What's the latest recommendation for removing corrosion stains from road salt?

[canyoncarver]

Colorado here, I just take it to a touchless car wash after each snow/mag chl on the road...get's most of the crap off, looks reasonable and low effort. (sure as hell dont want to do the wash outside or garage stunt). Once spring comes around I'll give her a deep clean!

washes close when it’s below freezing and even a day or two of salt on the truck appears to nuke it pretty badly

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[Crissa]

There's no evidence of serious corrosion in your images, though, @canyoncarver

-Crissa

 

[HaulingAss]

Colorado here, I just take it to a touchless car wash after each snow/mag chl on the road...get's most of the crap off, looks reasonable and low effort. (sure as hell dont want to do the wash outside or garage stunt). Once spring comes around I'll give her a deep clean!

I just wash mine by hand (as long as it's above freezing) and I haven't noticed a problem with road salts. I think it could be more noticeable if the stainless is not allowed to self-passivate before exposure to magnesium chlorides and other de-icing compounds.

I don't fuss over mine too much, so the passivation stays strong and prevents de-icer discolorations. I think people who find it difficult to keep looking nice are just making work for themselves by using harsh chemicals on it. I can only imagine their stainless flatware looks all stained and discolored too.

 

[canyoncarver]

I just wash mine by hand (as long as it's above freezing) and I haven't noticed a problem with road salts. I think it could be more noticeable if the stainless is not allowed to self-passivate before exposure to magnesium chlorides and other de-icing compounds.

I don't fuss over mine too much, so the passivation stays strong and prevents de-icer discolorations. I think people who find it difficult to keep looking nice are just making work for themselves by using harsh chemicals on it. I can only imagine their stainless flatware looks all stained and discolored too.

I literally bought the truck, then three weeks after I bought it the truck went to the shop for a week. Then a week after it got out of the shop it started snowing off and on with temps ranging between below zero and teens. Even my garage was barely above freezing.

There was frozen crusted road filth all over the truck for about three weeks, then when it finally got above freezing and I hosted it off at a car wash stall the entire truck was badly tarnished.

You live in Washington and I don't think you understand that the conditions and amount of road salt used in a state like Colorado are nothing like what is used in any part of Washington.

 

[HaulingAss]

I literally bought the truck, then three weeks after I bought it the truck went to the shop for a week. Then a week after it got out of the shop it started snowing off and on with temps ranging between below zero and teens. Even my garage was barely above freezing.

There was frozen crusted road filth all over the truck for about three weeks, then when it finally got above freezing and I hosted it off at a car wash stall the entire truck was badly tarnished.

You live in Washington and I don't think you understand that the conditions and amount of road salt used in a state like Colorado are nothing like what is used in any part of Washington.

As a snow skier, I have driven through Colorado multiple times in the winter and am well aware of all the salts used. One of the snowiest roads in the US is at the snowiest Ski Area in the US. I travel it all the time. I've always rinsed the chlorides off my cars whenever the weather warmed up because most of the damage happens above freezing. And the Cybertruck is no exception.

 

[canyoncarver]

As a snow skier, I have driven through Colorado multiple times in the winter and am well aware of all the salts used. One of the snowiest roads in the US is at the snowiest Ski Area in the US. I travel it all the time. I've always rinsed the chlorides off my cars whenever the weather warmed up because most of the damage happens above freezing. And the Cybertruck is no exception.

Right, I drove the truck in snow on salted roads when the temps were below freezing and I hosed the vehicle off at the first opportunity I had, which was over a week later.

The result is the entire surface of the truck was badly tarnished to the point I had to scrub the entire truck down with BKF soft since none of the other methods were able to adequately remove the staining.

You seem to be arguing that if the steel is properly passivated it will resist the kind of harsh road salts used for de-icing in places like Colorado.

I am highly skeptical that this is the case. I doubt that regardless of how "well passivated" the steel is that it is going to hand up to being drenched in magnesium chloride for days at a time.

Later this year before next winter season I will likely more thoroughly clean the truck and then use some kind of ceramic coating on the steel to try to get at least some level of protection for similar conditions next winter.

 

[HaulingAss]

You seem to be arguing that if the steel is properly passivated it will resist the kind of harsh road salts used for de-icing in places like Colorado.

I am highly skeptical that this is the case. I doubt that regardless of how "well passivated" the steel is that it is going to hand up to being drenched in magnesium chloride for days at a time.

Later this year before next winter season I will likely more thoroughly clean the truck and then use some kind of ceramic coating on the steel to try to get at least some level of protection for similar conditions next winter.

In my experience it cleans up nicely. If the concentration/temperature/dwell time is such that it causes an uneven appearance that doesn't easily wash off, you can always polish it bright again and start over. I wouldn't do that in the middle of winter though.

I believe your problem might have been the manufacturing oils that coated the panels on delivery was still present. Oils prevent/hinder the passivation from happening, which is why washing with soap and water keeps the Cybertruck looking good.

It definitely gets easier and easier to take care of as it passivates.

 

[Medman]

Thanks for this thread. I'm also in colorado and washed it today after having it pretty dirty for last month. Looks pretty bad like mold set in, haha. Gonna try your citrisurf and bkf and probably end up doing the electric buffer too. I had service fix my vault seal a while back too and it still leaks like a sieve too.

 

[CyberGus]

Found a streak of bird poop right down the middle of the driver's door today. Sprayway and paper towel cleaned it up nicely, but it left a minor mark. It normally wouldn't bother me, but was in a highly visible area.

Citrisurf? Nope.
BKF spray? Nope.
BKF liquid? Just a drop, with light buffing of the paper towel, all gone.

But now I have a shiny spot ?

 

[Crissa]

I am highly skeptical that this is the case.

The more oxidized the surface is, the easier it is for compounds to stick to it, and yes, the more marks leaving salt on it will be. It's additive.

However, the best part of stainless is: you can just repolish/passivate the metal, no problem.

-Crissa

 

[koolio]

Citrisurf 77 worked great for spots on my hood and tailgate, but now I have to do the whole truck because it really brightened up those panels.

Citrisurf 77 is what's recommended in the owner's manual....and, is what passivates the stainless steel (IIRC).

 

[ToyHauler]

Also a Colorado CT owner. Drive it frequently to the mountains, lots of mag chloride. Usually can't get it off until after the weekend and always have spots that do not come off during a normal wash. BKF soft and some elbow grease gets it clean. But, have given up on doing that after every weekend and am just going to do weekly car washes and do a full clean in the spring.

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