Should I Use A Car Cover Or Leather/Mesh Bra?

Dust and dirt being trapped

When you use a car cover, it is almost impossible to keep the underside of the car cover as well as the surface of the car perfectly clean at all times. It gets particular dusty in the Central Texas area. This is the same issue with these leather and mesh bras – they get dirt trapped underneath. When there is dust or debris trapped between your car’s clearcoat and the car cover/leather bra, it is no different than rubbing your car with a dirty rag (maybe even worse, in some instances). This is whether or not the car is inside or out, as even inside, the car cover may move or brush against the paint. If the cover or the bra is left to flap in the wind or weather, it can abrade the paint entirely down to the primer, metal, or substrate.

Outside, the situation is far more dire. Even a well-tied down, perfectly fitting car cover (or leather/mesh bra), will move in the wind. The tie-down methods as well as the car cover itself will move, abrading the paint and removing any ceramic coating from the surface. Remember that ceramic coating creates a semi-permanent bond with your paint, making the only way to remove it is with an abrasive material. A car cover with dirt trapped between the underside and the ceramic coating will certainly act as that abrasive material, just like a compound or polish will abrade the ceramic coating off (or an automatic car wash brush). 

You would think that you cannot get dirt between the cover, leather/mesh bra, and the ceramic coating/paint if the cover is on, but that isn’t the case. It’s bound to get some dirt, however small, under there. If you’ve lived in the Copperas Cove/Killeen/Ft Cavazos area for awhile, you know that parking a car outside for even 15 minutes can attract dust. And even if it doesn’t, the constant movement of the material against the ceramic-coated surface (or bare paint surface if you have yet to purchase ceramic coating or PPF/clear bra) will damage the paint.