# Best tar remover ?



## Stephenmoore30 (Dec 23, 2011)

Hi folks.

Washed my Audi today , v cherry non acid wheels, snow foamed, rinsed, two bucket wash with cg maxi suds, rinsed, snow foamed again and towel dryed.

Was going to clay however paintwork has an awful lot of tar, round the arch's skirts etc.

What is the best tar remover to use and the correct way to go about it?
Cars white by the way if that matters? 

Thanks Steve


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## -Kev- (Oct 30, 2007)

autosmart tardis without doubt for me. spray on and wipe off (then rinse to remove all residue) or simply spray on, rinse off after a short dwell time


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## 888-Dave (Jul 30, 2010)

Yup, Tardis is the way to go :thumb:


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## Stephenmoore30 (Dec 23, 2011)

Thanks Kev


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## -Kev- (Oct 30, 2007)

make sure to get a few spare spray heads too - strong stuff


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## TheGooner84 (Jun 29, 2010)

another vote for tardis as well


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## 888-Dave (Jul 30, 2010)

Don't know what keeps happening to your spray heads Kev? mine last for months.
Do you use the grey chem res ones?


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## Stephenmoore30 (Dec 23, 2011)

-Kev- said:


> make sure to get a few spare spray heads too - strong stuff


Hav a few cg heavy chemical spray bottles they do?


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## Spoony (May 28, 2007)

For cheapness it's tardis but I also rate Maxolen sticky stuff remover highly.


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## -Kev- (Oct 30, 2007)

888-Dave said:


> Don't know what keeps happening to your spray heads Kev? mine last for months.
> Do you use the grey chem res ones?


yep, mine last quite well too. just a general tip really 
guess it depends how often its used too..


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## robbo2g (Oct 16, 2010)

Don't use tardis indoors and wear gloves it stinks and is harmfull.Does an amazing job though.I spray every panel in it and leave for 5 then soak a rag in it and go round it's easy to use on White,silver red cars.


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## shaunwistow (May 13, 2011)

Another one for Tardis, reckon the OP has got his answer


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## -Kev- (Oct 30, 2007)

robbo2g said:


> Don't use tardis indoors and wear gloves it stinks and is harmfull.Does an amazing job though.I spray every panel in it and leave for 5 then soak a rag in it and go round it's easy to use on White,silver red cars.


must have alot of tar remove then lol


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## hagler (Dec 30, 2011)

I quite like the ag one, it doesnt smell too bad and doesnt need much work to get the tar off, im of course a noob and most of my stuff is what i can get local like halfords etc


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## Trip tdi (Sep 3, 2008)

White spirit, its cheap thats why.


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## TheGooner84 (Jun 29, 2010)

hagler, if someone close to you can get you some tardis youll see theres a big difference.

i tried the AG stuff and i might has well have been using water. soaked a rag and spent ages trying to clean the tar off.

Tardis spray on and watch the tar literately melt off. depending on how often you detar the car is cheaper as well.
is it not around £5 for a 500ml bottle from halfords ? my AS dealer is £18 for 5 ltrs and ive heard of some being cheaper


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## DMH-01 (Mar 29, 2011)

Tardis takes some beating :thumb:


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## hagler (Dec 30, 2011)

Im getting into the swing of as im starting to run out buying better off the net, i spray mine on leave it for a few mins then buff off but you do have to work to get it off. My car never really gets too bad but i can imagine for tar thats been on there a while or you have loads the ag stuff not doing the job without some cursing lol


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## nick.s (Dec 21, 2009)

Out of the handful I've used, the ones I will go back to are AB Just The Tonic and Tardis


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## robbo2g (Oct 16, 2010)

-Kev- said:


> must have alot of tar remove then lol


Yes.lol every panel on every car I've done has it on and I like to remove it all before I wax so it's 100% clean and tar wont stick as easy on the wax coating


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## wylie coyote (Jul 15, 2007)

nick.s said:


> Out of the handful I've used, the ones I will go back to are AB Just The Tonic and Tardis


Me too - impressive performance and available in smaller amounts than Tardis.:thumb:


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## MidlandsCarCare (Feb 18, 2006)

Tardis is a no brainer.


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## Jonny_McC (Apr 19, 2010)

Tardis again.

Word of warning, some guys are saying leave it on for 5 minutes. I usually remove after 1 minute max. Have seen it lift clear coat after being on a scrap panel for 4.5 minutes. (i did this as a test to see how long it would take.)

J


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## Spirit Detailing (Mar 29, 2007)

Jonny_McC said:


> Tardis again.
> 
> Word of warning, some guys are saying leave it on for 5 minutes. I usually remove after 1 minute max. Have seen it lift clear coat after being on a scrap panel for 4.5 minutes. (i did this as a test to see how long it would take.)
> 
> J


You are absolutely right.

Tardis is good, but I never recommend trade products to car owners. Used incorrectly, they can be very harmful. This is why companies, like Autosmart for example, offer training courses and have well-trained reps for people who want to use their products.

I would recommend CarPro Tar X or Maxolen Tar & Glue as retail products.

If you do buy tardis, use it in small sections. Spray on, leave for half a minute, spray a little more on the cloth and then gently wipe it away. Never touch your headlights or rear lights with it. Don't use clay after tar remover unless you wash the car first. Wear gloves and work in a well ventilated area. You will definitely need to seal the paint, perhaps even need an AIO on the area you just used the TR on. Try not to use it in direct hot sunshine (not much chance these days! )

Tar removers in general are usually either modified white-spirit based or modified naphtha based chemicals. They organic compounds called hydrocarbons. They include:
•Benzene
•Dichloromethane
•Light aromatic naphtha
•Methane chloride
•Toluene
•Xylene

You don't want to get it on your skin, especially not in your mouth, eyes or ears.

This side of the world, its mostly white-spirit based tar removers on the market. The US has a lot of Naphtha which is a bit kinder to paint. You can also get products that are derived from Terpenes which are orange oil solvents. Zymol use these in their waxes to suspend the beeswax and carnauba along with montan acid and other stuff. CarPro and Dodo use them in tar removers.

I would select a retail product, if I were you. The reason trade product is so powerful and corrosive to tar is because Valet centres and Dealers don't have time to be waiting around and time is money in these situations. Strong solvents affect the the surface of the paint and can deteriorate the gloss finish. Just because you don't see it that day or that week, doesn't mean that it isn't happening.

About 5 years ago, I tested tar removers on paint - some of them cause bubbling, melting, separation from the metal, etc. Its pretty ugly and can happen surprisingly quickly. I just say this so that when anyone picks a tar remover, its very wise to follow the manufacturers instructions carefully both in terms of use and in terms of safety protocol.

Sorry for being boring!! LOL!

Brian


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## Grawschbags (Apr 15, 2010)

Another vote here for Tardis. 

WD40 does a good job as well, and everyone has a tin of that kicking about!


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## Trip tdi (Sep 3, 2008)

Good thread here, very informative.


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## loo_goblin (Jun 11, 2008)

I really rate Mark V Qwik Solv


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## great gonzo (Nov 4, 2010)

I have been using dodo juice glue & tar remover recently and although its nice and easy to use and smells great it's still not as affective as Tardis. I will carry on using the dodo stuff till it runs out and get some more Tardis next.


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## bidondus (May 21, 2010)

Valet Pro Citrus Tar & glue remover


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## cotter (Aug 31, 2008)

Tardis all the way :thumb:


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## Alzak (Aug 31, 2010)

another vote for tardis :thumb:


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## maikolo (Oct 27, 2009)

Tardis FTW


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## Stephenmoore30 (Dec 23, 2011)

Got to be tardis then !

Will take all comments on board and try it out on my wee runabout or old panels first.

Cheers guys great answers again!
Steve


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## Tips (Mar 27, 2011)

Forza Tardis!!

You can buy 500 ml bottle here to see if you like it otherwise you won't be able to purchase less than 5l from your rep.

Hope that helps.


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## VinnyTGM (May 10, 2010)

AG trade tar remover is very strong, works great.


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## chillly (Jun 25, 2009)

Whats this Tardis thread about


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## Clean-my-sxi (Feb 5, 2008)

chillly said:


> Whats this Tardis thread about


You jump in the tardis go back in time and chizam the tar is gone.

Only heard just the tonic mentioned once, thought that had some hype around it


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## Jai (Mar 16, 2010)

Tardis every time for me


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## Ronnie (Nov 15, 2006)

If you would like to try some Tar Cleanse i have some samples. its a simple spray on leave for several minutes and powerhose off. for really stubborn tar spray on leave to soak then use a microfibre to wipe off.


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## GJM (Jul 19, 2009)

DMH-01 said:


> Tardis takes some beating :thumb:


Have you tried Nielsens? Tardis wins the price war but Nielsens seems to be much more effective


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## Stephenmoore30 (Dec 23, 2011)

Ronnie said:


> If you would like to try some Tar Cleanse i have some samples. its a simple spray on leave for several minutes and powerhose off. for really stubborn tar spray on leave to soak then use a microfibre to wipe off.


Hi ronnie that would be great can you pm me the details. Thanks steve


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## chillly (Jun 25, 2009)

Ronnie said:


> If you would like to try some Tar Cleanse i have some samples. its a simple spray on leave for several minutes and powerhose off. for really stubborn tar spray on leave to soak then use a microfibre to wipe off.


Post it up Ronnie nothing wrong with showing off a pic of your product to see. Samples sound good :thumb:


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## Sander (Apr 1, 2011)

Any pics of tardis in action?


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## Guest (Jan 18, 2012)

Tardis hands down


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