The only solution is more than likely going to lie with Toyota Motor Company’s corporate office since the dealer has buffed it 3 times (a mistake), and this method is probably nothing more than a stalling tactic on the part of the dealer in the hopes the OP may throw in the towel and live with the problem.
Pretty interesting stuff if rail dust is really the cause of this problem. I used to do a lot of PDIs (pre-delivery inspections) and a lot of accessory/A/C installations on new cars and I’ve never seen or heard of this problem.
IF rail dust is really the cause then there are several points to ponder.
Any damage inflicted by a railroad usually means a claim is filed and the railroad pays off. Wonder if this damage was noticed by the dealer upon delivery and they collected on it, sent the vehicle through make-ready, and hoped no one would notice?
My feeling is that if the vehicle were mine I would not want a repaint on it. Even if the dealer guaranteed the paint forever, who’s to say the dealer will even be around 6 months from now? They seem to change owners/names as often as the humidity changes.
The OP should get a new car, less a per mile charge maybe, and any financial hit should be taken by the dealer who sold the car or by Toyota under a good will claim.
Rust is cancer and in a couple of years those tiny specks may be full grown blotches.
I’d roll this car by a few high quality Auto Body Shops and get opinions from professional auto painter/restorers. That’s where I’d go next. They may be able to clean a little spot and assess the specks.
Some here have been speculating as to the source of the spots. In truth they could have come from a number of sources. The “roof and upper panels” distribution suggest to me that some airborn particulate possibly acidic settled on the finish. Back when I was a kid decades ago before the EPA we lived near an incinerator and I’ve seen the damage that can be caused by airborne particles.
Whatever the cause, it was delivered to you that way and is the dealer’s repsonsibility to correct.
In this case the car was delivered new that way. It would likely have been somewhere between the manufacturer and the dealer where it sat, possibly in a lot or on a transport.
It has been stated (including myself) that this is from brake pads, and most likely that is 95% of it but it is possible that it is from industrial fallout, also known as fly ash. Junk from factory smokestacks, etc.
When vehicles are unloaded off the transport they have maybe 3 or so miles on the odometer. Chances are this rail dust started when the vehicle was bought and was driven on a regualar basis.
the best way to get rid of the rail dust is to take a clay bar and a spray wax, i just had to do a new car that had it all over and the clay bar is the best way to go cheap and doesnt take long