Can you use a Magic Eraser on paint?
by Todd CooperiderWhile the Magic Eraser in most cases is, err, “magic”, it definitely has its limitations in regards to automotive detailing.
I have used the Magic Eraser many times on cars, but it’s limited to removing scuffs on plastic door panels or sills, or it is used to clean very dirty textured plastic on lighter colored interior trim. If you have a grungy, beat up plastic door sill on a car, the Magic Eraser can do wonders to clean it up and bring it back to life when less aggressive methods won’t work.
Since the Magic Eraser is made of a foam-like material, many people may make the mistake of trying it on the painted surfaces of their car to remove heavy contaminants (bird droppings, sap, bugs, etc). While it may seem like it’s doing a great job of removing these contaminants, the truth of what else it’s doing won’t be unveiled until after you dry off the surface and look at it in the sun or under a light. That nice “soft” sponge is very abrasive, and is capable of doing a lot of damage to paint or other delicate surfaces.
Since we have seen this question pop up quite a bit here on the DI Ask A Pro Blog, I thought that I would do a quick test just to show how dangerous it can be when using a Magic Eraser on paint.
First I started off with a perfectly polished hood (a test hood that I have off of a BMW in Sapphire Black Metallic). I put a piece of tape down the middle to separate the two sides so you could easily tell the two apart once I was finished.
Then I sprayed a little water and rubbed the Magic Eraser on the paint as if I were trying to remove bug remnants.
And once I removed the tape and dried it off, you can clearly see just how much damage was done to the finish (left side) compared to the perfectly polished area on the right. This level of damaged was created in a mere 10 seconds!
If you were to do this to your car, it would require extensive (and potentially expensive) polishing to fix the damage.
So while the Magic Eraser works wonders around the house, you should not, under any circumstances, use them on any painted, shiny, or delicate surfaces of your car!
I’ve never thought of using a magic eraser on my car paint before, but this proves that it’s not the end all be all of cleaning products. But I have a question about using a magic eraser on organic surfaces such as leather or vinyl. For basic dirt removal it seems to be harmless to me but I do know that the main ingredient in the magic eraser is a low pH chemical hence it’s ability to remove marks and such. After using the eraser on these surfaces should I follow up with a balancing/protecting product?
James,
I wouldn’t recommend using the Magic Eraser on vinyl or leather as it can damage the top coating (have seen people do this before).
Hi,
I have a brand new car…. we used the magic eraser to clean off bugs… you can see the dulling in paint. I am so upset! Is there anything we can do to correct the damage caused by us using the eraser on the car? Please help….
Great write-up sir. This will definitely lay to rest a lot of wondering about this “miraculous” product. It is a very good product in many ways, and some of them pertain to detailing. But as shown here, not on painted or shiny surfaces. Do you know how this would work on the plastics of my ’01 jetta? It has that typical rubbery coating that vw/audi is known for. Any info you can give on this would extremely helpful. Thanks for all of the great blog entries and information you give to all of us rookies. Lol.
David,
I’m not familiar with the interior on your Jetta, but having said that, I would limit its use strictly to the types of plastic I mentioned in the article, and at that only in extreme cases when less aggressive methods won’t work.
Great article Todd. I sometimes get questions like this from my customers in regards to using household products for detailing. I always tell my customers to keep household products in the house and use only the appropriate detailing products for their car. I’ve seen a lot of damage on cars due to the “Magic” eraser pad. Great write up as always!
I’ve used this on my matte bumper trim on my BMW 330i and it took off all previous waxes and sealants that have been building up over the years. Now it looks brand new. I just made sure to not get it on the paint because I’ve heard that the Magic Eraser is like a super fine sandpaper.
Great write-up. Unfortunately, I am a victim of Magic Eraser, though on my expensive speakers, not car. My kid scribbled with a sketch pen on the speakers and someone decided to use the eraser when I was not looking. The sketch pen is gone but I see the super-fine swirls similar to ur pic above in a 6 in x 12 in area.. I have just started in car detailing and recently acquired the PC and a few pads, polishes and compounds that I am about to use for the first time (so, not very experienced). I there any way I can fix the markings on my speakers? I currently have Meguiars Ultimate Compound, Scratch X 2.0 and Ultimate Polish. Also have orange, white, black and blue LC pads for the PC. Any recommendations on how to fix this? Thanks!
Great advice and demonstration on the test panel above.
I too have used the magic eraser on paint…. With a light Rubbing Compound and then wax/polish.. the car’s paint was as good as new… even removed light scratches in the paint for a high gloss shine.