How to Remove Tar from Your Car Without Damaging the Paint – Jalopnik

The government doesn’t care about the new wax job on your car. They prove this every day by laying new asphalt on roads and streets. They love to cover the tops of roads with tar that shoots up and sticks to your car like a barnacle to an old boat. And if you take your car to a car wash, you often won’t get rid of it, which is bad since tar is one of the many things that can ruin your paint job.

Before you take an ice scraper or razor blade to your car’s clear coat, you may want to consider some products designed for these types of problems. Indeed, there are products specifically made to remove residue such as tar from your car without ruining the paint. For example, there’s Chemical Guys TAR Pro, which is said to dissolve tar quickly and smell a bit like orange. There’s also Stoner Car Care Tarminator (such a cool name) that does the job while being a little easier on the wallet. If you want to clean your wheels in addition to removing tar, you can try Meguiar’s G180132 Ultimate, which does both. Other products include 3M Specialty Adhesive Remover, available in tape form, Turtle Wax T-520A Bug & Tar Remover, Griot’s Garage Bug & Smudge Remover, CarPro TarX and clay bars, to name a few.

Of course, you can also go the home remedy route with items you have around the house. WD-40 is said to be good for loosening tar, but you’ll want to wash it off as soon as you get the tar off. Goo Gone works much the same way. Peanut butter, while messy, can also work, but let’s call that the “nuclear option.”

Next you will want to apply the tar remover. Some labels may assure you that the product is safe to spray or apply directly to the vehicle. But for the best peace of mind, you can always spray it on the microfiber cloth and then wipe it over the tar. Whatever you do, don’t try to remove the tar with a dry microfiber cloth. That type of cloth is not designed to break down tar and can cause damage to the paint. You may need to use multiple microfiber cloths to get the job done, so be prepared for that.

For extra stubborn tar, you can use a piece of clay. Clay bars are ideal not only for removing tar and other embedded dirt, but also for rust stains. Clay Bar sets usually come with a bottle of lube. This is to prevent the rod from becoming sticky on the car, but clay rods are not abrasive. Remove a small amount of clay from the stick, knead it into a flat shape that you can rub against the car, grease it and remove the tar. Your car will probably need a good wash after you remove the tar.

Primarily, these products are good at breaking down substances like tar and even removing bumper stickers, but they are not designed to remain on your car’s paint. So wash the product thoroughly from the car immediately after use. It is also a good idea to test the product on the paint of an invisible part of your car before attempting to remove the tar. Furthermore, using WD-40 or Goo Gone is similar to using specialty remover products. First wash the car and then spray the WD-40 on the tar. Let it soak for 10 to 30 minutes and then use a microfiber cloth to remove the tar. Then wax the car.

Finally, there is peanut butter. You would use it (the creamy kind, not crunchy) as we described when using the other products, except you would spread the peanut butter on the tar and wait 30 minutes to wipe the tar off, along with the swarm of ants that have likely descended on the vehicle. Ants or not, you’ll be dealing with a sticky mess. Whichever method you choose, know that you can remove the tar from your car without ruining the paint.