Washed my car on Sunday, and as everyone knows, that's when birds tend to do their thing. Came home, parked, and next time I went out to the car (3-4 hours later) I noticed a nice hardened cake of bird crap on my bonnet, up near the air vents. Instead of doing what I should have done (spray it, let it soak for a few minutes), I sprayed it and rubbed it out forcefully with a paper towel. Now I've got a small (less than a square inch) patch of dulled-down clear coat that's fairly conspicuous. Will my next waxing take care of it, or is there something else I need to do?

I tried searching around, but couldn't find any info on this type of problem.
Chris

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2003 Cooper, Borla exhaust, Moss intake, Magnecor plug wires - Brookline, MA

 

Unless you had a clear coat added to your mini from the dealer, you do not have clear coat. Mini uses a water-based paint unlike many of the other manufacturers. The paint is very soft. If you look closely at area that was dulled out due to the bird crap, you will probably notice that the paint actually was moved and there is a slight depth difference. Bird excrement and other chemical fallout will hurt the paint. Waxing does very little to protect as is wears away or if you live in a hot area, wax softens or melts. One of the best ways to protect your paint inexpensively is to use 5 Star Shine protectection. I had a problem with my paint as others in my area and we contacted Mini USA who told us what I thought they would say. Nothing they can do. To get 5 Star here is the address: http://www.5starshine.com/ Better than anything! It works we have had it on our Mini for 6 months now and I did get pooped on without damage. By the way, all car manufacturers are moving to water based paint by I think 2005 as mandated by the Fed Gov. for environmental purposes.

 

Hmmmm. I am always naturally suspicious of these kinds of claims. My confidence is further shaken by the list of other "miracle products" that they link to at the bottom of their site. The stuff sure sounds interesting, though. Thanks!

 

>>Hmmmm. I am always naturally suspicious of these kinds of claims. My confidence is further shaken by the list of other "miracle products" that they link to at the bottom of their site. The stuff sure sounds interesting, though. Thanks!

I don't know about this manufacturer but a few years ago BMW was offering this PTFE treatment for their cars. I took my BMW motorcycle into the car dealership and had them do it. Not only did it keep the shine, but you were expressly warned not to wax it as this would cloud the shine!

If this product is as good as what BMW offered (or still offers?) it would save a lot of work.