Originally Posted by
Loubrey
Pat,
There might be an alternative to the fading black paint on the rear cross member and I must admit this is not a proven fact, but more advice received. This obviously does not cover the surface rust issue...
Apparently 99% of car wash products have some sort of wax in it which in most cases is not compatible with the rear cross member's "dull" finish paint, hence the build up of whitish residue and the faded look.
Following the advice, I gave my rear cross member a good wipe with a rag soaked in mineral turps (actually Bunnings' "fake" turps) and way behold... all the "waxy residue" came off and the cross member was back to "dull" black after the turps dried off.
I keep the inside off the cross member treated with cavity wax and I wipe the outside surface with my turps rag once a month and 4.5 years down the line it look pretty much like new.
Cheers,
Lou