wax and lasts far longer than any wax I have used over the years.

Dave

Yes that is what I use, I keep thinking Corrosion X,but Rejex it's the same company they also make Corrosion X but it's for untreated steel if I remember correctly, and I use Rejex on my car instead of any other wax product. I have been using it now for 5 years.

You are correct it is not a wax but a liquid product that creates a polomer bond to protect the paint, it looks and acts like a liquid cream wax. It creates a really smooth finish just like wax.

Dennis

[RX400h]

That's why that name sounded familiar. Corrosion-X may be the company that makes ReJex. It's amazing how nothing sticks to a ReJex-protected surface!

Dave

[Gryphon]

This make me wonder what rail dust does to a person's lungs who lives near RR tracks or a foundry, etc.

Tom

[mindmachine]

This make me wonder what rail dust does to a person's lungs who lives near RR tracks or a foundry, etc.

Tom

Hi Tom,,

The foundry is the worst, we are lucky here in a way because our foundry was closed years ago, but I do remember many people had respratory issues. The smoke from the foundry was a kind of reddish-rust color and it plummed out over a large area. Cars parked outside were covered with the dust if they were in the wrong spot almost anywhere in the city, depending on the pervaling wind that day. I don't know for sure, but I imagine rail dust is not quite as bad because it isn't released up high in the air like the foundry smoke stacks and therefore will not drift so far from the rails.

I worked for the company and one reason they closed the foundry was because of the cost to contain the particulates, the EPA was cracking down and new scrubbers were going to be needed. We made large internal combustion engines, up to 20,000 BHP and Jet Gas turbine driven compressors. We had more than one foundry and we closed the one in Ohio and keep the one in PA open. Eventually we even closed the one in PA, but it stayed open at least another 30 or so years.

I worked in the manufacturing engineering department where we continued here in my town to machine the castings and assemble the finished product and still do. Cast iron dust is still a problem to contain in machining and finishing operations, but the EPA has mandated many restricitions on what can be exhausted to the atmosphere outside the plant. Still though if you live close to a machining or metal finishing operation and they don't properly scrub their plant exhaust you could experience the rail dust phenemon with metal particles in the air from a cast iron machinig and or finishing operation.

Dennis

[Gryphon]

Hi Dennis. Thanks for the interesting information. I suppose that many such products are now being made in China where polution takes a back seat to production.

Tom

[SOMEONE ELSE'S GOT MY NAME]

I think in that climate you would have to either use a waterless wash in the garage or find a touchless wash or use an automatic carwash. It needs to be done, however like I said its less of an issue if the vehicle sits outside because the corrosive chemicals are inert.

snip ...

Our MT garage is well insulated ... but if it's ZERO outside, the garage may only be 30 degrees inside ... especially once the side door or garage door gets opened. We have to have the hot water heater (in the garage) & all it's pluming in their own insulated environment, even tho they're in the insulated garage. I know it aint gona be ME that does 'non-esential' work out there :P

[SW03ES]

Why would anyone want to live in such a place? LOL