Tar spots

Author
Discussion

nails1979

592 posts

140 months

Saturday 19th April 2014
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Tried clay vs autoglym tar remover yesterday. The tar remover won by a long shot.

Martin_M

2,071 posts

226 months

Wednesday 23rd April 2014
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I suppose it depends on how much time you have and what you hope to achieve. If you simply want to remove tar spots then the tar remover will be enough for most people. If you want to remove other contaminants as well then the clay bar is perfect for the job.

DoubleSix

11,691 posts

175 months

Wednesday 23rd April 2014
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Yup.

I used a Meguires tar remover last weekend just to check I wasn't talking bks.

It did a reasonable job of breaking down the tar but the paintwork still felt like sand paper afterwords.

Quick clay and it was smooth as glass.

nickg123

582 posts

242 months

Friday 25th April 2014
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DoubleSix said:
Martin_M said:
nickg123 said:
Claying to remove tar spots is a waste of clay as you can't re-use it, it'll also marr the paintwork far more than a chemical that you simply spray on and either rinse or wipe away. Autosmart Tardis, CarPro Tar-X or even Autoglym intensive tar remover will help... WD40 and Petrol have also been known to work but I wouldn't use them on my car.
I'm not trying to be funny but what do you use clay for? I've just clayed my whole car today and tar spots were primarily what I was removing from most panels. Once I've used clay for anything - tar spots or otherwise it gets binned anyway. The Intensive Tar Remover requires considerable elbow grease as well.
Totally, claying off tar spots was a revelation compared to traditional methods.

Maybe OP should also try this on a small area and report back...
Claying is to remove bonded contamination that can't be removed by Tar removers, Fallout removers or general washing - It will remove the last bits of contamination that you can feel under your hand when you gently touch it whilst it's wet. If you use Clay on big tar spots it will damage the area as you're effectively rubbing a large hard lump of tar over your paint, lube or not it will still cause damage so the best bet is to use a dedicated Tar removing product, I only mentioned Autoglym Intensive tar remover as most people are likely to know where to go and get it at short notice rather then being into detailing or a detailer themselves and having access to trade products etc. Autosmart Tardis will remove Tar in minutes, just spray on and watch it run in big wet brown streaks, re-apply if needed then wipe with a clean microfibre and rinse away the residue. This is the safest way to remove Tar and saves you ruining the Clay you probably pay £10-£15 for compared to £15 for 5L of Tardis.

Martin_M

2,071 posts

226 months

Friday 25th April 2014
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nickg123 said:
Claying is to remove bonded contamination that can't be removed by Tar removers, Fallout removers or general washing - It will remove the last bits of contamination that you can feel under your hand when you gently touch it whilst it's wet. If you use Clay on big tar spots it will damage the area as you're effectively rubbing a large hard lump of tar over your paint, lube or not it will still cause damage so the best bet is to use a dedicated Tar removing product, I only mentioned Autoglym Intensive tar remover as most people are likely to know where to go and get it at short notice rather then being into detailing or a detailer themselves and having access to trade products etc. Autosmart Tardis will remove Tar in minutes, just spray on and watch it run in big wet brown streaks, re-apply if needed then wipe with a clean microfibre and rinse away the residue. This is the safest way to remove Tar and saves you ruining the Clay you probably pay £10-£15 for compared to £15 for 5L of Tardis.
I take your point and it does make sense i.e. rubbing a big bit of tar over the paint but I have to say that after about 50 claying applications on various cars over the years, I have yet to scratch the paint as a result. I find plenty of lube helps me to avoid any problems. I would like to try something like the Tardis you mention though - sounds a bit like the bilt hamber wheel cleaner I use.

Squiggs

1,520 posts

154 months

Friday 25th April 2014
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Martin_M said:
Squiggs said:
Tar = soft sticky stuff that grit can stick to.
Clay = smear tar and move grit around causing scratches.
Chemical = disolve tar .... then wash grit off. Then clay.
If that's your experience then I suggest you use more lubricant. If done properly you shouldn't have any scratches...which is why I've been claying my cars for years and why most quality valeting companies also offer the service.
Ah ... but if you went up a level from valeting companies to detailing companies they wouldn't be claying tar spots off for exactly the reason I was trying to make.

At the end of the day it's just a case of how fussy you are I suppose .....
Whether you use a bucket of water and an old rag, an automatic car wash, a hand car wash, a valeting company or a detailer - each will undoubtedly make a dirty car cleaner.
But each step up the ladder cares for and cleans the paintwork a bit better than the last ... which in turn means the paintwork can be kept looking better for longer wink

Martin_M

2,071 posts

226 months

Friday 25th April 2014
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Squiggs said:
Ah ... but if you went up a level from valeting companies to detailing companies they wouldn't be claying tar spots off for exactly the reason I was trying to make.

At the end of the day it's just a case of how fussy you are I suppose .....
Whether you use a bucket of water and an old rag, an automatic car wash, a hand car wash, a valeting company or a detailer - each will undoubtedly make a dirty car cleaner.
But each step up the ladder cares for and cleans the paintwork a bit better than the last ... which in turn means the paintwork can be kept looking better for longer wink
Well said!