Old dried stain, looks to have been left for a while. Tried regular hose down and washed the car, also tried using Meguiar's quick detailer spray, shampoo as well as pressure washer. Proving very resistant. Seems to be deeper than surface marks..

Anyone know if there is a possible way to remove this? Or is it a forever feature? If possible, wondering if I could do it myself, or if it would require special tools to do it... Do you think a dealer could take care of it, or is it more of a car paint repair shop type of job?

 

I would use a good polishing compound and do the polish by hand.

 

Not sure what "wash, wax, and detail" means to you. For me, detailing is wash, clay, sealer (I've been using cQuartz instead of wax).

I'd clay first, then start with the finest polishing compound you can get. I've got a random orbital polisher, so I'd use that instead of by hand

The detailing clay might even get you farther along than you think it would. It's nice to have around for that extra clean, but be sure to wax after using.

 

Yep, start with that.
Start with a very low cut polish (I use Meguiar's Ultimate Compound) and if that doesn't work try something with a little more cut, but don't go as far as a high cut polish.
If hand polishing doesn't work then I would try a dual action (DA) polisher with a lambswool applicator and low cut polish, this has worked for me in the past.
Don't try a rotary polisher unless you are experienced with one.

Edit - Steve beat me to it, try a clay bar first!

 

Thanks folks. Never used polisher machine so probably would prefer to do by hand. Is a dual action polisher the same sort of thing as a rotary polisher?

Looking at Meguiar's clay bars.. Are one of these two probably good to try for an initial attempt? Any preference between these two, or another clay bar from another provider I should look at?

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Meguiar-s...C2100/30340873

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Meguiar-s...G1016/16386193

So... Clay bar first, and then a low cut polish if the clay bar doesn't remove it?

 

If you're trying to pick up stuff at Walmart, start first with either a Mothers or Meguiar's Clay Bar Kit. Then go with M205. If that doesn't work, then go with M105 and then M205. If M105 and M205 are not available, you can try Ultimate Compound. Unfortunately, Ultimate Compound has a lot of oils in it which will make the blemish look fantastic, until you wash it.

Make sure to also use proper microfibers as well. Meguiar's microfibers can be picked up at any Autozone or O'Reillys. The only other MF towels to use would be those from Costco if you're looking at only picking things up locally and not ordering online.

 

Unlikely the clay bar will completely remove the blemish, the point of the clay bar is to remove impurities embedded in the area before you polish.

 

The amount of small scratching on this car just from washing is incredible. It's never been a problem on any of my other vehicles using the same methods, but I've debated doing Cquartz in place of wax to toughen it up some.

How's it holding up for you? My 6 month old layer of Cquartz Dlux has been phenomenal on the rims.

 

Yes, but it's best to remove all that before assessing the full extent of restoration necessary. After decontamination, the damage is often not as bad as it first looked.

Considering I've got a dark grey car, the swirl marks from washing have been pleasantly light. They're still there, but not nearly as back as I'd feared. The cQuartz "Reload" helps too, and is pretty easy to apply (spray on, microfiber off). Keep in mind that I drive this every day, and in the commute. It's a rough life for a car with a pedigree like this, but it's bearing up well.

Before cQuartz I used a polymer sealant, Menzerna Powerlock (now renamed to something I don't remember). That also worked really well. The paint even feels slick to the hand afterwards in a way I've never seen with wax, either carnauba or synthetic.

 

Now called Jescar Powerlock. It's good stuff. I'd also recommend Crystal Serum Light. I have a black car that's fully coated, and the coating is amazing. Literally no swirl marks, but a car wash for me does end up taking about 3 hours from start to finish because of how many times I rinse the wash mitt. Crystal Serum Light also makes clean up an absolute breeze.

 

Bird **** needs to be removed immediately. Interesting bit of the science of why...

https://www.automotivequalitysolutio...paint-etching/

Bottom line is 1) keep a bottle of quick detailer spray and a few microfiber towels in your car and clean bird poop off the instant you see it. Don't wait till you get home or anything, do it IMMEDIATELY! and 2) Keep a good coat of wax or whatever synthetic protectant you prefer on your car at all times as it will buy you a little time between when the bird poops and when you come back to your car, assuming you are coming back the same day. And 3) If you won't be checking on your car for some time, park it indoors or put a cover on it or at least park it away from any trees, light poles or other tall structures where birds like to roost as they like to evacuate right before taking off (reduces take-off weight).

 

@pdupler Phil, Good advice.

In addition to agreeing with the urgency of removing the droppings right away, I'll remind folks that often, bird doo contains grit from the animals' diet. So, don't go rubbing the blemish to get the white stuff off. Instead, soak it off (wet paper towel), THEN buff and assess.



They don't call me CarBuff for nothing.

 

That does prompt me to add to my comments on cQuartz (and Powerlock). I can usually get these deposits off with just a spray of the hose or with a squirt bottle of detailing spray, no rubbing necessary.

 

Thanks for the feedback lizzardo/Jaggyx. About a third of my car has PPF on it (mainly for rock chips) but you've convinced me it's time to seriously look into doing ceramic to tame the swirl situation before it gets too far out of hand.

 

Excellent point! Thank you. Birds don't chew their food, rather they actually swallow sharp pebbles that grind their food in the gizzard. When the pebbles are ground down too small or too smooth, they dislodge and pass on through the digestive tract, and then unfortunately sometimes on to our cars. I've edited my original post as I realize now that "wipe" was probably a poor choice of wording. Somebody might take that literally.

 

Picked up a mothers clay bar kit, and has made a vast improvement. To the extent that I can barely tell where the stain was. Certainly no where near as noticeable before. Thinking of just calling it a day rather than polishing. I might try the kit again next time I do a thorough wash..

I have learnt about the perils of lingering bs and will remember this thread next time I get a deposit

 

I was hoping that would be the case, but it's so hard to tell from pictures over the internet.

Be sure to coat with whatever wax you've been using, as the clay will remove that. You can now take your time to decide when to have a more thorough polishing done.

 

Ceramic coatings swirl up just as easily as most clear coats. This is a common misconception.

If you want swirl protection you need to PPF the rest of your car.

 

I would find an excellent detailer and let him determine how to proceed. I've had bird droppings require wet sanding in the past. Definitely, do not want to do it yourself.

 

Correct -- Ceramic Coatings will swirl quite easily as well, although, they are harder than Jag's clearcoat in my opinion.

That being said, PPF is not the only way to prevent swirl protection. If you are washing your car with a quality shampoo, using property wash materials, and a proper technique, you can in fact absolutely minimize the swirls on paint. I have a black car so my margin for error is quite slim in terms of inducing swirls.

You can expect to do a light polish every 18 months and have a fantastic looking car throughout that time period.