Hi all - this question is in particular for folks with the pearl white paint. The rocker panels are body-colored, which is perfect, but there are 'drain holes' in the bottom of each door frame, I believe 3 in the front door and 2 in the rears. There are also 3 in the trunk lid frame. They are simply 1/4", square-cut gaps in the bottom of the frame, presumably to allow any water or condensation that might get inside the frame to drain out.

So far so good, but apparently there is something inside the door that is either a by-product of manufacturing or a chemical reaction that is leaving grey stains on the rocker panels. I have noticed them almost since I bought the car but yesterday gave him his first bath, and found that the grey stains are IN the paint, they do not wash off or even get lighter, even with quite a bit of elbow grease (the kind of effort that would make your skin crawl if you scrubbed that hard on a fender or hood). Same goes for the stains on the bumper - grey stains right beneath each of these little holes.

They should be visible on the attached picture, look closely at the rocker panels...


It wouldn't be very visible on sage green, silver or tan, and wouldn't be visible at all on black, aubergine, blue, or the new maroon color. But any advice is welcome. 1, do you have these 'drainage stains' on the door sill and rocker panel beneath each hole, and 2, any idea how to fix it, or prevent it? Think it can be washed out? Best of all: what on earth do you suppose the grey ooze inside the door is?!



Cheers!

-Andy

This post has been edited by andyman32: Apr 14 2008, 02:08 PM

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That is odd for sure. I just took a flash light and did a close examination on my steel gray Azzy and found nothing. Not even a hint of discoloration. I don't know what it is but it sure seems to be penetrating the paint. I would think that if it is penetrating the paint on your car, it would do the same on others if it is some material in the door causing it. Maybe some sort of grease or oil mixing with water but it begs the question - why on yours and not on others?. Judging from you photos, it looks like it will only get worse over time. If you take it to the dealer let us know what they say.

BTW, sweet looking car!

This post has been edited by campoly: Apr 14 2008, 03:45 PM

Andy -

I too have a Pearl White Azera, although it's an '06 Limited, not an '07, with 17,000 miles on it.

I just checked mine closely in my garage with a flashlight and I have absolutely no sign of any staining, discoloration or leakage on the rocker panels from the square drain holes. In fact, the holes themselves are clean as a whistle.

I can't imagine what would be causing this on your car. Have you had the interior door panels removed for any reason? Maybe to fix a power window motor or to install aftermarket speakers, etc? If so, maybe factory applied grease to the workings of the window lifts or locking mechanisms has been disturbed. Have you had any special coatings or sealers applied to the exterior of your car? Are you behind in any of your car payments and your loan man is named Vito?

I know, I'm grasping at straws now, but let us know if you discover the culprit as all of us Pearl White owners would like to know.

Don

I have a 07 that's steel grey. I also had the dark marks on the rocker panels under the doors. I found that when I waxed the car with some rubbing it came off. My car was made in March 07 and I purchased it in Aug. So I think it is just from sitting outside and not being properly cleaned.

Here's super-duper closeups of each culprit... until yesterday I just thought this was dirt running down the door frame. This goes 'around' the car; are driver's door, 2nd is front edge of driver's side rear, 3rd middle of driver's side rear door, 4th is passenger's side rear front edge, 5rd is passenger's door front edge. Looks pretty bad, doesn't it?

I'll try some rubbing compound on it. Hopefully it is just some kind of 'deposit' on the surface and a good buff. I really scrubbed away at it, but just with the washing cloth (soft, lint-free, so it wasn't abrasive) and car soap, and that got me nowhere...

This post has been edited by andyman32: Apr 14 2008, 11:42 PM

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You probably already know this but rubbing compound is pretty abrasive stuff and could take the clear coat off. You could try something like Meguiar's ScratchX first and if that doesn't work then you could take the scorched earth approach. :w00t:

I use ScratchX a lot as sort of a universal cleaning product and it is kind to the paint and works wonders on small (not too deep) surface scratches. It cleans really well too.

Do you plan to visit this on the dealer. It could be covered but if you use rubbing compound and take the clear off, it may void the warranty.

I must admit that I have used rubbing compound on my car for those stubborn nuclear bird droppings that actually etch the clear coat. It was the only thing that did the job. I was very careful to rub very lightly and just deep enough to make the spot disappear. I rubbed very softly and then checked and then rubbed a little more until it was gone. Looking carefully at the car now, I can't tell where those spots were nor any ill effects from the compound. But it looks like you have quite a large area to "rub". Be careful with that rubbing compound and good luck.

Definitely stay away from rubbing compound! You can ruin a paint job in seconds.

If you must use an abrasive, use the White Polishing compound, not the Red Rubbing compound.

One of the best products I have found for removing stubborn stains, such as you have, is Nu Finish, found at Wally World and most auto supply houses.

Use this product as instructed except use a dry cloth saturated with the wax, as opposed to a moist rag. Rub it lightly until it dries completely. You will have a fantastic shine and the stains will be gone.

I have been detailing cars for over 50 years as a hobby and believe me, it will work.

Typically I don't use any waxes that have a cleaning agent in them but when required, Nu Finish is as gentle on paint as anything I can think of when extra cleaning is required.

David <><

As a follow-up to this post, I used some Meguiar's cleaning wax and a lint-free microfiber towel on it yesterday. Together with some serious elbow grease in places, the grey deposits did come off the rocker panels. So I'm happy to have white rocker panels again. I don't know if any of the other brands work well but Meguiar's was actually the cheapest cleaning wax at Auto Zone by a few bucks. About $7 for a tin.

What I don't know is if the doors are done leaking this grey crap or if I'm going to be back in the same spot after 1 or 2 more rainstorms.

Anyhow, just thought I'd let you know, just in case anybody else is getting this problem.

:clap: Glad it worked. That car is too pretty to have gray streaks.

Well, with a significant amount of elbow grease and cleaning wax I got that $h1t off... but it's back. Obviously my door is full of this stuff. Not cool on white rocker panels. I might ask the dealer to take a look at it the first time I take it back, and that time might be approaching - balance problem on the front wheels (my wife's is perfect, so I have a rock-solid point of reference), funny transmission 'lurch' going up hills, and the grey matter on the rocker panels. I really wonder why my car is so special. Nobody else with a white Azera got the crap leaking out of the drain holes in the doors?

This post has been edited by andyman32: Jul 3 2008, 07:50 PM

My Accent gets that stuff on it too, on the rocker panels. It wasn't there when I first bought it, and it wasn't there the next week when waxed if for the first time. However, since then, ever time I wash it (once a week), I notice the gray drainage. I'm just thinking it's from rainwater and road spray getting in around the weatherstripping on the doors and then draining down once I park the car. What's left behind after the water evaporates is the gray crap. Since it wasn't there when I waxed, the wax is doing a pretty good job of keeping it from staining. It does take some elbow grease to get off though, during the weekly wash.

You can add my 07 Golden Beige Limited to the group of Azeras that have the streaks on the rockers under all 4 doors.

This post has been edited by Wildcat: Jul 4 2008, 02:10 PM

andyman32;

It sounds very much like the infamous "black streak" problem that RV owners have fought for decades. It really shows up on white or very light finishes. I have used "Simple Green" sprayed on full strength after first wetting the area with a water hose, followed with scrubbing using a damp sponge. It works quite well on my RV. I have also seen it on some other cars I owned which were white or light colors such as silver or beige.

There are lots of auto finish cleaning products, some of which contain liquid waxes. Another type of product I head about recently uses "nano technology" to clean way down into the smallest surface imperfections and fills it in to create a super smooth finish that protects the paint and clear coat. Users on another forum I visit claim that after application most dirt just washes off with application of water. I haven't tried it myself, but may do so soon. I am basically lazy and live on country roads with lots of dirt. This would certainly make life easier. Check out the report on it at:
www.nanotech-now.com/

Happy motoring! :)

Joe

Thanks Joe, I'm not sure that this is road dirt. The drippings line up immediately beneath the holes in the bottom of the door, which I assume are there to drain any water that gets in behind the door panel through the window or handle. I contrast it with my bright white Vanden Plas, now over 12 years since manufacture, and never got this kind of 'runoff' on his rocker panels. (There is other crap on the rocker panels, to be sure, but not runoff.) But I will try that "Simple Green" approach, the Maguiar's (sp?) cleaning wax I used last time worked, but took some serious elbow grease, which is a little difficult to apply down near the ground there...

andyman32;



Yes, I washed my '07 Limited over the weekend. I spent quite a lot of effort cleaning around the inside of the doors and door sills. I found the openings you described and there was a streak of dark colored deposit where water can drain out of the inside of the door. I do believe it is the "black streak" syndrome. There is probably some sprayed-on coating inside the door panel that may be reacting with stuff out of the air to generate the streaks. On RVs it appears to be more prevalent in major cities where there is more air pollution. All of the junk in the air along with rain collecting it as it falls creates quite a chemical mix to get it going.

Our big problem here is the dust from the country roads. It gets everywhere! The hardest area to clean is inside the door openings. If that is not done, it is real easy for even the most cautious passenger to get dust on clothing. It is not too noticeable with light colored clothes, but if you have black or dark colored clothing on it is very noticeable.

I noticed a number of chips in the paint on the front end of the car. The paint seems rather thin and easy to chip. I will have to get some touch-up paint

One other thing I found is that removing bug spatters from the front of the car is easier if you use one of the plastic scrubbers made for removing caked on food in pots and pans. It looks sort of like a sponge made of coiled plastic strands. It is soft enough that it removes the bugs with less effort than other methods I have tried and there is no danger of scratching the paint. Even the special products made to remove bug spatter do not really make the job much easier. I also find that removing tar and grease is made easy using cigarette lighter fluid and a paper towel.

Happy motoring! :beer:

Joe