Does Medical Alcohol Damage Car Paint?
2 Answers
Alcohol is a strong solvent that can damage car paint and affect its gloss. It is recommended to use specialized cleaning solutions at a car wash. Below is relevant information: 1. Simply put, car paint coating involves applying a protective layer on the surface of the paint, providing an invisible physical shield to protect the paint. 2. The main component of car paint is resin, which has relatively large molecular gaps. After coating, small molecular elements such as silicon, silicon dioxide, and nano-inorganic silicon in the coating solution can fully penetrate into the molecular gaps and micro-pores of the paint, forming a transparent crystalline layer similar to a phone screen protector. This significantly enhances the hardness and scratch resistance of the paint surface, providing long-term sealing protection and keeping the paint looking bright and new for a long time.
I saw someone asking about this in a car enthusiast group before, and I happened to have tried using medical alcohol to clean the door handle area. A few days later, I noticed the paint in that spot had turned white and lost its gloss. Later, I asked a friend who works in car detailing, and he said the ethanol in medical alcohol is actually quite strong—it can dissolve the protective layer and wax film on the car's paint. Spraying it on the paint is like using a solvent to clean, which not only damages the surface gloss but can also make the clear coat brittle and crack over time. While using it for a small emergency spot might be fine, it’s really not recommended for long-term use. If you really need to disinfect, it’s better to buy dedicated car interior wipes or spray alcohol on a towel before wiping interior parts—that’s much safer.
