Long-lived bird crap

D

DAC17

Member
Just bought a 2016 ruby red Ford Escape. Although I knew it had been sitting on the lot for a few months, I made the mistake of not checking the roof for spots. Unfortunately, there are several areas where the birds crap has been sitting for a while before the washing. Are there any particular tricks besides the use of a good clear-coat compound?

Thanks.
 
First off, Id let the dealer know. Possibly even demand they re clear the roof.

If if you want to handle it yourself, start with a finishing polish and see if that gets it out, go more aggressive if needed. If it comes down to needing to wet sand, I would take it back and have them fix it.
 
ShaneB: Thanks. I really dont trust the dealer, so thought Id try it myself first. That way I wont do further damage, and if I cant get it out, no harm no foul.
 
Good plan. Bird droppings can wreak havoc on the clear. If it got in too deep youre looking at possible premature clear coat failure, which is why Id advise letting the dealer know of the problem and seeing if you can get them to fix it. I dont blame you for not trusting them, but if it comes down to needing to respray the roof, youre better off getting it done on their dime rather than yours.

If you can get rid of the etching with a polish, youre probably ok. If you need a compound, probably still ok as long as it comes out 100%. If that isnt enough to safely remove it, its pretty deep and will cause the paint to fail in that area much sooner than it would of if not damaged.
 
The good news is that the car is on a 36-month lease, so its likely that the paint wont fail on my watch. Im letting the dealer know on Monday if I cant remove it, though.

Thanks again for the advice.
 
Neutralize the acids that are in the pores of the paint with an alkaline Decontamination product like ValuGard "A", which is made for that and tested/approved/available through Ford. Dont just polish it as any residual acids will continue to eat at the clear. "There wont be any residual acids once I polish" would be a very risky assumption ;)
 
Pointing it out to the Ford dealer (assuming you can convince them it was like that when delivered) ought result in "hey, we should have fixed that with the Valugard Decontamination System! Lets use that stuff on it now." I mean...this is *exactly* why its in the Ford parts catalog; its the Ford part-numbered product used to fix that sort of contamination.

Maybe theyll give you the stuff so you can DIY it (Id be leery of letting them wash it).

Eh, I hate it when somebody pays good money for a brand-new car and gets something thats damaged.
 
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