[nettooran]

However hard you try to clean your car, little black spots , mainly tar remains on the side of your car. They may be small spots and may not be clear with a quick view. However on closer inspection, they may be a little sore to the eye. The service guy may clean it up for you, but that is at a cost.

Here is a simple DIY to get rid of those spots. All you need a little diesel, a table spoon of washing powder, and a cleaning cloth.

This is my car after a general wash. It looks clean in this view.



However on a closer inspection, we can see dark spots of tar all along the side.





Take a tablespoon of ordinary washing powder(do not use the low quality ones with too much chemicals.) Add little diesel to it and an equal amount of water.( I use 50 ml.). Stir the mix nicely.







Soak a clean cloth (your old cotton vests would be an ideal choice) in the solution and rub on the spots. Apply a little pressure on hard spots. The video below shows you how easily the spots get erased off.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ycQrXJgki8U

After this you may clean the part with you usual car shampoo/ car wash, to remove the diesel stains from the car body.



Now you can see the result.




As simple as that !!

[lurker]

OR you can just apply kerosene twice, first apply some kerosene on the tar spots with a piece of cotton and let it absorb for about 5 minutes. Then again after 5 minutes have elapsed, wipe away the tar spots with a clean cloth dipped in kerosene again, this time a bit more forcefully.

Be careful not to leave scratch-marks on the surface with the tar spots stuck in the cloth by dragging the kerosene soaked-cotton along the surface. Also do not do this in bright sunlight, but only in the shade.

[vijay_rodie]

This is good.
I generally use only diesel. Apply some diesel to black spot, leave it for a minute, it just dissolve the tar marks. Wipe off with cotton cloth.

Next time I will try adding washing powder & water as you mentioned.

[Jaggu]

You don't need the washing powder, i use plain diesel. Use a cloth to apply a layer, leave it for few minutes and wash it off with good ol car shampoo and lot of water. Reason why i said no to washing powder is, there is a chance that it will leave swirl marks unless you are extremely careful.

[anjan_c2007]

I would also suggest use of kerosene and a paint brush. The kerosene can be put in a small container and the tar spots wipe off with the paint brush.
With the paint brush, the hands remain clean, whereas with the cloth the fingers and/or hands can get messed up.
The residue (solvent viz. tar plus kerosene) can be removed, using the paint brush and soap water.

[bloodred]

Diesel/ Kerosene /detergent will really hurt the clear coat and make the paint highly susceptible to further damage.

Claying using Mothers/ Meguiars clay and a good lubricant is the way to go.

[rajeev k]

These black spots could be cleared with kerosene or diesel alone using ear buds. Earlier there was a Duco make silicone liquid polish was available which was quite good for this purpose.

[pjbiju]

Having used kerosene, diesel etc. I find that the best solution is WD-40. Spray it over the area. Leave it for a couple of minutes. Wipe clean the area. I always keep of can of WD-40 in the car.

[Hegdapo]

Thanks for the post nettooran, 3M guys here in bangalore said it would cost 3.5k to remove these marks, that too cause I know this owner, at first he said 5k. I will try your DIY, may be only with diesel.

[josejoseph]

Originally Posted by pjbiju

Having used kerosene, diesel etc. I find that the best solution is WD-40. Spray it over the area. Leave it for a couple of minutes. Wipe clean the area. I always keep of can of WD-40 in the car.

I used to do this for removing tar spots but later realized that using WD-40 is a costly affair . Using diesel is the best way.

[airfoil]

Laundry detergent is a big no-no for painted surfaces. Just plain diesel/kersosene or a mixture of them with car shampoo or even hair shampoo will be less harmful for the paint.

I like the idea of WD40 and shall try it the next time around.

[lurker]

Originally Posted by pjbiju

Having used kerosene, diesel etc. I find that the best solution is WD-40. Spray it over the area. Leave it for a couple of minutes. Wipe clean the area. I always keep of can of WD-40 in the car.

WD40 is Kerosene-based and is nothing but Kerosene with some added penetrants.

[Chris_Xtreme]

Kerosene and Diesel are the best bets for removing tar marks and bugs. Having tried both, I feel that diesel does a better job than kerosene.

[torquecurve]

Please go to the detailing thread for more ideas.

Remember - Diesel, Petrol, Kerosene are solvents (petrochemicals) which dissolve tar as it is a lower grade obtained from the same crude.

They will also affect your paint and over time make it dull.

Also washing soap (however expensive) has some added agents which are highly caustic and WILL affect your clear coat.

Safest way is to use WD40 or Zorrik88 (Pidilite) which are cost effective compared to the car paint. A quick spray and a wipe with a microfibre or cotton cloth and you are good to go.

You could also spray these on a cloth and then use it to clean the spots. Lot Safer.

[msvg]

Very USeful and easy step to clear off the tar marks on the car.
Thank you nettoran for sharing with the whole Jantha of T Bhp.