I want to see if I am doing anything wrong. I have this 2000 forest green caravan for 3+ years. It has been in sunny California. Since I acquired it I have washed and waxed it regularly. Now the front portion of the roof and the top of the hood is fading and I can say that the white primer will be showing off soon. Have I washed the car too much? Should I just not bother that much with washing and waxing?
I have owned older cars and not had this much fading. I mostly want to know this for my future cars.
You’re not doing anything wrong. You can’t wash the paint off the vehicle. The dark green paint is soaking up the California sun, and the resulting heat is what makes the paint fade. If the vehicle sits in the sun for a few hours I’ll bet you can’t put your hand on the hood or roof without burning yourself. This is a problem with dark vehicles in sunny southern states. It could also have something to say about the quality of the original paint.
I recommend light colored vehicles in the future. Or a garage.
As usual, I agree with McP.
One other thing you may want to consider is looking for a model that has (or having applied) a “clearcoat”. It’s an extra clear paint coat that goes over paint that provide much improved resistance to the paint drying up.
As long as you haven’t been using an aggressive polish versus a normal wax, you didn’t cause this. In fact, you probably slowed down the onset of this problem a bit.
While I generally agree with mcparadise (mc what is the history behind that name?) I do have a couple of addition questions.
How do you wash and wax the car? What products are you using and how often do you do it.
Some “waxes” are really a cleaner wax that have a mild abrasive in them. In time and aggressive use, they can put a haze on a finish.
In the end I believe it is most likely going to be sun exposure and the dark paint combination.
You might try taking it to a professional detailing shop and see what they can do for you.
Thanks for the info. The car has been in a carport for the most part at least since 2006. It still gets driven in the fwy under the sun. I use a car washing soap (Blue Coral, it was on sale, no other particular reason). The was is either the turtle was that is a paste or liquid quick McGuire’s (?sp). Cotton only cloth for drying and waxing, but haven’t invested in buying fancy cloths at $10 a piece, usually old T shirts if that matters.
The fading is in the area most exposed to heat and wind friction; back of the hood and the front slope of the roof. It is past the detail shop salvation, but I don’t want the same to happen to the newer Burgundy Camry I have bought:)