Bug splatter damage question

Brenton

Brenton

aka PEI Detail
Had a customer come in this week. Detailed their 04 Maxima, black. Everything came out really good except the front bumper. Once I got the bugs off, there were dramatic white spots all over. It seemed to me that the bug acid ate through the paint. Is this possible in only a couple of years? Or is there white residue I can't get off?
 
It depends on how long the bug juice was on there. If it baked on through the summer, that stuff can be pretty toxic!

The acidic nature of the bug juice probably ate into the clearcoat. You will probably have to use a light-cut polish to get the stains out. If they are bad enough, possibly even rubbing compound.
 
I just thought of this... One product that I have had great success with is One Grand Special Touch. Bug splats, acid rain, etched water spots. To me, it's kind of a miracle cure when nothing else works! You might want to give it a try. Says right on the label... "Non-Abrasive".

BinaryWrite.asp
 
If they are etched into the clear and that sounds like it is, then I would.

I'd try to hit them with a rotary cutting pad and PB Pro-polish to see if you can reduce the clear coat....Wet sanding might also be a soloution as last result...I agree with Luster depends on how long they have set on the car and the weather conditions.
 
working on nissans all day i have noticed their clear cote and paint aren't as strong as domestic vehicles. bugs eat through really quick. if the above advice doesn't work they are s.o.l., i love nissan's but i wish the paint was stronger.
 
I've tried a few things, everything but wet sanding, since I want him to be able to go to the dealer without more damage. I cleaned the bugs, but their splatter left a white indent on the bumper--not on the hood. I used a product that softens the clear coat and blends it, polishes of varrying levels, chemicals. Nothing worked.
 
This is a very interesting thread because I have the same problem on my Grand Cherokee. I have tried polishing it out, but nothing works. Let me know what works for you if you decide to do further work on it.
 
joshcaro said:
This is a very interesting thread because I have the same problem on my Grand Cherokee. I have tried polishing it out, but nothing works. Let me know what works for you if you decide to do further work on it.
Click to expand...

I'll hear about it because the guy goes to my church. His detail was $250, so he won't forget it, and stopped by once already to talk about the bumper (his wife picked up the car). These kinds of things make me sick to the stomach, even though it's not my fault.
The red and grey bug juice looked better than the white damage.

Hey maxim, I've noticed that Nissan paint isn't as good, but would have expected that the redesign would have worked it out.
I saw someone peel paint off a bumper of an 01 with a low pressure stream. And the flex agent is clearly inferior.
I like the lines of the new Maxima though.
 
The customer went to his dealer, and the Nissan/Suburu dealer said that the warranty won't cover that and they'll have to repaint.
Nasty. Too bad too, left a bad taste on a fantastic job.
 
do not try polishing out use something like prep solvent and a rag to get these out then polish it with a selent.

newcommer-:rockon
 
newcommer said:
do not try polishing out use something like prep solvent and a rag to get these out then polish it with a selent.

newcommer-:rockon
Click to expand...

In this case I had gone over it 3 times with a prep solvent (Klene-Sol by Dupont). These were actually holes in the paint.
Most of the time bug stains are just stains. Some polish out; some don't.
 
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