The correct term is ferrous metal oxides and are produced by many sources other than the rail transport. We work with all the manufacturers and this concern is not going away. Your dealership may be producing the particle, or the metal desk manufacturer down the street, the new building they are putting up across the street as the cut and weld, and grind the steel.It may be that the wind is blowing by your brake lathe and carrying them to the vehicles. These particles are very small, in most cases invisable to the naked eye when they attach to the surface. They are negatively charged and since all vehicles carry a positive charge, are magnetically attached to the paint surface. The introduction of heat and humidity starts the corrossive process. This in turn creates the "orange spots" on light colored cars and the "white or silver spots" on dark colored cars. The Ford TSM, Mazda and Hyundai bulletins for removal are on
www.autoint.com as well as other Tech Tips, magazine technical articles regarding enviormental paint concerns. There are some images you may download under the Tech Tips section that may help you in explaining to the customer the issues. Like a picture of a modern hi-solid OEM paint system on a steel panel magnified 5000x. It is a sponge. The Ford bulletin goes into detail using pictograms of what happens when you only buff or clay a vehicle. It will come back as all you removed was the "blooming" of the particle. As soon as the vehicle is exposed to heat and moisture, they re-bloom and the customer is back. Our Tech staff will answer any questions you may have on this concern.
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Ron Ketcham
[This message has been edited by Ron Ketcham (edited 08-16-2000).]