I've only washed my Z a few times since I've had it, and I noticed that every time I'm drying it off, I have more white paint chips on my car. I'm starting to worry if washing my car is actually causing them. What usually causes this particular paint to chip like this?

Here's a noticeable white chip on the left rear. The small specs around it are chamois residue.

 

No it does not....

 

Well I don't know what caused it. I'm just seeing them after I wash my car, so I don't know what to suspect. A simple scenario, maybe the paint was cracking up and the burst of water dislodged it. Maybe something in the cheap car wash stuff I used adversely affected my paint. Maybe part of the chamois got a tiny stone in it??? Or is it being caused by driving it?

 

If you're car was ever refinished/repainted and they didn't do the prep work correctly, then you will have adhesion issues. It would be more prone to chipping from driving than washing. Many body shops do quick fixes, looks great for a while, then you start seeing tiny pieces flake off shortly after.

 

What year is your car?
Was it repainted?If so,how long ago?
Sounds like a cheap repaint with lousy prep work.

 

It's 2008, and I have no knowledge of if it was repainted.

 

if there was a stone in a chamois there would most likely be swirl marks/ scratches imo

next time change your washing materials i.e a new drying item (micro fiber cloth, chamois, etc) and maybe a new mitt and see if marks continue to appear

good luck.. i know how annoying those little chips can be

 

Check around the edges of the body panels. if it was repainted by a cheaper shop then you'll likely see overspray or possibly some of the old paint color underneath.

Your chip looks like it has primer underneath. This typically means that you at least have the original panel. ie.. if the panel got replaced by a junk yard part of a different color then the rock chip will show the old cars color under it instead of primer.

This is more of a speculation than anything else, but perhaps you did get a repaint. The text of your cars paint in the pic doesn't look like the texture of my car's paint. I'd say to compare the texture on your car between all the panels to see if you see a difference. Also check for color mismatches between panels. And check for the consistency of the pearl application.

Odds of your carwash causing a new chip is very rare. You're more likely to see scratches from poor washing tactics than you are to see chips. The only exception might be if there was a slight chip already started and the mitt fibers snagged on it. Though, this would be rare and nothing to really worry about trying to prevent.

Chips are almost always from rocks while driving. To lessen the probability of chips you should
*Not follow closely behind other cars.
*Fall back immediately if you see cars in front of you start driving on the center line or the white line.. this is where loose rocks typically are.
*Avoid roads that have conditionals that would cause additional rock hazards. for instance.. in PA the state will Tar/Chip roads. This means they just smear tar on the road, cover it with small rocks then drive over it with a steel roller. Results in literally millions of loose rocks for a month or two.
*understand that you'll still get rock chips, no matter how careful you are. The only thing you can do is try to lessen how many you get by being cautious.

 

Where are you washing it? At home with a bucket and water or at a do-it-you're self car wash? If its at a DIY car wash the filter system may not be working well or being kept up by ownership. Dirt/sand can get through and work its way into the wash line and act as a sand blaster.

 

It's been repainted

 

Agree.

In unique circumstances I have used Mr. Clean, Murphy’s Oil Soap and mineral spirits on the paint. None with any noticeable damage. Are you certain this is the original paint?

 

DIY sandblasted?

 

Alright I switched to microfiber for drying and detailing and I'm much happier, since I get no residue from it and can really pinpoint where the chips are. It's not as bad as I thought. Here's a good question, because of the shape of my paint, can I still use a clay bar?