Ted Mooney, P.E. RET
- Pine Beach, NJ
The authoritative public forum
for Metal Finishing since 1989
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Can an egg damage car's clear coat?
Q. What damage does an egg have on a car's clear coat? Because my son is in trouble and he might have to pay a hefty amount of money. But we don't believe an egg can damage a clear coat.
Derek Z [last name deleted for privacy by Editor]- Bel Air, Maryland
2003
A. Believe it, Derek! If you're still dubious, break an egg on your own car, let it sit for 48 hours, and tell us what you believe then :-)
An egg will absolutely damage a car's paint (or anything else's paint).
If your son is a young child, sorry that it's an expensive way for him to learn that eggs are more damaging than he thought.
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
A. Overnight is enough to damage some paints. I think that it is the enzymes in it that do the most damage, but the sulfur content does not help either. The exact clear coat and under paint will make quite a difference. Having to mow a lot of lawns in the heat of the day to pay it off will be a fine lesson for him to learn about respect for other peoples property. Was it a Mercedes or a Corvette?
James Watts- Navarre, Florida
A. An egg can cause staining of a car's clear coat. Ask my wife, she had two eggs thrown at her car by some students. The eggs were not immediately washed off and left lots of hazy white spots all over the car that couldn't be washed off later. Moral - avoid students during their post-exam festivities or don't drive cars near universities.
Trevor Crichton
R&D practical scientist
Chesham, Bucks, UK
A. Yes sir, egg can damage car's clear coat because it sticks on that. When we try to remove that then it leaves white spots.
Jyoti B [last name deleted for privacy by Editor]- Hisar, Haryana, India
A. YES it damages paint and YES it costs a lot to fix - basically you have to repaint everywhere that got egged, which is at least a few hundred dollars.
How about teaching your kid to respect other people's property.
John S [last name deleted for privacy by Editor]- Richmond, BC, Canada
Q. I would like some more information on the damage eggs do to cars, especially if on a blue metallic paint. My cousins car was egged and she was told her paint would need to be stripped entirely and repainted at a cost of $AUS 5500.
Does this sound correct?
If anyone could help or give advice and information it would be much appreciated.
Kate W [last name deleted for privacy by Editor]- Sydney, NSW, Australia
2003
!! My stupid EX-girlfriend thought it would be funny to throw eggs at my car. When I noticed it happened, I immediately got a sponge and began washing it, but it was three in the morning so I decided to wait until the next day to wash it. Unfortunately, it left a lot of marks that would not come off after washing it several times. I'm told that the protein in eggs mix with something in the paint and that is what damages it. If you dry it and the paint, supposedly, that will get the protein out. I am going to try that tomorrow.
Joe L [last name deleted for privacy by Editor]- Massapequa, New York
2004
Which came first, the chick EX'd or the egg?
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
2004
You SERIOUSLY need to teach your child some respect for the personal property of others.
!! Some punk decided to egg my Dark Blue F250 one Friday night on a weekend when I just so happened to be ill and didn't leave the house for two days. I go out of the house Monday morning for work to find somebody was kind enough to throw ONE egg at my F250 Crew cab which up until that point had a near perfect paint job. This was in mid summer too so by the time I had seen what had happened it was too late.
I got out some Simple Green ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] and a towel and scrubbed off the egg itself but where the egg made contact with the paint the finish is almost like the crinkle finish you find on certain hand tools or exhaust manifolds. In other words FUBAR.
Jared J [last name deleted for privacy by Editor]- Amarillo, Texas
2004
A. Yes, egg will damage the paint on your car. My 1997 Pontiac was egged and the paint peeled right up. Not a good situation.
Edward P [last name deleted for privacy by Editor]- Buffalo, New York
2005
A. There is nothing you can really do about egg once its dried on your car's paint. Use Bug Off/ Tar Off -- that helps, Or household ammonia ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] (tsp with a cup of water) but either get touch up paint from the dealer or get it repainted... sucks.
Sam [last name deleted for privacy by Editor]- Ventura, California
2005
A. Early this morning, around 3 am I'm figuring...my vehicle got egged. I raced to the carwash at about noon today, and it was too late. The clearcoat on the driver's side door is ruined. I tried a little bug/tar remover and it helped a bit, but in general its going to need new paint on the door. YES...egg ruins your finish.
Monty W [last name deleted for privacy by Editor]- Red Deer, Alberta, Canada
2005
A. My car was egged on Monday night. The eggs made little white swirls all over my door. I got an estimate for 300 bucks to repaint the door on my brand new Honda Accord. I think its really dumb how the parent above is trying to challenge that the egg can't ruin the paint from the cars that her son threw eggs at. He should pay and have to do community service to learn respect for his community.
Brian W [last name deleted for privacy by Editor]- Staten Island, New York
2005
I think anyone who throws eggs at someone's car is a punk that needs to be disciplined severely. Community service is not enough. They need to be arrested if found.
!! My daughter's 1991 Mustang with a black paint job that she worked very hard for has a ruined hood because of a loser kid that has no respect for other people's property.
Jerry N [last name deleted for privacy by Editor]- San Antonio, Texas
2006
Q. Some jerk egged my car last night... Anyone have any idea how much it would cost to have my trunk lid repainted? 2004 Honda Accord. no damage from egg yolk/whites, just impact damage. arggh! damn kids.
Jennifer D [last name deleted for privacy by Editor]Marketing - Sterling, Illinois
2006
A. Hi there,
Ok here is what you should do. I work at a paint/body shop in Colorado and I paint cars and know a bit or two about lacquer, enamel, and urethane finishes. What year and make is the car? If it is an older car (lets say '90 or older) it is possible you might still have that crappy lead paint they used back before people learned how to paint cars right, and you may be out of luck. If it is peeling off... I'm sorry, there's not a lot you can do. If the paint under the egg seems like it is still intact, you would probably have some luck or at least help by attacking it with some household ammonia and some white vinegar
⇦in bulk on
eBay
or
Amazon [affil links] /water mixture today to remove egg from my 2004 Lexus ... worked like a charm. That egg has been there since October 2008 (I'm a procrastinator) and not a speck of damage to the paint or clearcoat. I definitely recommend it as your first option.
- Pasadena, Maryland
2006
!! Well I hope your advice works! I was just awakened from a sound sleep by the neighbors, who heard a noise at 11 pm at night. their house got egged, as well as the pristine 2006 Mustang I purchased LAST SATURDAY! These punks are SO lucky I don't know who they are! Forget not "ruining someone's life" over $1000! I don't care if the advice works and there's no damage--this is vandalism and they should be prosecuted. hopefully there's some bragging going on at the local schools tomorrow.
Barbara Hensley- Beckley, West Virginia
May 31, 2009
!! I got egged at 1:30 A.M. right after when I got off of work. I went home to get cash. 30 min later I went out to go get some late night food and someone used a full carton of eggs on my '97 Jeep which I custom painted myself. I almost want to cry.
Bob Funland- Rohnert Park, California
June 21, 2009
Q. I just bought a new 2009 Kia Spectra in April and someone egged my car in the night and I woke up to it on the back. It is really only on the bumper..any estimates? What can the 'egg thrower' get as punishment?
Emily Jones- Hollywood, California
July 3, 2009
!! These Egg Thrower punks should be punished big time. My Honda got egged 3 years ago and I let it sit on the car for a month, it took away all the paint(very nasty) left acid like marks on the body. Last night(or this morning) my 08 BMW got egged, I'm so pissed that if I knew who did it, I won't wait on the cops to make a report, I personally take care of these idiot HATERS. An advise to all of you guys, if your car ever get egged wash it immediately, not a day after you see it, but right away. I washed my BMW and clayed it but seems like I can still see the egg drop lines on the bumper, I hate these people. BY the way to paint a bumper or any panels: if you have hook ups it cost about 150 dollars if you don't know the painter they may even quote you 400 for a bumper. DO NOT PAY OVER 200 TO PAINT ANY PANEL IN THE CAR, unless it's some crazy paint that you like. PEACE
todd shak- Los Angeles California
July 10, 2009
July 11, 2009
If teenagers learn to appreciate the consequences of their actions (in this case a legally mandated one) then I think they would learn how to act like a responsible citizen and would then grow up to be a contributing member of society.
The whole idea of not letting a 1,000 USD paint job ruin a kid's life is not a matter or judging someone too harshly. The prank is inherently destructive and might evolve to more serious offenses later on.
Now if the someone accidentally drops a tray of eggs over your car out in a supermarket lot that's something else entirely.
The amount of time it takes to resolve the consequences of the act for the victim should take precedence over considerations regarding what would happen to the future of the perpetrator. The perpetrator had a choice. to throw the egg or not. He must therefore be held liable for the choices he made.
Consider what might happen to the victim.
The amount of time taken off from work to fix the damage might factor in his/her career advancement.
I'm pretty sure victims of this prank had better uses for the money they spent fixing their paint jobs.
- Philippines
!! I have a 2009 Toyota Corola Sport with Red Metallic paint. The car was egged and was not noticed for several weeks. YUP, the egg covered most of the car, and damaged the paint down to the primer. If I find out who did this, I will take them to court.
MARK WATKINS- FARMINGTON, New Mexico
August 1, 2009
!! Last Saturday night while I was away in Seattle with friends someone threw 2-3 eggs on my 2006 Mustang GT. I didn't notice it till the evening the next day Sunday, slept in late...
Well there was no actual damage from the egg residue on the paint, but the rings left behind by the impact of 2 eggs in particular on the front driver side fender just over the GT emblem are there...I took it to a body shop and they couldn't fix it, not without repainting the fender which I won't be doing as of now.
Its not extremely noticeable but I know it's there. I never found out who did it, been living here 5 years and never had that happen before.
It was probably a good thing I didn't catch them in the act lol.
It's a minor thing in the grand scheme of things...but it's annoying especially for people who actually like their cars to have something so small and inexpensive destroy your paint job in seconds.
- Tacoma, Washington
August 11, 2009
!! If possible, when you get egged, aim the car at the punks that did it and run them down.
At that point it is collision damage and deductibles are less.
Also you can claim the egg impacts made you lose control. Egging a vehicle in motion is an assault on your life. Treat it as such.
- Chilliwack, B.C Canada
September 6, 2010
May 2015
Hi. Yes, egging a moving vehicle is dangerous, not just annoying, and should be treated as the serious thing that it is. But we don't think you'd really suggest to a family member that they try to run down the assailants :-)
Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E. RET
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
!! I just got my car egged; didn't have time yet to remove it. It's the day before Halloween so I'm hoping those little f%$^ers come back for round 2 and they're going for a ride to the cops station then in the following months they're going to have their nose shattered by a mysterious black hooded jogger with fake beard and glasses as he runs past them.
BILL BOB- TOWNSVILLE, QLD, AUSTRALIA
October 29, 2010
Thank you for all the responses on this site! I think you just saved me some serious damage. I was going to wait until tomorrow to wash my car, but after reading here I rushed out at 1:00 am and handwashed my car. The egg hadn't set yet so I think I was able to get it all with just car soap and warm water. We'll see how it looks in the sunlight tomorrow...
- Northampton, Massachusetts USA
May 2, 2015
Q. How much do you think a reasonable quote if the egg damaged the rear quarter panel near gas tank, the top of trunk and dripped down to the bumper??
Miss Lue- Miami, Florida USA
May 23, 2015
A. Hi Miss. It just isn't useful to attempt this kind of blind estimate. Auto body shops are so used to the requirements of insurance companies for multiple quotes that I'm confident you can get 3 firm written quotes in not much over an hour without any hassle or pressure. I recently did it. Good luck.
Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E. RET
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
May 2015
Q. I have read through everyone's suggestions and comments. But I have not seen anyone say anything about how to remove egg from your vehicle when it is below freezing weather, it was 7° outside. My 2004 Trailblazer, dark Hunter green color, got egged last night on the front fender and bumper. So my question is how can you remove egg that is frozen on your vehicle?
Laurie Slemp- Toledo, Ohio
January 7, 2017
January 10, 2017
A. Non-expert here as far as eggs and car paint goes, but it sounds like the longer the egg sits on the paint, the more damage it does. Especially as the egg dries, as this increases the chemical concentration against the surface. I have seen a similar effect where acid etching of metal is much more pronounced if it's left on there long enough that the acid solution dries out.
If anything, the egg freezing is probably the best thing that could happen, as it arrests the chemical reaction more quickly. At which point you would want to thaw it, I suppose by pouring warm, then hot water on, and then wipe it off with a towel or rag.
Ray Kremer
Stellar Solutions, Inc.
McHenry, Illinois
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Ed. note: See letter 29067 for still more about cars and eggings
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