Paint damage from magnetic L plate
Discussion
Collecting my son from Uni on Saturday for Easter. He passed his test back in January and was only able to go for one drive in his car before I took him back down to Uni (he has nowhere to park his car down there), so I thought I’d give the car a wash and polish for him at the weekend so it looks good when he comes home.
He had lessons with an instructor but I took him out for practice in his car and had a magnetic L plate on the bonnet which we removed when he’d passed.
There is now a strange ‘milky’ looking patch of paint where the L plate had been on the bonnet which seems to be below the surface lacquer as I can’t feel any difference to the paint finish. Certainly not from the plate scratching the surface but is not the whole size it the L plate. Definitely wasn’t there before though…
Car is a VW Up! In bright red and the patch is quite noticeable although I’ve found it virtually impossible to photograph as all I see is my own reflection or the sky!
Any ideas what I can try to reduce / remove it?
He had lessons with an instructor but I took him out for practice in his car and had a magnetic L plate on the bonnet which we removed when he’d passed.
There is now a strange ‘milky’ looking patch of paint where the L plate had been on the bonnet which seems to be below the surface lacquer as I can’t feel any difference to the paint finish. Certainly not from the plate scratching the surface but is not the whole size it the L plate. Definitely wasn’t there before though…
Car is a VW Up! In bright red and the patch is quite noticeable although I’ve found it virtually impossible to photograph as all I see is my own reflection or the sky!
Any ideas what I can try to reduce / remove it?
Found a similar thread which shows a very similar effect to what is on my son’s bonnet
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
The mark on his car didn’t disappear though…
It is definitely not the rest of the bonnet having faded - the affected area looks very milky.
Will try T-Cut this evening!
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
The mark on his car didn’t disappear though…
It is definitely not the rest of the bonnet having faded - the affected area looks very milky.
Will try T-Cut this evening!
Seems that it’s a worldwide issue, some sound advice... if a bit late.
( In my day you tied them to the bumpers & just flipped them down when not required)
https://www.theaustralian.com.au/breaking-news/don...
( In my day you tied them to the bumpers & just flipped them down when not required)
https://www.theaustralian.com.au/breaking-news/don...
Edited by Milkyway on Monday 27th March 18:09
Milkyway said:
If all else fails... stick a P plate over it. 
( This thread may serve as a warning to potential Parents & Learners etc.)
I did threaten him with a P plate but he wasn’t interested ( This thread may serve as a warning to potential Parents & Learners etc.)
Edited by Milkyway on Wednesday 29th March 13:21
Will try the hairdryer tip if it ever stops raining…
595Heaven said:
I did threaten him with a P plate but he wasn’t interested
Will try the hairdryer tip if it ever stops raining…
I did see a guy on YouTube removing an old advertising stickers residue from a car door... using WD40 first. Will try the hairdryer tip if it ever stops raining…
( Maybe try a little test area first)
Edited by Milkyway on Wednesday 29th March 15:50
Did you leave the plates on the car for months or something?
They are supposed to be placed into the car prior to driving off, then removed once the learner has had his lesson/experience drive. They are not supposed to be left on until he passes.
Will be interested to see what if anything fixes this, good luck. Let us know how it goes.
They are supposed to be placed into the car prior to driving off, then removed once the learner has had his lesson/experience drive. They are not supposed to be left on until he passes.
Will be interested to see what if anything fixes this, good luck. Let us know how it goes.
They were probably on the car for 4-5 months
Just looked on the Halfords site and it says
Warning:
Always remove learner plates after every journey, failure to do this could result in damage to the paintwork
Not recommended for use on resprayed paintwork
As the car was only used for his practice driving between lessons we never bothered to remove them.
You live and learn!
Just looked on the Halfords site and it says
Warning:
Always remove learner plates after every journey, failure to do this could result in damage to the paintwork
Not recommended for use on resprayed paintwork
As the car was only used for his practice driving between lessons we never bothered to remove them.
You live and learn!
You're not alone OP, I've made the same mistake on my son's learner car. Except on mine the lacquer has actually come away with the plates. Oh well, it's a 23 year old Toyota Corolla, I bought something old and tatty so that it wouldn't matter if it sustained a bit of cosmetic damage. I call it character and it will not be addressed.
Bannock said:
You're not alone OP, I've made the same mistake on my son's learner car. Except on mine the lacquer has actually come away with the plates. Oh well, it's a 23 year old Toyota Corolla, I bought something old and tatty so that it wouldn't matter if it sustained a bit of cosmetic damage. I call it character and it will not be addressed.
It is annoying but as you say, hardly the end of the world. I suspect my son won't even notice!Gassing Station | Bodywork & Detailing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff