Quote:
Originally Posted by Security_IE
My '21 X5 ... got blasted with asphalt tar ... Any suggestions on a good tar remover to break this stuff down?
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Yup,
Rapid Remover:
(1.) Wash & dry the area well (sounds like you did, but if you've driven the car since, do it again)
(2.) Spray on RR, give it 60 secs of "dwell time"
(3.) Using a clean MF rag, lightly rub the surface until dry
Repeat until gone with a clean MF each time.
Given your pic, plan on at least 2 - 3 applications in the same area until it all comes out. Note that sometimes it'll look like there's still something there, but this may be chips out of your paint and/or clear coat etching. The easiest way to tell is to put your hand in a ziplock or baggie and rub your fingers over the area; if you feel nicks (vs bumps), thats means you need paint repair. Bumps means you need to clay that area which, depending, you may want to do after as well after the RR.
If you do have nicks & chips you might want to have a pro polish it out and/or touch-up the paint & clear coat.
Now for the controversial part:
You may want to ditch the foam gun / 2 bucket wash method
The reason is, unless you really enjoy it - like a lot, and would do it every day if your family didn't hate you for it - because it takes awhile, and it requires water & a lot mess, even for people who don't mind doing it, it tends to lessen the number of times they do it.
If you're interested, a much less time consuming and equally good method (better IMO) is using a no-rinse wash like Optimum or Meguiers or whatever (I like Optimum wash-n-wax):
(1.) Mix the NR double-strength w/ 1/2 gallon of distilled water, put 3 clean MFs in the bucket.
(2.) Put some NR solution in a plant sprayer & spray one panel
(3.) Take an MF from the bucket, squeeze just until its not sloppy and fold into 4ths; each clean 1/4 of MF will be used for 1 panel, hood=2 panels. NEVER put the MF back in the bucket, once it's out, it's out.
(4.) GENTLY wipe the panel in 1 direction until the dirt is gone, use a 2nd dry 1/4 of MF in the other hand to dry the panel
(5.) Optional: spray on a hybrid ceramic finisher like meguires
If you do this every 2ish weeks (takes like 20 min max) it'll provide a sacrificial coating and things like tar, bugs, and bird poop comes right off with no etching.
You can also do ceramic, PPF, or both, but for $100 all-in for years you can do 20 minute no-water washes every few weeks (30 sec set up, minimal mess, no hoses, etc) and, to my eye, it's equal or better than ceramic with minimal scratches.