I recently had my car washed, and some hours later, I find this in my parking lot. My first thought was some drunk assholes poured something over my car. But as I looked closer, it noticed something strange- there's no single point of origination. There's no splash mark or a place that someone could have poured something. It clearly poured down both sides of the license plate area, but it started above it. In fact, the TOP of the spoiler, top glass and rear glass were clean. What you see in the photo is all of it. (It's hard to tell here but there's some of it right under the orange sticker.) When I popped the trunk, there's no sign of it anywhere, even on sides. The fluid was thick, like oil. There wasn't a drop of it on the pavement under the car where I was parked. It took quite a bit of spraying and wiping to get if off, and I still see remnants. Something maybe the car wash guys sprayed that poured out? Washer fluid from the back wiper collecting something on its way down? Radioactive sludge from my Mr. Fusion?
Soylent, Interesting situation. It looks to me the origin of the streaks/drips is the joint between the piece over the license plate and the rear hatch. The next part is easy; after running down the hatch the liquid pooled on the bumper, and then ran down over the bumper. For this to happen, the liquid would have to have been poured/applied carefully to the rear glass. It is possible that the mystery liquid at first was not as thick as it was when you found it. It is possible that it catalyzed -- thickened -- in the presence of UV rays. Neatsfoot oil might do this, so too linseed oil, if left in direct sunlight for some hours. As to what else it could be, I haven't a clue. I can't imagine what the car wash folks would have used -- on the window probably -- that would cause that mess. For the record, did you notice any smell? Neatsfoot and linseed oil have a heavy, musty, oily, some might say mildly smoky smell.
I know their are some pretty weird air currents at the rear of my G3- the dirt that collects on the bumper and lower rear window/license plate area is pretty bad. So, with that in mind I have to ask you to VERY carefully examine the tracks made by the moving fluid- any possible track paths that might indicate they moved UP and not DOWN??? I have an odd feeling that they might actually have originated BENEATH the car and the air current drew them upward onto your car. So, I would consider the source of it as coming possibly from BENEATH the car...get under there and look around!
I am wondering whether you had aftermarket rustproofing applied to your car. That stuff looks like rustproofing liquid leaking out on a hot day.
OK, I'm thinking it was some cleaning agent the car wash folks used that accumulated by the small rear glass pane when they had the hatch up & open. I seeped into crevices while they dried the car, then after they closed the hatch and you drove away, it came dribbling down, spreading into rivulets by the back pressure on the back of the car. How's that for a theory?
Did you feed your car some bad gas? I think it's just dust that has mixed with water to form mud. Wash it off with some car wash in a bucket of water. Better still, wash around the plastic trim in the middle of the hatch with a high pressure spray to get the rest of the dirt out first, then wash. On a closer look, it looks like black coffee with 2 sugars.
I have had this happen on my car, although not as extreme as yours. I believe it is a mixture of dirt and soap that did not get thoroughly rinsed from under the trim piece above the license plate, and then runs out later as you drive.
I'll tell you, this freaked me out. My co-workers joked that its battery acid from the battery- I'm gonna assume that it's not. It wasn't completely dry, and it had been sitting in the sun for hours. It definitely wasn't mud. I didn't pay for any rust-proofing, so if they did it, it was without my knowledge. And I sure as hell didn't have the balls to smell it I just hope it's nothing serious.
After I wash & rinse my Prius it always drips/trickles water from those two points, although it has always been clear water. I live in a hard water area and if I don't dry them off completely I end up with a residue outline marking where the water trickled down.
Had the same thing one time. Same place. I brought my car to the dealer to restore some parking damage at the front. When done, they cleaned the car with a high pressure cleaner. It seems to be some coating on the inside of the hatch, but it can't be rust proofing, since the hatch is aluminium. Anyhow, it's a factory applied coating, and I never had it happen in a normal car wash, maybe water can enter under pressure and a certain angle. It was easy to clean (by the dealer)
