I have a few blobs of clear, extremely sticky, silicone-like substance on the rear glass/roof/body of my car. At first I tried to remove one of the big blobs, but it left a big smear on the car, and now it's harden up and I cannot remove it. I tried to wash it off and the fingernail trick but that didn't work, now it's sticking to the car like glue.

From what I've described, is this tree sap? My friend told me it is but I cannot confirm. I do remember parking under a pine tree at work last Friday. Right now the big blobs are still a bit soft and extremely sticky but the smears are all hardened up. How can I remove them? Help!! Please!!! :'(

 

Quoted from Autopia. Check out this great site
http://www.autopia-carcare.com/inf-tar.html


TREE SAP
Removing tree sap from a car's finish is a bit more difficult than tar, as hardened sap can easily scratch your paint. I've found that by hand-rubbing the sap spots with mineral spirits or denatured alcohol, I'm able to easily remove the sap without damaging the finish. Mineral spirits and denatured alcohol act as a solvent to break up and dissolve the sap.

If there is a large amount of sap on the car, or if the sap has been left on the finish for an extended period of time, it can be a lot of work to remove. For these cases, I discovered that hitting the affected areas with a light-duty buffing compound removes the hardened surface on the sap spots. Then I can go back and use mineral spirits to remove it. The light duty buffing compound softens the sap so the mineral spirits or denatured alcohol can do its job. The goal is to use the least pressure possible to reduce the risk of scratching the paint. After removing heavy sap, I always buff the treated areas with a good polish to clean up any marks created during hand-rubbing with solvent. The treated area must also be re-waxed.

 

Thanks for the great info!

However, for the underinformd (i.e. ME), what is 'mineral spirit' and 'denatured' alcohol? and where would I be able to find these things?? Will regular rubbing alcohol also work?

 

they're basically rubbing alcohol, you'll find mineral spirits next to it at CVS for example

 

I had a few blobs of sap on my old car's winshield once...I used goo-gone and it took it right off. I don't know about using goo-gone on paint though..

 

I had no problem w/ using goo gone to remove tape that was holding the emblems on, didn't affect the paint.

 

sweet!! Good to know

 

Thanks guys, will try it out this week, hopefully will have the time soon. I'll let you guys know how it worked out.

 

This post led to my having a dream about my car covered in sap

 

A dream elicited by the TSX forum.

Now that's what you call impact.

 

Ummm... yeah... i'm going to get back to work now...





(no I'm not)

 

I had a similar problem last week when my wife parked TSX under some trees at work. I didnt notice until my next wash which by then was too late. It had hardened like granite. I used Einszetts Acrysol and it wiped right off. No problems at all. If you dont have a similar product then try using clay to remove on painted surfaces and a razor blade on glass surfaces. Goof Off will also remove without damage to paint.

 

So I've tried it........ I used rubbing alcohol because that was the only thing I had laying around the house. I went ahead and put it on the car, gave it a few rubs, and it worked like magic! It came off so easily it's almost like it's too good to be true. I'm not THAT paranoid about my car but I almost thought I would have that stuff on my car forever because I smeared it all over the car.

Thanks guys!!

It makes me wonder if I can use rubbing alcohol to clean the stubborn bug juice that's stuck on the front bumper?

 

Although there is nothing wrong with using Alcohol to remove the sap you have to remember that you also just removed your wax (assuming the car has a good coat of wax). Just be sure to hit that part again with your favorite wax.

 

Dishwashing Soap will work too...........but then you'll have to wax your car afterwords

 

Thanks for the reminder, I just got my zaino z2, z5 and zfx, hopefully I'll have time to do it soon

Any ideas if zfx actually works? That tiny little portion of it selling for almost $20 makes me wonder....

TSXtc, do you own TSX and tC? If so, how's the tC??? Looks like a great car for the price...

 

No, we just have a TSX. The zfx actually does work. Whether its worth the price is the opinion of the user. If you dont have alot of time to wait for your layers to cure, then yes, its worth every penny. If your TSX isnt a daily driver then it may not be worth it. Have you tried the Z6? It goes well in between layers and really gives it an extra "pop". Since the Zanio system is near optically perfect, it really compliments it well. Good luck.