Campbell12

Hey, I have a 2018 es350 that I recently had waxed and I noticed a (half-dollar) sized mark on my hood. At first it seemed like it may have been bird poop that wasn’t completely washed off before waxing but looking at it up close, it almost looks like it is cracking. Does anyone have any idea what this could be or how I can correct it? Do I need paint correction?

It doesn’t seem too bad in the shade but it is quite obvious in the sun.

Color is Caviar and the spot is smooth to the touch.

Thank you for your help.


Paint imperfection

lesz

Are you the original owner of the car?

That kind of alligator skin-like cracking is usually a sign of paint work that was done without properly preparing the surface. I'm guessing that, even if you have never had any paint work done on the hood, either a previous owner had paint work done there or else, before the car was even sold originally by the dealer, there could have been repairs that were required because of transit damage done when the car was being shipped to the dealer.

Campbell12

I am the original owner and there was no paint work that was done before I took delivery that I am aware of. It seems to have just appeared out of nowhere. After having the vehicle waxed.

bc6152

I don't know how damage could have occurred in that one spot and the entire hood not repainted. Then, if the hood was repainted, why would this spot happen? Also, I think that when the wax was applied it highlighted the bad paint that was probably already there... Was a wheel used to wax the hood? If so maybe that spot got burned... Hard to tell by the photo...

Campbell12

They claim it was hand-waxed as advertised. I may take it in to see what the dealer paint shop says.

NdYAG

Looks like typical bird poop damage to me.

Google images for bird poop paint damage

Mike728

^^ Agree. If not a bird, it was probably caused by some other caustic substance.

12jimmyjam

should be so if the clear was affected too, right? Otherwise I’d say no. Sometimes cars are repainted by shippers or dealers if damage occurs.

I had etching from bird droppings on new paint before and it etched the clearcoat.

STLLEXUS

It is hard to tell from pic but that looks very,very magnified. If you can't feel any cracking or lifting.That could be bird droppings or bug splatter that was not cleaned off soon enough.A good polishing could do the trick.

bc6152

Had bird droppings on the boss's Honda in July... The damage went thru the clear coat and into the color below. Irreversible unless completely refinished...

Campbell12

Just an update. I took my car to my local detailer who specializes in paint correction. He took one look, and said repainting is the only fix. Confirms it is bird poop damage. I will also attach another picture here that illustrates why I hate the spot so much. The sun reflects it and it’s the first thing I see when walking up to the car

TechNut

I see your point and don’t blame you a bit. I had a car recently that picked up some minor scratches in the clear coat due to an accidental hose scrape at the car wash (my fault). Anyway, I had paint protection film applied and it completely covered the minor scratches up. Perhaps this is an option here? Worth taking it to one of the PPF installers and getting their opinion perhaps?

Littleguy

I'm old so I can't tell if your car is dark blue or black, but this is why my current ES will be the first and last black car I ever own. You see every imperfection.

lesz

There are 2 sides to that coin. Yes, black cars are going to show things like polishing swirls or surface scratches more readily. On the other hand, black cars are about the only color for which you can use touch-up paint to do a virtually invisible repair for things like stone chips, With almost all of the multi-stage pearl colors and even 2-stage metallic colors, even small touch-ups will stick out like a sore thumb. Further, if you ever need to have a panel refinished, non-metallic blacks are about the only color for which you will be able to get a perfect color match, and a shop will be able to get that perfect match without the need to blend the new paint into adjacent panels. And, even though black will show those polishing swirls and surface scratches more readily, they can be easily polished out. When other colors get damage that requires paint repairs, whether minor touch-ups or refinishing entire panels, there is no fix available for even minor color mismatches.

As someone who admits to being OCD about fits and finishes, I choose to have a color for which I know that, when I do get damage, whether minor or major, I will be able to have repairs that bring the car back to virtually the same way that it looked when it came out of the factory. With multi-stage pearl and metallic colors, I would know that, regardless of how well the repair work is done, those repairs will be detectable to someone (like me) with a keen eye for fits and finishes.

JRandy

It is important to get bird poop, bugs, etc off promptly. I keep a small, one gallon bucket of water and a small kitchen type cellulose sponge in my garage and if I see something like that I wash it off immediately. These are not my regular car wash tools which consist of a large sponge, bug-net sponge, soft brush and stiff brush with a large bucket. During love bug season I sometimes wash the whole car when I get back. Same if I am out beach-side and get salt spray on it - rinse off the whole car. If you think we're picky about our cars, you should look at the LS threads about parking. I'm more like they are and always have been.