1ton

I use Zaino products on my Black SC....bird pooped and I didn't know how much damage was made until I washed my car. I have tried doing a search on what can be done to try to salvage my hood. It is not horrible but it is not good. I tried putting on another layer of Z2 on top and the polish but did not seem to help. Any other suggestions besides getting the hood repainted or wet sanding?

RON430

I am very sorry I can't help with this. Obviously I have run into this myself, I can't figure out what those son of a guns eat to produce that poop. I have been thinking very hard about going back to Zaino for the longevity but I had two reasons to switch. The first was that on my dark blue, there was almost a cloudiness in it and the second was tree sap. For some reason, tree sap seems to very strongly chemically bond to and maybe through the Zaino making it an absolute pain to get off. I switched over to P21S wax which gives a slightly better shine than the Zaino and at least you can clean most things off. Now, I may be removing the P21S as well but I really don't care. At least the contaminant isn't bonded to the car. As far as I am concerned the protection layer should be sacrificial if required to get some of this stuff off. I can always put another layer of wax on but in order to get sap off of Zaino took multiple stages of solvents and cleaners and finally a full polish with the Porter Cable. Still haven't decided whether to go back but your experience makes me think I will stick with the P21S for a while.

Sorry for your experience. Only advice would be to try a pro detailer and see what luck they have before you resort to repainting the hood. A pro is worth every penny to fix it without resorting to repainting.

jfelbab

Been there, the birds in my case were seagulls. I really had to work the surface over with the porter-cable to polish out the etching. After that I always carry a bottle of Meguiar's Quick Detailer in the trunk with some soft terry towels. Don't let this stuff stay on the paint. You could also consider a cover but that is not an option for my use of the vehicle. I also use Meguiars #26 wax as for me it produces a better shine and protection from the elements.

Guitarman

Time is your enemy when it comes to those kinds of acids, the sooner you notice it and act, the better your chances, kind of like cancer. Some products may provide you with a bit longer protection than others, but it's likely hours, not days. No problem experimenting with different waxes etc to see which ones fare better, but don't throw Zaino under the bus completely; it may have been a particularly eggregious diet that one bird had and it would've done the same to any wax. All bird droppings are NOT created equal, lol.

When you see a bird dropping on the car, act quickly...whatever you do, DON'T quick detail it and walk away. Q/D's may not remove all the acid from the paint, and you could find further etching and damage the next day. The best thing to do is either wash the car and flush it with water throuoghly, or if you can't wash the car then and there, get some 50/50 mix isopropyl alcohol & water and flush it out with that. The alcohol acts as a drying agent to remove the acids. You can use a baking soda and water mix also, but you have to flush with clean water after, unlike the isopropyl / water mix. Rewax the area either way.

Once it's etched, your choices are limited by how much paint is still below the etched spot(s). If the etch goes all the way to the basecoat or primer, there's nothing you can do of course. If buffing /polishing doesn't get it, then wetsanding is the last recourse next to a repaint. You should only wetsand if you know how to and when to stop, unless you're resigned to repainting the panel in the event you cut through the paint completely.If you can't live with the etch, sometimes you have nothing to lose to try whatever if you're going to get it painted anyway.

RON430

Just had a first hand experience. Seems like a flock got my wife's GS. Used Griot fast detailer with a microfiber towel and took it off within a few hours of it going on. Had a chance to wash the car several days later and there aren't any visible long lasting effects. At least with the P21S and this flock. May go back to using a car cover at work but what a pain.