[benVFR]

So VT apparently does not like Acuras.

My car got battered with tree sap & bug guts all last week. I sprayed it off a couple times with a hose & took it to the car wash but to not much effect.

All the horizontal surfaces of the car got coated with little bits of tree sap.

I've cleaned it 2-3x and am trying anything I can to clean it off but it seems like it just about ruined the paint.

I've used bug/tar wipes, degreaser (even at 2x the strength I use on my bike chains!), and WD-40. (WD-40 was the best, kind of a surprise)

The WD-40 might do the trick if I sit there and scrub the car for 2-3 days straight.

Basically every area where the sap hit the car has a little spot that isn't shiny.

I showed it to a detailer & he said $100 and he would guarantee he'd get it all off. But he said he was going to use Lacquer thinner & CLR to get it off and would then wax it. I am wondering if he was just planning on taking my clearcoat right off and then trying to get the shine back with wax.

Any thoughts? For what it's worth my VFR has gotten dumped on with this same sap. (Willow tree) The bike must have superior paint as it cleans off the bike easily although I think my car being black is part of the problem.

[dhuze]

Try a little cooking oil. It works on pine sap when it's on your hands. It can't hurt to try it out.

[joberly]

I don't know how much sap you have to deal with, but I use Purell (the hand sanitizer) in small amounts and it comes off. I know rubbing alcohol works too, but I don't know the effects it has on paint? The purell just has a smaller amount of alcohol so I haven't had a problem, just don't use a shitload.

[benVFR]

I tried the vegetable oil this morning.. no effect.

At this point I'm not sure if it's sap that's still on there, or if it just needs to be heavily waxed/buffed as the dull spots are where everything is stripped off.

In any case I'm going to have to pay someone to do it. There are literally hundreds of spots so unless I found something that worked flawlessly & easily it's worth the money to let someone else do it.

[hqp921]

Originally posted by benVFR
...
My car got battered with tree sap & bug guts all last week. I sprayed it off a couple times with a hose & took it to the car wash but to not much effect.

...

I've used bug/tar wipes, degreaser (even at 2x the strength I use on my bike chains!), and WD-40. (WD-40 was the best, kind of a surprise)

...

Basically every area where the sap hit the car has a little spot that isn't shiny.

... The bike must have superior paint as it cleans off the bike easily although I think my car being black is part of the problem.

Did you actually use a bug/tar remover? Or just the wipes? Try the actual remover. WD-40 does work pretty well, you might want to try Goo Gone or some laquer thinner (NOT paint thinner!). One of those should do the trick.

How old is the car? Do you garage your bike? These make a difference whether the paint is superior or not.

Black cars are the worse... I have one. It looks awesome for about 0.000485 of a second after I'm done washing and waxing it.

[benVFR]

Bike is 2 years old, car is 1 year old. Both are garaged at home, both are parked in the parking garage at work.

If lacquer thinner is really safe I suppose I can buy some and try it myself.. lacquer thinner definitely doesn't thin clearcoat or paint?

[hqp921]

Originally posted by benVFR
Bike is 2 years old, car is 1 year old. Both are garaged at home, both are parked in the parking garage at work.

If lacquer thinner is really safe I suppose I can buy some and try it myself.. lacquer thinner definitely doesn't thin clearcoat or paint?

You want to use lacquer thinner (Not paint thinner or other kinds of thinner), and a good soft towel. Keep the rag wet with the thinner and you should be able to rub the sap off.

Also... depending how long the sap has sat on your paint, it may have eaten away at some of the clearcoat already.

But, remove the sap, wash, clay bar and wax your car and you should be good!

[Doc]

Have you thought of trying Pro Honda Polish/cleaner?

That stuff works GREAT!

[benVFR]

I'll give it a try thanks.. hadn't thought of that one but I do have some.

[highsider]

Originally posted by benVFR
So VT apparently does not like Acuras.

Vermont hates all automobiles, it is very mean to them. Thats why VT cars rust out in such a big hurry and have sloppy, f'ed up suspensions after about 10,000 miles.

[hqp921]

Originally posted by Doc
Have you thought of trying Pro Honda Polish/cleaner?

That stuff works GREAT!

Ohh!! But he has an Acura!

just kidding

[benVFR]

Some ripping on Acura is probably deserved here... plenty of cars get parked under/near that tree without having this level of problem from the tree sap.

I gotta think there is something funky with this car for it to have marked up the paint so much.

[Doc]

Originally posted by hqp921
Ohh!! But he has an Acura!

just kidding

Oh Damn I forgot, that stuff doesn't work on anything but hondas!

[hqp921]

Originally posted by benVFR
Some ripping on Acura is probably deserved here... plenty of cars get parked under/near that tree without having this level of problem from the tree sap.

I gotta think there is something funky with this car for it to have marked up the paint so much.

Can't be as bad as my Subaru paint. It chips if you look at it funny!

[mikeb]

i had a black truck that i had to park under a pine tree. i used napa's bug and tar remover and it worked great.

[benVFR]

As a last try I got another type of spray bug & tar remover and a clay bar.

I just did my trunk (which is tiny since it's a hatchback).. 90 minutes.

Wash
Rinse
Dry
Bug & Tar
Scrub with towel
Rinse
Bug & Tar
Scrub with towel
Wash
Rinse
Use clay bar
Wash

This got most of the sap over to the edges of the trunk

Hit it one more time directly on the sap with bug & tar remover and it came up.

Plenty of spots I missed though.

Looks like I can do it myself but it will be a ton of work.

Basically the sap is so thin you can't feel it, but you can see it. But the clay apparently can push it around.

[R7]

Originally posted by benVFR
Some ripping on Acura is probably deserved here... plenty of cars get parked under/near that tree without having this level of problem from the tree sap.

I gotta think there is something funky with this car for it to have marked up the paint so much.

Have you been taking care of the paint up to this point? I usually always have a coat of wax on my vehicle and I have never had a problem getting the sap off if I park under a tree or something. You'd be surprised the protection a little wax offers

I don't know what your time is worth to you but if someone can clean all that stuff off your car for $100, it'd be foolish IMO to even bother trying it yourself. Sounds like you are going to spend a lot of hours getting the job done

[PinHead]

WD-40 on a rag takes off pine sap in a flash

[mmracer37]

Motul makes a cleaner called Motowash. It's safe on paint and it biodegradable. Spray it on, let it sit for 2 minutes, then wash it off. Don't use it in direct sunlight and try not to let it dry cause it leaves streaks. Ohter than that it works great.

[hqp921]

Originally posted by R7
Have you been taking care of the paint up to this point? I usually always have a coat of wax on my vehicle and I have never had a problem getting the sap off if I park under a tree or something. You'd be surprised the protection a little wax offers

I don't know what your time is worth to you but if someone can clean all that stuff off your car for $100, it'd be foolish IMO to even bother trying it yourself. Sounds like you are going to spend a lot of hours getting the job done

Some people like to clean their own cars!

+1 on the wax... just make sure your car is clean so you don't seal in the gunk.

[benVFR]

Yah I've been taking care of it. It was waxed in the last 6 weeks or so. (It's a car, not an R7, I'm not going to wash & wax it every day)

I got it done at the body shop at the dealer this morning for $42, totally worth it.

I had gotten 99% of the sap off, what I was messing with was etching in the clearcoat from the sap. They were able to buff it out. They got all but about 5 of the spots out, so for now that's good enough. I'm assuing they missed those spots as opposed to not being able to get them out, so they can probably be taken out later.

I am going to switch to a different wax though as I'm just about out of the one I was using and it apparently didn't give a lot of protection.

It was also a willow tree, which is not that common in New England AFAICT. The paint guy said willow tree sap is acidic, that's why it was a problem. Apparently you can make aspirin out of the sap, it's got a lot of nasty stuff in it.

[hqp921]

And for future reference:

http://www.autopia-carcare.com/

[legalspeed]

Has anyone noticed a difference between the different clays?

I've always used Mothers, the Showtime smells like cinnamon candy.

[benVFR]

That thing appears to require buying a porter cable polisher... looks like $200 to get started, I'd rather pay to have it professionally done every 2-3 years if I can continue to get a deal like I did this morning... I'm not anticipating having to do this again any time soon.... the car is not going to get parked anywhere near a tree anytime soon!

If there was a small pad for doing small touch up work with a dremel I'd be inclined to perhaps try that.

[hqp921]

Originally posted by benVFR
That thing appears to require buying a porter cable polisher... looks like $200 to get started, I'd rather pay to have it professionally done every 2-3 years if I can continue to get a deal like I did this morning... I'm not anticipating having to do this again any time soon.... the car is not going to get parked anywhere near a tree anytime soon!

If there was a small pad for doing small touch up work with a dremel I'd be inclined to perhaps try that.

I'm guessing you're referring to the link I posted... but I actually meant just in general for car care. It's a great site: Check out the links on the side for how-to's and product reviews, etc. It just so happens that the front page is featuring that pad.