I've heard that mud can be damaging to your paint and i heard that there is no difference. does anyone know the real answer to this question?? out at the shooting range i go to there are alot of mud puddles and I usually go through them a few times a month. and if it is really hurting my paint i want to know if i should stop.

 

mud isnt good for your paint but your paint isnt just going to fall off or anything by getting some mud on it. anytime you get any abrasive on the paint like dirt or mud you stand the chance of damaging your paint but if you keep up on washing it good after you get it muddy youll be fine.

 

Don't leave mud on your paint for 5 months and you should be good.......

 

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Besides the abrasion factor, if it's red dirt ( a.k.a clay ) there would be concern about the potential of etching the paint and/or clear-coat due to it's acidity, iron and aluminium hydroxide ( read: also bad for aluminum rims, step-bars, etc. ) content.

Best bet ... Hose it off ASAP then wash / clean the truck at your convenience.
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thanks you guys..

 

But hose it off with SOFT water, and let it air dry?

Reason: hard water can etch once it dries and remains on the paint. And if you dry (without properly washing it) then you can also scratch/create swirl marks due to the presence of dirt.

 

its just mud guys. just rinse it off then wash with soap like any other time you wash a car. It wont hurt the paint, just wash it off soon after getting it dirty or it will be a pain to get it off. From what you are saying about it just being puddles on a road, its not real mud clumped up all over anyways, just dirty water.
if you are worried about water spots just chamois it. If you don't own one of them, you don't care about how your truck looks anyways, and all this talk is pointless. Mine never gets washed without being chamoised dry afterwords. hell, sometimes i even take a air hose and blow out all the cracks so I don't get any water streaks at all.

 

If you care about the paint on your truck you ought to use the "two bucket" system when washing. You'll be surprised how much dirt doesn't go back onto the truck if you rinse your wash mitt/rag before putting it into the soap bucket to wash another area of the truck. Check out Meguiar's 5 step method online if this doesn't make sense.
Oh yes, the air hose trick mentioned by jayson is also a good idea.

 

If you don't rinse all the mud off of your truck it can hold and trap moisture on your panels, etc. and start corrosion. The most significant place to keep it off would be the frame and undercarriage(suspension).

 

I off-road with my jeep all the time. I even get mud on the instrument panel. Start with a good wax using a high quality Carnuba based wax before you get muddy. As stated the big danger is mud packed into the frame rails and other areas underneath. Next day after a real muddy trip I will spend about three hours cleaning the jeep and most of that time is spent underneath.